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Boston Arm Of Multi-City Study To Focus On Sexual Health, HIV Risk Among Black Gay, Bisexual Men
Boston-based Fenway Health and the Multicultural AIDS Coalition "have launched the recruitment phase of a new study aimed at learning more about the sexual health of black gay and bi[sexual] men and finding effective strategies for HIV prevention within the black gay community," Bay Windows reports. The study, called Project Saving Ourselves (SOS), is seeking to recruit up to 400 participants in Boston, and also is collecting data on black gay and bisexual men in New York, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Ben Perkins, Project SOS director at the Fenway Institute of Fenway Health"s research division, said, "This is pretty new. In terms of the scale, there hasn"t been anything quite like it." Perkins said there are several questions researchers hope to answer about black gay and bisexual male health and HIV prevention, but the goal is to determine what factors put them at risk for HIV and help promote better health and safe behavior (Jacobs, 7/15).
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Dems' Health Care Reform Plans Would Include Abortion Coverage, Washington Times Opinion Piece States
As lawmakers work to pass health reform legislation, "few are talking about" the "essential question" of whether "health reform will force taxpayers to pay for abortions for the first time in 30 years," Family Research Council President Tony Perkins writes in a Washington Times opinion piece. According to Perkins, "the short answer is yes" because there is no "explicit provision" in any Democratic health plan that would "[p]revent taxpayer funding of abortions as part of the health care benefit Congress is considering"; avert "delays in health care services that result in the death of the patient waiting for care"; or allow health care providers "to refuse to participate in health care-related action that violates their conscience." Perkins continues that the House"s reform proposal would provide federal coverage for ""family planning," the well-worn buzz word that includes abortion unless specified to the contrary." He adds that "it would be naive to assume, unless there is an explicit prohibition in the bill, that [HHS] Secretary Kathleen Sebelius will not use her discretion to fund abortions with taxpayers" money." Perkins also writes that the Democratic reform plans, "in short, ... attempt to be silent on the key question of whether or not to allow the U.S. government to fund abortions with taxpayers" money," and also give the HHS secretary "the power to allow taxpayer-funded abortions."He writes, "The Family Research Council"s answer is clear: There must be a permanent prohibition on taxpayer-funded abortions," as well as "provision to allow a right of conscience for doctors and nurses and other health care providers" to refuse to participate in treatments they oppose. He adds that "there can be no system of denial or delay or rationing of care." Perkins concludes, "Euthanasia by any other name is a poison pill in the health reform debate" (Perkins, Washington Times, 7/5)
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The Department Of Health And Human Services Teams Up With The White House And The Ad Council To Launch New Fatherhood Public Service Campaign
Just in time for Father"s Day weekend, the Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius announced a new public service campaign today promoting fatherhood that features a PSA by President Obama. The campaign, sponsored by the department"s Administration for Children and Families and the Advertising Council, can be found at http://www.fatherhood.gov. The public service announcements and supporting campaign materials highlight the critical role fathers play in their children"s lives.
Health Insurance

Cardiovascular Medication Costs In Canada Double

The number of prescriptions in Canada for cardiovascular medications has been increasing over the past decade, with a 200% increase in costs, found a new study in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal). In 2006, total costs of cardiovascular medications exceeded $5 billion, with statins accounting for almost 40% of the expenditure. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of premature death and disability in Canada, exerting a significant societal burden. Cardiovascular drugs are the most commonly prescribed medications in the country, and expenditures outpace overall drug prescription increases. If the trend continues, costs are expected to rise to approximately $10.6 billion in 2020 and could threaten the sustainability of public drug insurance programs. Canadians spent 17 cents of every healthcare dollar on medication in 2007, representing a 16% increase in proportional healthcare spending since 1997. Factors such as population growth, increasing rates of hypertension, pharmaceutical cost inflation and an ageing population only partly explain the significant increase in costs. Variations exist across provinces, with higher costs in the east. Increases in prescription volume and use of new and more expensive cardiovascular medications are also fuelling this rise. However, this practice needs to be examined as some older, established drugs may be the most cost-effective to use. "We found that the medication classes with the greatest increases in prescriptions dispensed and associated expenditures were angiotensin receptor blockers, antiplatelets, statins and angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors," state Dr. Cynthia Jackevicius, a researcher at the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES) in Toronto and Western University of Health Sciences in Ponoma, USA and coauthors from the Canadian Cardiovascular Outcomes Research Team (CCORT). Many of these medications are brand name drugs and the authors suggest that older drugs may still be the best option. The study was conducted by researchers participating in the CCORT initiative including researchers from the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, University Health Network, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Western University of Health Sciences in Ponoma, USA; Dalhousie University; Laval University; University of Ottawa Heart Institute; Statistics Canada; McGill University and University of British Columbia. "Given the magnitude of growth of the expenditures involved, ensuring the prescribing of cost-effective medications is essential," conclude the authors. In a related commentary, Dr. Robert Califf from Duke University Medical Center writes that the higher costs of cardiovascular medication prescribing might result in a health benefit that would be worth the increases in spending. He notes that accurate information, such as including prescribing information in electronic medical records, could provide rapid evidence about the best medications for patient conditions and be incorporated into practice. Kim Barnhardt Canadian Medical Association Journal


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