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Washington Post Columnist Gerson Critical Of Justice Ginsburg's Comments On Abortion In NYT Magazine Interview
"There was a scandal this week" involving Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg"s comments on abortion rights during an interview with the New York Times Magazine, according to Washington Post columnist Michael Gerson. In response to a question on access to abortion and restrictions on Medicaid coverage of the procedure, Ginsburg said, "Frankly I had thought that at the time Roe [v. Wade] was decided, there was concern about population growth and particularly growth in populations that we don"t want to have too many of. So that Roe was going to be then set up for Medicaid funding for abortion." According to Gerson, the "context surrounding this passage is a simplistic, pro-choice rant." He adds, "Abortion, in Ginsburg"s view, is an essential part of sexual equality, thus ending all ethical debate." Ginsburg in the interview also said, "There will never be a woman of means without choice anymore. That just seems to be so obvious." She added, "So we have a policy that affects only poor women, and it can never be otherwise, and I don"t know why this hasn"t been said more often."Gerson writes, "Given this context, can it be argued that Ginsburg -- referring to "populations that we don"t want to have too many of" -- was merely summarizing the views of others and describing the attitudes of the country when Roe v. Wade was decided?" He continues, "It can be argued -- but it is not bloody likely. Who, in Ginsburg"s statement, is the "we"? And who, in 1973, was arguing for the eugenic purposes of abortion?" According to Gerson, "It is more likely that Ginsburg is describing the attitude of some of her own social class -- that abortion is economically important to a "woman of means" and useful in reducing the number of social undesirables."Gerson writes, "The entire Ginsburg interview is a reminder of the risks of lifetime appointments to the Supreme Court." He continues, "Immune from criticism, surrounded by plump cushions of deference, the temperament of a justice can become exaggerated over time." He adds that her statements "would have been disqualifying" had they been made during her own confirmation hearing. "Now she doesn"t give a damn," Gerson says.He continues that Ginsburg"s "timing ... is instructive" because she made the remarks as Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor is "emphasizing her low-income and minority roots." According to Gerson, "It is estimated that the Hyde Amendment limiting Medicaid abortions has saved one million lives since its passage in 1976 -- some, no doubt, became criminals and some, perhaps, lawyers and judges." He concludes, "It is a defining question for modern liberalism: Are these men and women "populations that we don"t want to have too many of," or are they citizens worthy of justice and capable of contribution?" (Gerson, Washington Post, 7/17).
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WHO Reviews Antiretroviral Recommendations For Pregnant, Breastfeeding Women With HIV
The World Health Organization is reviewing its 2006 guidelines on the use of antiretroviral drugs by HIV-positive pregnant and breastfeeding women because of new evidence that prolonged use can cut the risk of mother-to-child transmission, Reuters reports. Current guidelines recommend that these women receive a short-course antiretroviral regimen. However, a new study released at an international AIDS conference on Wednesday shows that a stronger regimen over a prolonged period significantly lowers the risk of mother-to-child transmission.The study examined 824 pregnant women in Burkina Faso, Kenya and South Africa who received either the standard antiretroviral regimen or a combination of three antiretrovirals. The combination regimen was administered during the last trimester and for a maximum of six months during breastfeeding, according to study leader Tim Farley of WHO"s Department of Reproductive Health. Farley said women who received the combination regimen during pregnancy, delivery and breastfeeding had a 42% lower risk of transmitting HIV to their infants than women given the standard course.Farley added, "The results of this study show an almost twofold reduction in the risk of HIV transmission during the breastfeeding period and also [show] there is no short-term toxicity" to the women or their infants. He said that participants will be monitored for any long-term health effects. WHO is expected to release the updated recommendations by the end of the year (Roelf, Reuters, 7/21).
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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.
Mental Health

Nicotine Dependence Remains Prevalent Despite Recent Declines In Cigarette Use

Despite recent declines in cigarette use in the U.S., nicotine dependence has remained steady among adults and has actually increased among some groups. The finding by researchers at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health suggests that public health initiatives have been far more successful in preventing Americans from taking up smoking than in persuading hard-core smokers to stop. The study is available online in the American Journal of Public Health and will be published in the August 2009 issue. Previous studies have found that since the 1964 U.S. Surgeon General report, the number of people who smoke cigarettes has declined. The Mailman School of Public Health study takes this research a step further by distinguishing occasional smokers from heavy smokers. "Regular, heavy cigarette use frequently characterizes nicotine dependence and is the pattern of use thought to be the most detrimental to health and longevity, but it has not been addressed in previous estimates of the decline in smoking prevalence," says Renee Goodwin, PhD, associate professor of Epidemiology at the Mailman School of Public Health and principal investigator of the study. "Rather, earlier research mainly addressed tobacco use or cigarette smoking per se rather than examining the frequency and duration of cigarette use in detail." The new study finds not only that the number of nicotine-addicted Americans has held steady over the past several decades, but also that the proportion of cigarette smokers who are addicted to nicotine nowadays is greater than in previous generations. Dr. Goodwin cites a possible explanation for this latter finding. She suggests that fewer people are taking up smoking, perhaps because of anti-cigarette campaigns, leaving the ranks of current smokers filled with the nicotine dependent. Another factor that has changed dramatically in the epidemiology of tobacco consumption and dependence over the past several decades is gender. Smoking has been far more common among men than among women for most of the past forty years, though recent evidence suggests that the gender gap has narrowed, and the current study finds increases in smoking among women in several recent generations. It is also thought that socioeconomic status is a factor in cigarette use. The current study finds that younger women living in poverty had the highest rates of nicotine dependence, compared with older generations, and those not living in poverty. This suggests that despite increases in taxes and smoking costs, those most vulnerable are still heavily affected. "Passage of this month"s law governing the regulation of tobacco products and its focus on preventing smoking initiation among children is important and timely as our findings suggest that the number of people who still smoke is considerable," observes Dr. Goodwin. "Hopefully this legislation will help reduce the number addicted to nicotine in future generations since never smoking is the only sure way to prevent the development of nicotine dependence." "Given the mounting evidence that nicotine dependence plays a crucial role in smoking patterns, there is no question that future studies on curbing cigarette use need to take nicotine dependence into account," says Dr. Goodwin. Data for the study "Changes in Cigarette Use and Nicotine Dependence in the United States: Evidence from the 2001-2002 Wave of the National Epidemiologic Survey of Alcoholism and Related Conditions" is from the 2001 National Epidemiological Survey of Alcoholism and Related Conditions, a nationally representative sample of U.S. adults 18 years and older. The study was supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Stephanie Berger Columbia University"s Mailman School of Public Health


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