Janet Onthank King -- former administrator at the Summit Medical Center abortion clinic in Birmingham, Ala. -- on Friday was arrested on misdemeanor charges, including performing illegal abortions at the clinic, according to the Alabama Attorney General's Office, the Birmingham News reports (Garrison/Walton, Birmingham News, 12/9). Summit in June yielded its license in response to a suspension order issued by the Alabama Department of Public Health on May 17 and has been closed since May 18. State health officials said a clinic staff member in February performed an ultrasound on a woman seeking an abortion and determined she was at six weeks' gestation, when she actually was almost full-term. A nurse practitioner gave the woman mifepristone, which when taken with misoprostol can cause a medical abortion, even though her blood pressure was too high. The woman six days later went to an emergency department and delivered a six-pound, four-ounce stillborn infant, according to the state health department. State Attorney General Troy King (R) and the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners are investigating the clinic for possible criminal charges (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 8/11). According to the News, Onthank King, who is a registered nurse, faces two charges of "knowingly or recklessly" performing abortions as a nonphysician and one charge of making false entries in required equipment sterilization reports. "She is definitely surprised and shocked that they would charge her," Richard Jaffe, Onthank King's lawyer, said, adding, "Her involvement in [the February] incident was minor. She performed no procedures, she prescribed no medications; in short, she committed no crime." Onthank King surrendered to the Jefferson County sheriff's office on Friday and was released on a $3,000 bond (Garrison/Walton, Birmingham News, 12/9). If convicted, she faces a maximum of six months in prison and a $1,000 fine for each charge, the AP/Decatur Daily reports. Jaffe said Onthank King's nursing license in Alabama was "still in place" (AP/Decatur Daily, 12/9).
"Reprinted with permission from kaisernetwork. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at kaisernetwork/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved
четверг, 29 марта 2012 г.
четверг, 22 марта 2012 г.
New Report Reveals Two-Thirds Of Spinal Fractures Remain Undiagnosed And Untreated
A new report issued by the International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF) for World Osteoporosis Day puts the spotlight on the severe impact of spinal fractures and calls on health professionals to recognize the signs of these fractures in their patients.
Often dismissed as simple back pain or arthritis, spinal fractures caused by osteoporosis frequently remain undiagnosed and untreated, leaving individuals at risk of further fractures and long term disability. Untreated, as many as one in five women with a spinal fracture will sustain another within twelve months.
'The Breaking Spine', authored by Professor Harry K. Genant of the University of California and Dr. Mary Bouxsein of Harvard Medical School, reveals the serious impact of these fractures and calls on health professionals to take action to diagnose patients and refer them for treatment. "Doctors must look out for evidence of spinal fractures, especially in their patients over 50 - stooped back, loss of height, and sudden, severe back pain are the three tell-tale signs, says Professor Genant. "It is essential that doctors refer these patients for further testing and that radiology reports clearly identify spinal fractures as 'FRACTURED' to avoid ambiguity." Currently, only about 40% of older women with spinal fractures visible on X-ray are tested for osteoporosis. The figure is even lower in men (less than 20%).
IOF President, Professor John A. Kanis states, "These fractures must not be ignored. Their repercussions can be severe, resulting in stooped back, acute and chronic back pain, loss of height, immobility, depression, increased number of bed days, reduced pulmonary function and even premature death." In Canada, individuals aged 50 or older who have suffered spinal fractures have a one in six chance of dying within 5 years.
Globally, spinal fractures represent a huge socio-economic burden. It is estimated that one spinal fracture occurs every 22 seconds worldwide. Studies have shown that as many as 20-25% of Caucasian women and men over 50 years of age have a current spinal fracture. Costs associated with all osteoporotic fractures are predicted to rise markedly over the next few decades as the population ages.
"At least 2 million Canadians have osteoporosis and as many as 65% of spinal fractures go undetected - their devastating consequences are clear, and it's critical to pay attention to identifying them and preventing them, " says Dr. Famida Jiwa, Acting President & CEO, Osteoporosis Canada.
The report was issued on the occasion of the North American launch of IOF's World Osteoporosis Day campaign, in cooperation with Osteoporosis Canada. Marked on October 20th, World Osteoporosis Day 2010 focuses on spinal bone health and calls for the prevention of osteoporotic fractures, including spinal fractures, as a key public health goal.
Source:
L. Misteli
International Osteoporosis Foundation
Often dismissed as simple back pain or arthritis, spinal fractures caused by osteoporosis frequently remain undiagnosed and untreated, leaving individuals at risk of further fractures and long term disability. Untreated, as many as one in five women with a spinal fracture will sustain another within twelve months.
'The Breaking Spine', authored by Professor Harry K. Genant of the University of California and Dr. Mary Bouxsein of Harvard Medical School, reveals the serious impact of these fractures and calls on health professionals to take action to diagnose patients and refer them for treatment. "Doctors must look out for evidence of spinal fractures, especially in their patients over 50 - stooped back, loss of height, and sudden, severe back pain are the three tell-tale signs, says Professor Genant. "It is essential that doctors refer these patients for further testing and that radiology reports clearly identify spinal fractures as 'FRACTURED' to avoid ambiguity." Currently, only about 40% of older women with spinal fractures visible on X-ray are tested for osteoporosis. The figure is even lower in men (less than 20%).
IOF President, Professor John A. Kanis states, "These fractures must not be ignored. Their repercussions can be severe, resulting in stooped back, acute and chronic back pain, loss of height, immobility, depression, increased number of bed days, reduced pulmonary function and even premature death." In Canada, individuals aged 50 or older who have suffered spinal fractures have a one in six chance of dying within 5 years.
Globally, spinal fractures represent a huge socio-economic burden. It is estimated that one spinal fracture occurs every 22 seconds worldwide. Studies have shown that as many as 20-25% of Caucasian women and men over 50 years of age have a current spinal fracture. Costs associated with all osteoporotic fractures are predicted to rise markedly over the next few decades as the population ages.
"At least 2 million Canadians have osteoporosis and as many as 65% of spinal fractures go undetected - their devastating consequences are clear, and it's critical to pay attention to identifying them and preventing them, " says Dr. Famida Jiwa, Acting President & CEO, Osteoporosis Canada.
The report was issued on the occasion of the North American launch of IOF's World Osteoporosis Day campaign, in cooperation with Osteoporosis Canada. Marked on October 20th, World Osteoporosis Day 2010 focuses on spinal bone health and calls for the prevention of osteoporotic fractures, including spinal fractures, as a key public health goal.
Source:
L. Misteli
International Osteoporosis Foundation
четверг, 15 марта 2012 г.
Sen. Kennedy, Rep. Waxman Write HHS Secretary Leavitt Asking For Documents Related To Former Surgeon General Carmona's Tenure
Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) on Wednesday sent letters to HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt asking for documents related to former Surgeon General Richard Carmona's four-year tenure, Reuters reports (Dunham, Reuters, 7/11).
Carmona, a former professor of surgery and public health at the University of Arizona, was nominated by President Bush to serve as surgeon general from 2002 to 2006. Carmona on Tuesday in a hearing with the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform said the Bush administration routinely blocked him from speaking out or issuing reports on human embryonic stem cell research, abstinence-only sex education, emergency contraception and other sensitive public health issues while he was serving in the position.
He also said the administration often edited his speeches for politically controversial content and encouraged him to attend internal political meetings. Carmona did not disclose the names of the administration officials who pressured him to support a political agenda over a scientific one. However, he said the officials included assistant HHS secretaries and top political appointees outside the department (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 7/11).
Waxman, chair of the House government reform committee, asked for documents related to Carmona's tenure by July 25, and Kennedy, chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, asked for documents by July 27 (Reuters, 7/11).
Kennedy's letter and Waxman's letter are available online. Note: You will need Adobe Acrobat to view Waxman's letter.
Carmona, a former professor of surgery and public health at the University of Arizona, was nominated by President Bush to serve as surgeon general from 2002 to 2006. Carmona on Tuesday in a hearing with the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform said the Bush administration routinely blocked him from speaking out or issuing reports on human embryonic stem cell research, abstinence-only sex education, emergency contraception and other sensitive public health issues while he was serving in the position.
He also said the administration often edited his speeches for politically controversial content and encouraged him to attend internal political meetings. Carmona did not disclose the names of the administration officials who pressured him to support a political agenda over a scientific one. However, he said the officials included assistant HHS secretaries and top political appointees outside the department (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 7/11).
Waxman, chair of the House government reform committee, asked for documents related to Carmona's tenure by July 25, and Kennedy, chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, asked for documents by July 27 (Reuters, 7/11).
Kennedy's letter and Waxman's letter are available online. Note: You will need Adobe Acrobat to view Waxman's letter.
Editorials
Several newspapers published editorials in reaction to Carmona's comments. Summaries appear below.
New York Times: Carmona's testimony "sounds so ham-handedly partisan that it would be laughable if it weren't so damaging to the public's understanding of important public health issues," a Times editorial says. House and Senate oversight committees "must look for ways to protect" the surgeon general from "future political interference," the Times writes, adding that Congress could give the surgeon general's office its own staff and budget and could "ban any effort to censor or delay the surgeon general's reports and speeches" (New York Times, 7/12).
Philadelphia Inquirer: "What happened to Carmona was a sickening politicization of an appointed post that should be a source of unassailable credibility on public health issues," and it "fits a pattern in the Bush White House of willfully ignoring science when the research clashes with political goals," an Inquirer editorial says. The editorial concludes that Congress should take actions to ensure the surgeon general is "on call for the public, not for a political party" (Philadelphia Inquirer, 7/12).
USA Today: Although it does not "speak well of Carmona that he accepted the muzzling" of the Bush administration, his "forthrightness" is "at least timely" because of confirmation hearings scheduled for his nominated successor, James Holsinger. The editorial concludes that despite difficulties in "bucking" a president's policy, "independent leaders" are needed to protect the public's health (USA Today, 7/12).
Wall Street Journal: Officials of any administration are "expected" to "support the policies of an elected president," and if Carmona "really thinks that the surgeon general should be above politics, 'naive' is not the first adjective that comes to mind," a Journal editorial says. If Carmona "disagreed so profoundly" with Bush's policies, he could have resigned or spoke "up anyway and face[d] the consequences," the editorial says, concluding that either option would have been "more honorable" than his "late hit on the president who appointed him" (Wall Street Journal, 7/12).
"Reprinted with permission from kaisernetwork. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at kaisernetwork/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
четверг, 8 марта 2012 г.
Antiabortion-Rights Advocates 'Keep Hammering Away' At Rights, Opinion Piece Says
Republican-led state legislatures in six states "want to deny women insurance coverage for abortions, even those willing to pay for a special rider with their own dollars," despite the national health reform law's (PL 111-148) ban on federal funding for abortion services, Business Week columnist Ann Woolner writes. "You would think abortion is illegal, or that everyone in the country holds the same religious view on when life begins," Woolner writes, adding, "But for those who oppose abortion rights, there is always another way to make it as difficult and as expensive as possible to exercise them."
State lawmakers are using a provision in the reform law to introduce bills that would "prevent all insurance plans in yet-to-be-formed exchanges from offering any kind of abortion coverage," as well as to prohibit women who "pay extra, with their own money, to buy abortion coverage," Woolner writes. Four states "already forbid most private insurance plans from offering abortion coverage except when the woman's life is in danger," and a fifth state "allows coverage in cases of rape and incest, too," she continues, noting that "customers can pay extra for insurance riders" in those states, but "[w]hether anyone actually buys the riders is a very good question."
"Regardless of who pays for what coverage, access to abortion is already shrinking," as states "keep enacting more and more barriers," Woolner says. "My point is that antiabortion forces have become so powerful that by the time the Supreme Court decides to reconsider Roe v. Wade, there won't be many abortion rights to strike down or protect," she continues. "Until they can win an outright ban, the antiabortion-rights people keep hammering away at access," Woolner writes, concluding, "They know that a right isn't much good if people can't actually use it" (Woolner, Business Week, 4/8).
Reprinted with kind permission from nationalpartnership. You can view the entire Daily Women's Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery here. The Daily Women's Health Policy Report is a free service of the National Partnership for Women & Families, published by The Advisory Board Company.
© 2010 The Advisory Board Company. All rights reserved.
четверг, 1 марта 2012 г.
Kansas AG Kline's Request For Late-Term Abortion Records "Key Issue" In State Attorney General Race
Kansas Attorney General Phill Kline's (R) request for the medical records of 90 women and girls who in 2003 underwent late-term abortions at two clinics and the lack of resulting prosecutions have become "key issue[s]" in the November election, the AP/Kansas City Star reports (Hanna, AP/Kansas City Star, 9/28). Kline in 2004 subpoenaed the records from the two clinics -- Comprehensive Health, which is operated by Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri in Overland Park, Kan., and Women's Health Care Services in Wichita, Kan. -- because he believes there is probable cause that each record contains evidence of a felony. The original subpoena asked that the records include each patient's name, medical history, birth control practices, psychological profile and sexual history and asked for the records of all women and girls who sought abortions at or after 22 weeks' gestation. The clinics in March 2005 filed a brief with the state Supreme Court requesting that the court block Kline's subpoena. The Kansas Supreme Court in February ruled that Kline can seek access to the records but that he must return to Shawnee County, Kan., District Court and present his reasons for seeking the subpoenas and any information not related to potential violations of state laws on late-term abortions or child abuse must be eliminated from the records (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 8/31). According to attorneys for the two clinics, Kline has not received the requested medical records.
Comments
Kline on Thursday said, "There are prosecutions resulting from information that has been obtained" from the medical records, adding that cases have been referred to six Kansas counties and to prosecutors in Illinois, Missouri and New York. Pedro Irigonegaray, an attorney representing one of the clinics, said, "I am disturbed that Mr. Kline continues to make suggestions and allegations about record he has never seen. ... I find it abhorrent that anyone would consider using those records for their political benefit." According to the AP/Star, Kline on Thursday said that a recently filed case in Marshall County, Kan., is an example of a prosecution that resulted from his investigation of the medical records. Kline would not say how he obtained the documents, the AP/Star reports. Mark Simpson, campaign manager for Johnson County District Attorney Paul Morrison (D), who is running against Kline for state attorney general, said, "Phill Kline knows that these cases have nothing to do with the inquisition into the private medical records of 90 Kansans," adding, "It is disingenuous to try to distract Kansans from his serious invasion of privacy by referring to unrelated cases." Morrison has said that Kline's request to obtain the records was an invasion of medical privacy and that he would drop the order if elected (AP/Kansas City Star, 9/28).
"Reprinted with permission from kaisernetwork. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at kaisernetwork/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
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