NASA wants to boost the signal coming from stars, galaxies and black holes while turning down the background noise. The U.S. space agency invented a new amplifier that can boost electrical signals from the universe and possibly help find the key to making quantum computers.
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PHILADELPHIA David Sarwer, PhD, professor of Psychology in Psychiatry and Surgery at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, has been honored by the American Society of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS) with the 2012 Circle of Excellence Award. The award recognizes achievement in education, research, patient care, administrative and/or public awareness in the field of metabolic and bariatric surgery. This is the first time the surgical society has honored a mental health professional with the award.
"I'm honored to receive this award. Since the inception of Penn's Metabolic & Bariatric Surgery Program 15 years ago, Dr. Noel Williams and the other bariatric surgeons have greatly valued the role that my colleagues and I from the Center for Weight and Eating Disorders play in the care of their patients," said Dr. Sarwer, who is also the director of clinical services at Center for Weight and Eating Disorders and the director of the Stunkard Weight Management Program at Penn Medicine. "I'm humbled to see our role in clinical care, as well as our research contributions to the field, recognized in this way. The award says great things about how bariatric surgeons and other health care professionals who work with individuals with extreme obesity value the contributions of mental health professionals."
Dr. Sarwer is a world-renowned expert in the assessment and treatment of obesity. He is principal or co-principal investigator on three NIH funded grants investigating the psychological aspects of bariatric surgery. Clinically, he conducts behavioral and psychological evaluations of patients prior to surgery. He also treats individuals with eating or other psychological concerns after bariatric surgery.
The award was presented at the 29th Annual Meeting of the ASMBS in San Diego, CA. The ASMBS is the largest organization for bariatric surgeons in the world. It works to advance the art and science of bariatric surgery and is committed to educating medical professionals and the lay public about bariatric surgery as an option for the treatment of morbid obesity, as well as the associated risks and benefits.
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Penn Medicine is one of the world's leading academic medical centers, dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, and excellence in patient care. Penn Medicine consists of the Raymond and Ruth Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania (founded in 1765 as the nation's first medical school) and the University of Pennsylvania Health System, which together form a $4.3 billion enterprise.
The Perelman School of Medicine is currently ranked #2 in U.S. News & World Report's survey of research-oriented medical schools. The School is consistently among the nation's top recipients of funding from the National Institutes of Health, with $479.3 million awarded in the 2011 fiscal year.
The University of Pennsylvania Health System's patient care facilities include: The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania -- recognized as one of the nation's top 10 hospitals by U.S. News & World Report; Penn Presbyterian Medical Center; and Pennsylvania Hospital the nation's first hospital, founded in 1751. Penn Medicine also includes additional patient care facilities and services throughout the Philadelphia region.
Penn Medicine is committed to improving lives and health through a variety of community-based programs and activities. In fiscal year 2011, Penn Medicine provided $854 million to benefit our community.
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By Tony Daltorio - July 20, 2012 | Tickers: A, BMY, LLY, QGEN, RHHBY.PK | 0 Comments
Tony is a member of The Motley Fool Blog Network -- entries represent the personal opinions of our bloggers and are not formally edited.
Nearly every investor has heard about the patent cliff facing the major pharmaceutical companies. But there is another, quiet revolution occurring in the pharmaceutical sector right nowwhich very well may change its current business model drastically. That revolution is 'personalized medicine.'
Personalized medicine is the result of advances in genetics and molecular biology. While still in its early stages, it promises improvements in patients' treatment while at the same time reducing healthcare expenditures. It does so through molecular biology and the use of diagnostic tools, which is pivotal to determine whether an individual patient will benefit from a particular drug used to treat a specific disease such as cancer.
A recent advance in personalized medicine happened when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved a test called Therascreen from Qiagen NV (NASDAQ: QGEN) that will be used in conjunction with the drug Erbitux (used for colorectal cancer) that ismarketed by Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) and Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY). The test will allow the two companies to identify the 60 percent of patients who do not have a mutation in the KRAS gene and will benefit from the drug, thus avoiding giving the drug to patients who do have the mutation and will not benefit.
Based on history, this should be a big boost for sales of Erbitux. AstraZeneca's lung cancer drug Iressa, launched in 2002, had little success because of its high failure rate. But after a diagnostic test was developed in 2009, sales began to grow as the 10 percent of patients (with an EGFR mutation) helped by the drug were identified.
Theokayfor Therascreen is a milestone since the FDA has only approved a handful of drugs with companion tests over the past decade. Perhaps best known is Herceptin from Roche ADR (NASDAQOTH: RHHBY.PK), which is given to the quarter of women with breast cancer that have a so-called over-expression of the Her2 gene. The diagnostic test is a joint venture of Genentech, now owned by Roche, and the Danish diagnostics company Dako which is now owned by Agilent Technologies (NYSE: A). Agilent bought Dako in June for $2.2 billion in cash from the Swedish private equity firm EQT.
The recent FDA approval underscores the growing importance of 'companion diagnostics' used to analyze a patient's genetics to determine whether that patient will benefit from a specific drug. This may change pharmaceutical companies' entire business models to include companion diagnostics with all of their major drugs on the market. For example, Roche says that 60 percent of the drugs in its current pipeline are linked to a companion diagnostic.
Think about it...in the future, such diagnostic testing will nearly eliminate failure of drugs to work in certain patients and those costly side effects will be avoided because drugs will only be given to patients where the genetics have been determined to be compatible with the drug.
Even though some drug companies are keeping the companion diagnostics in house, the advancement of personalized medicine is potentially great news for companies in the diagnostics business such as Agilent Technologies, which is expanding its life sciences business into a fourth division at the firm, and Qiagen, which already manufactures 30 companion diagnostic tests.
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Personalized Medicine Plus Diagnostics Equals Profits for Investors
HOUSTON, TX--(Marketwire -07/20/12)- The leading Sports Health team in north Houston and primary care sports medicine physicians of Methodist Orthopedics & Sports Medicine at Willowbrook welcome Dr. Christian Schupp to their expanding practice.
Board certified in family and sports medicine, Dr. Schupp will serve as a member of the sports medicine faculty for the Methodist Primary Care Sports Medicine Fellowship at Willowbrook and team doctor to area high school and college sports teams as a member of the Sports Health team.
"We are very excited to have Dr. Schupp join us. His experience and shared approach to treating the 'whole' athlete works in tandem with our team and what we hope to accomplish in primary care sports medicine," said Dr. Scott Rand, director of the primary care sports medicine (PCSM) fellowship program at Methodist Willowbrook and PCSM physician at Methodist Orthopedics & Sports Medicine.
Dr. Schupp obtained his medical degree from the University of Texas Medical School at San Antonio. He completed his internship and residency in the Memorial Family Medicine Residency Program in Houston and a Fellowship in Sports Medicine at Kaiser Permanente in Fontana, California. Prior to returning to Texas, he served on the faculty of the Kaiser Primary Care Sports Medicine Fellowship for five years.
He has for many years and continues to serve as an advisor to professional sports groups -- including NCAA Football and Basketball, Iron Man (Kona and The Woodlands), triathlons, marathons, and professional tennis, and cycling. He is a published author and a member of the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine as well as the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM). He was a chair of the membership committee as well as the sports fellows' case presentations on football injuries at the 2012 ACSM annual. He lectures nationally on sideline preparedness.
"We have worked hard to build an exemplary primary care sports medicine team and fellowship program -- the first of its kind in north Houston and one of only two such fellowship programs in the greater Houston area," said Beryl Ramsey, Chief Executive Officer of Methodist Willowbrook Hospital and Senior Vice President of The Methodist Hospital System.
"The addition of Dr. Schupp to our Sports Health team underscores our commitment to bringing the highest level of care and expertise to the community. We are very pleased to have him here," added Ramsey.
Located at Centerfield Drive on the Methodist Willowbrook campus, Dr. Schupp is now seeing patients at the group's new state-of-the-art orthopedic, sports medicine and rehabilitation facility -- giving patients access to the latest technology, rehabilitation resources and an advanced new human performance lab scheduled to open mid summer.
Methodist Willowbrook Hospital is a not-for-profit, faith based hospital, which is part of The Methodist Hospital System. Expanding its scope of care to serve the area in a more comprehensive way, it has received its chest pain and stroke accreditations, performs complex surgeries such as neurosurgery and open heart, and focuses on women and children in its new Women's & Children's Pavilion.
For more information on Dr. Schupp, Primary Care Sports Medicine and Sports Health or the comprehensive scope of services available at Methodist Orthopedics & Sports Medicine at Willowbrook, visit http://www.methodistwillowbrookortho.com. Or, call for a consult, toll free (855) WB ORTHO (855-926-7846).
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WALTHAM, Mass, July 20, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- BG Medicine, Inc. (BGMD), a company focused on the development and commercialization of novel cardiovascular diagnostics, today announced the filing of a 510(k) Premarket Notification with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for regulatory clearance for the ARCHITECT Galectin-3 assay, which is used with Abbott's fully automated ARCHITECT immunochemistry instrument platform. The test measures a patient's blood level of galectin-3, a protein implicated in the progression of heart failure. Subject to FDA clearance, the new application would mark the first measurement of galectin-3 on an automated platform.
"The filing of the 510(k) for the Abbott ARCHITECT marks an important milestone for BG Medicine and further demonstrates our strategy to expand the usage and availability of the galectin-3 test to broader markets," said Eric Bouvier, President and CEO of BG Medicine. "Subject to clearance by the FDA, the automated test would enable broader access and more timely information flow to physicians and their patients. We are very pleased with the Abbott collaboration and the development of the galectin-3 test on the first automated platform."
About the Galectin-3 Test, Galectin-3 and Heart Failure
BG Medicine currently markets a manual version of its galectin-3 blood test, the BGM Galectin-3(R) test, which was cleared by the FDA as an aid in assessing the prognosis of patients diagnosed with chronic heart failure. To date, data have shown that patients with elevated levels of galectin-3 are at increased risk for hospitalizations or death. BGM Galectin-3 was cleared by the FDA in 2010 and has obtained the CE mark for commercialization in the EU. BG Medicine filed for an expanded indication for the BGM Galectin-3 test with the FDA in May 2012, and has obtained CE Mark in the EU for the expanded indication. Subject to FDA clearance, the new application would expand the indicated use for the BGM Galectin-3 test to the general adult population to identify those with elevated levels of galectin-3, which is associated with an increased risk for new-onset heart failure.
Elevated levels of galectin-3 are associated with a more aggressive form of heart failure and 30% or more of mild to moderate heart failure patients have elevated levels of galectin-3. Heart failure affects an estimated 5.8 million Americans, with approximately 670,000 new cases occurring each year. The direct and indirect cost of heart failure in the United States for 2010 is estimated to be $39.2 billion.
About BG Medicine, Inc.
BG Medicine, Inc. (BGMD) is a life sciences company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of novel cardiovascular diagnostics to address significant unmet medical needs, improve patient outcomes and contain healthcare costs. The Company's first commercialized product, the BGM Galectin-3(R) test for use in patients with heart failure, is available in the United States and Europe. BG Medicine is also developing CardioSCORE, a blood test designed to identify individuals at high risk for near-term major cardiovascular events, such as heart attack and stroke. For additional information about BG Medicine, heart failure and galectin-3 testing, please visit http://www.bg-medicine.com and http://www.galectin-3.com.
The BG Medicine Inc. logo is available at: http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=8765
Special Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements
Certain statements made in this news release contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, that are intended to be covered by the "safe harbor" created by those sections. Forward-looking statements, which are based on certain assumptions and describe our future plans, strategies and expectations, can generally be identified by the use of forward-looking terms such as "believe," "expect," "may," "will," "should," "could," "seek," "intend," "plan," "estimate," "anticipate" or other comparable terms. Forward-looking statements in this news release address our expectations concerning the role that galectin-3 plays in heart failure, our expectations regarding the impact of an automated galectin-3 test on patients' and doctors' access to these testing services and how broader access may impact broader adoption and usage of galectin-3 testing services, the clinical utility of galectin-3 testing to predict outcomes in patients at risk for heart failure, and our expectations regarding anticipated clearance of the automated versions of our galectin-3 assay by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations and involve inherent risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements, as a result of various factors including those risks and uncertainties described in the Risk Factors and in Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations sections of our recent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. We urge you to consider those risks and uncertainties in evaluating our forward-looking statements. We caution readers not to place undue reliance upon any such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. Except as otherwise required by the federal securities laws, we disclaim any obligation or undertaking to publicly release any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement contained herein (or elsewhere) to reflect any change in our expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.
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James Eagan Holmes, the suspect in the Colorado shooting rampage, is described as a quiet, standoffish, graduate student from San Diego who recently dropped out of a doctoral program at the University of Colorado medical school, where he had done research.
He graduated with honors from the University of California-Riverside two years ago.
A profile of the 24-year-old suspect is beginning to emerge hours after a gunman opened fire in a crowded movie theater showing the new Batman film, The Dark Knight Rises, killing 12 people, including a 6-year-old girl. Police say 59 others were wounded or injured by tear gas the gunman set off before opening fire.
Update at 5:56 p.m. ET: So far, there are no indications that Holmes had any run-ins with the law before today, not even a traffic ticket, the Associated Press says.
Jackie Mitchell, a furniture mover who lives several blocks from Holmes' Aurora apartment building, said he shared a beer with him Tuesday at a neighborhood bar. They talked about the Denver Broncos' Peyton Manning.
"We just talked about football. He had a backpack and geeky glasses and seemed like a real intelligent guy and I figured he was one of the college students," he told AP, adding that he had a "swagger."
Update at 5:11 p.m. ET: The University of Colorado School of Medicine says Holmes was not "a medical student," USA TODAY's Haya El Nasser reports.
From June 2011 to June 2012, Holmes was a graduate student in the neuroscience program and did research in buildings on the Anschutz Medical Campus, says Dan Meyers, the medical school's communications director. "He was in some of the research towers," Meyers says, and "voluntarily left that program."
Parts of research facilities are secured and require card entry. "His access was terminated," Meyers says. "He was in the process of completing withdrawal."
Meyers would not say if any particular event led to Holmes' withdrawal and repeated, "He voluntarily withdrew."
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The suspect in a mass shooting at a Colorado movie theater was in a doctoral program but was not in medical school.
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LYNCHBURG, Va. --
Liberty University now has its own ZIP code: 24515.
Landing the new digits, a change from 24502, is the result of a process begun four years ago.
"It's not a quick or easy thing to do," U.S. Postal Service spokeswoman Cathy Yarosky said Tuesday.
Steady growth in enrollment prompted Liberty to seek the change, said Johnnie Moore, vice president of executive projects and spiritual programs at LU. Residential enrollment is about 12,750 students, Moore said.
The process began at LU by tracking the volume of mail. Officials then sent an application through the local, regional and national post offices.
According to Yarosky, a post office district manager and the interested agency or business must submit a proposal package, including an agreement that the ZIP code never will be transferred.
Bob Boyer, director of LU Postal Services, said the application was resubmitted three times before it was approved by the national office in Washington.
Liberty officials learned of the approval from the U.S. Postal Service on June 12.
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BAKERSFIELD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
American Liberty Petroleum Corp. (OTCBB: OREO) (herein after American Liberty and/or the Company) announces today that oil and gas consulting services firm Netherland, Sewell & Associates Inc. (NSAI) has terminated its consulting agreement with American Liberty as of July 18, 2012.
On April 27, 2012, American Liberty signed an engagement letter with NSAI to perform consulting petroleum engineering work as needed to assist the Company in determining next steps in the development of its Nevada-based Cortez operation. Though the Company shared information with NSAI after the agreement was signed, NSAI did not provide any specific consulting services before deciding to terminate the agreement.
Prior to the agreements termination, American Liberty had planned to undertake additional steps to stimulate the Paradise 2-12 well, one of two wells located on the 3,840-acre Cortez lease. Previous stimulation efforts included the completion of a solvent (xylene) wash treatment and the installation of a heating system. The NSAI engagement was intended to determine next steps following the completion of the stimulation program, including determining if it would be advisable to drill a third well on the Cortez lease. The Company will now re-evaluate these plans while considering all other development options.
The two wells on the Cortez lease (Cobble Cuesta 1-12 and Paradise 2-12) are situated on the Cobble Cuesta structure. The Cobble Cuesta 1-12 well was drilled on the Cobble Cuesta structures crestal area in 2006-2007 and had shows of live hydrocarbons. The Paradise 2-12 well was drilled in 2010, and included a drillstem test that recovered 87 feet of oil with pressure data indicating a low permeability oil reservoir.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Learn more about the Cortez operation and the Gabbs Valley Prospect at the American Liberty Petroleum website, where you can also find more information about the Company as well as the latest news releases: http://www.americanlibertypetro.com.
ABOUT AMERICAN LIBERTY PETROLEUM CORP.
Based in Bakersfield, California, American Liberty is a publicly traded company (OTCBB: OREO) focused on reducing Americas need for imported oil through discovering major, new onshore U.S. energy resources and by tapping overlooked or undervalued onshore domestic resources through exploration and development technologies not previously available. Recent significant discoveries underscore the potential for developing new oil and gas production solutions in western America. In the under-explored state of Nevada, American Libertys 8,157-acre Gabbs Valley Prospect is located on the 26,000-acre Cobble Cuesta structure. The Companys 7,270-acre Kibby Flat Prospect is located in the Monte Cristo basin.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS,
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Ballot Access reported on May 5 on Gary Johnson's nomination as Libertarian Party candidate for president. Now Public Policy Polling shows that Johnson may cost incumbent President Barack Obama the State of New Mexico in November.
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Libertarian Candidate Could Cost Obama the Win in New Mexico
Sponsors of the marijuana legalization measure on the Oregon ballot announced Friday that Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson is endorsing their initiative.
Johnson, the former governor of New Mexico, has been a firm proponent of legalizing pot and has said that he regularly smoked marijuana from 2005 to 2008 as he recovered from serious injuries following a paragliding accident.
Johnson won the national Libertarian Party's nomination in May but has not been formally placed on the Oregon ballot at this point. Assuming that he does, his backing for the Oregon measure could attract votes from many of the state's ardent supporters of marijuana legalization.
That could pull votes from President Barack Obama, who has disappointed some of his supporters from 2008 because he has refused to endorse legalization.
Johnson has also endorsed marijuana legalization measures in Colorado and Washington.
"Regulating marijuana and restoring agricultural hemp to America's farmers and entrepreneurs makes sense for Americas economy and for its national security, Johnson was quoted as saying in a press release from the campaign for the Oregon Cannabis Tax Act. If you believe in the sanctity of individual rights and personal responsibility, and want to see your government focus on real threats and crimes, I urge you to support Measure 80.
Johnson's running mate, former California judge Jim Gray, also endorsed the measure.
--Jeff Mapes
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Gary Johnson, Libertarian presidential candidate, endorses Oregon marijuana initiative
ScienceDaily (July 20, 2012) NOAA Ship Oscar Elton Sette arrived back in its homeport of Honolulu a few days ago after a month in Papahnaumokukea Marine National Monument. The team of 17 scientists collected nearly 50 metric tons of marine debris, which threatens monk seals, sea turtles and other marine life in the coral reef ecosystem, in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI). NOAA has conducted annual removal missions of marine debris in the NWHI since 1996 as part of a coral restoration effort.
"What surprises us is that after many years of marine debris removal in Papahnaumokukea and more than 700 metric tons of debris later, we are still collecting a significant amount of derelict fishing gear from the shallow coral reefs and shorelines," said Kyle Koyanagi, marine debris operations manager at NOAA Fisheries' Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center and chief scientist for the mission. "The ship was at maximum capacity and we did not have any space for more debris."
Scientists load boats with marine debris collected at Midway Atoll in Papahnaumokukea Marine National Monument. High resolution (Credit: NOAA) This year, marine debris was collected from waters and shorelines around northern most islands and atolls: Kure Atoll, Midway Atoll, Pearl and Hermes Atoll, Lisianski Island and Laysan Island. Approximately half of the debris was composed of derelict fishing gear and plastics from Midway Atoll's shallow coral reef environments, where the team also completed a 27-day land-based mission prior to loading debris on the 224-ft. NOAA Ship Oscar Elton Sette.
As part of this year's mission, the NOAA team did look for debris from the 2011 tsunami in Japan, however, no debris with an explicit connection to the tsunami was found. Scientists monitored marine debris for radiation in partnership with the Hawaii Department of Health out of abundance of caution and to gather baseline data from the NWHI.
"While we did not find debris with an obvious connection to last year's tsunami, this mission was a great opportunity to leverage activities that had already been planned and see what we might find," said Carey Morishige, Pacific Islands regional coordinator for NOAA's Marine Debris Program. "It's also an important reminder that marine debris is an everyday problem, especially here in the Pacific."
NOAA divers cut a Hawaiian green sea turtle free from a derelict fishing net during a recent mission to collect marine debris in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. High resolution (Credit: NOAA) A portion of the funding for this year's marine debris removal activities was provided as part of the legal settlement collected by NOAA's Damage Assessment, Remediation and Restoration Program from a July 2005 ship grounding at Pearl and Hermes Atoll in the Monument. Additional support was provided by NOAA's Marine Debris Program, NOAA Fisheries' Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center and Papahnaumokukea Marine National Monument, as well as other partners including U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the State of Hawaii, U.S. Coast Guard, Schnitzer Steel, and Covanta Energy.
Marine debris removed during this project will be used to create electricity through Hawaii's Nets to Energy Program, a public-private partnership. Since 2002, more than 730 metric tons of derelict nets have been used to create electricity -- enough to power nearly 350 Hawai'i homes for a year.
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Fifty metric tons of marine debris from Northwestern Hawaiian Islands
SAVANNAH, GA (WTOC) -
Children at the Islands YMCA celebrated Brazil Day Friday with a carnival.
Students from Brazil spend time here as counselors, teaching the children all about Brazil's culture, food, festivities and even a few Portuguese phrases.
The Brazilians stay with Y families, giving them an opportunity to lean about American family life.
Copyright 2012WTOC. All rights reserved.
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The Japanese family that owns a chain of East China Sea islands at the centre of a territorial row between Tokyo and Beijing said Friday it wants to sell the tiny archipelago "as soon as we can".
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Janet and Richard Copeland say one of their few disagreements as a couple is over the Affordable Care Act.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Editor's note: Embed America is a partnership between CNN Radio and CNN iReport. This series tells the story of the 2012 U.S. presidential election through the people most critical to the campaigns: the voters. CNN Radio is traveling across the country to interview iReporters on election issues close to their hearts. These issues were named important by iReporters during phase 1 of the iReport Debate.
Mayflower, Arkansas (CNN) -- Janet Copeland and her husband, Richard, both say they agree almost all the time, with one exception: The Affordable Care Act, President Barack Obama's health care legislation.
"We're kind of split on that one," Janet says. "It's one of the few heated discussions we have. Right now, I'm at the point where I've already told (Richard) that 'OK, if the person you want gets elected, sit back and watch.' We're in a little standoff about that one. There's never blood drawn, but it gets interesting."
Richard Copeland, a 62-year-old retired Army veteran, just rolls his eyes.
"I did not like the way it was shoved down our throats," Richard responds. "What about the people that can't afford health insurance? What part of not being able to afford it doesn't our president understand? There are people out there working just to put bread on the table, and now he's saying 'I don't care if your family eats or not.' "
Richard's wife is having a hard time paying her health insurance.
According to Families USA, a liberal-leaning health insurance advocacy group, Janet Copeland's situation is common. Families USA reported that before the passage of the ACA, some 2.3 million American families lost their health care each year because of price. The group believes the ACA will help families from being priced out of health insurance coverage.
He says it's unfair to penalize his wife if she decides not to pay for coverage. He supports GOP candidate Mitt Romney. And Richard has health insurance through the Veterans Administration. But Janet, who is quickly using up her life savings to pay her monthly health premium, is fully supportive of Obamacare, and supports Democratic President Barack Obama in his re-election bid.
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Exempt from regulation, taxation, and the individual mandate, Christian collectives called health care sharing ministries are paying for the care of their neediest members -- if they approve of the morality of their needs.
In 2006, Ray Carman's health insurance jumped from $600 to $1,000 a month. The reason? His first daughter was born five weeks premature. Though there were no complications during her birth, his daughter was dubbed "high risk" by his insurance company.
Carman, who is a real estate agent and auctioneer in Lafayette, TN, said the costs were simply too high. He began looking for alternatives.
A friend recommended he join a Christian health care sharing plan, a nonprofit in which members pay for each other's medical costs by agreeing to contribute a donation every month. After some research, he joined an organization called Medi-Share.
Since then, $50,000 of his family's medical costs have been taken care of. The care has ranged from an appendectomy, to health coverage for gall bladder complications and maternity costs associated with his wife's subsequent pregnancies and one miscarriage.
But to Carman and 140,000 others who have signed up for these ministries across the country, managing health costs is only part of the benefit. Patients receive notes in the mail or online from other members they have never met, but who share their beliefs, offering encouragement and prayer.
"A single mom diagnosed with breast cancer will not only be concerned about her medical bills, but also about her children and being confronted with mortality," said Tony Meggs, President and CEO of Medi-Share.
The ministries have been around for more than two decades as a creative approach to handling the growing costs of medical care. The largest players include Medi-Share, Samaritan Ministries International and Christian Healthcare Ministries. They market themselves as alternatives to health insurance, though they themselves are not insurance but nonprofits.
Christian Healthcare Ministries does not turn people away, cancel their membership or raise their monthly financial gift because of expensive illnesses, a spokeswoman said.
Medical costs are "shared," not pooled the way they are with insurance companies. Also, people can choose to leave the plan whenever they want. Members themselves vote on what medical procedures should be shared.
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Federal cuts that have left refugee claimants with little to no health coverage are expected to come at a high cost to Hamiltons health system.
Many area health care providers continue to care for refugee claimants at the expense of their bottom line since the cuts to the interim federal health program took effect June 30.
My background is to treat patients that need you regardless of whether they have funding or not, said Dr. Allen Greenspoon, a family doctor at the Hamilton Community Health Centre on Victoria Avenue North. My first and foremost commitment is to patients. We just see patients if they need our help.
Health Minister Deb Matthews estimates caring for refugees cost $1.3 million at one Toronto hospital alone. Hamilton is also bracing to be hit hard as one of Ontarios top destinations for newcomers.
Its not sustainable to continue to see patients without funding, said Greenspoon. There has to be a proper plan in place to treat patients as necessary.
Hamiltons hospitals and the Maternity Centre of Hamilton have all said they wont turn refugee claimants away. Theyll try to work out payment plans with them but are aware theyll likely end up absorbing a lot of bad debts. About 10 per cent of the maternity centres 800 patients a year are funded by the interim federal health program.
Its not going to unhinge us, said Claudia Steffler, the centres unit director. But it is something that factors into the big schemeof keeping things afloat.
Federal Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq said during her first trip to Hamilton this week that the health care system simply cant afford to care for refugee claimants.
We plan for our health-care system with our population, she said. What we dont do is plan for a health-care system of non Canadians. I think this is about fairness to Canadians and Canadians would expect that.
Ontarios health minister counters that the move only saves the federal government money while putting a tremendous burden on the provincial health care systems.
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Cuts to refugee claimant care costing Hamilton’s health system
The European Medicines Agency is recommending the first-ever approval of a gene therapy treatment in the EU, in a significant move for a type of treatment that has so far failed to deliver on its promise to cure diseases.
In a statement on Friday, the EMA said Glybera, made by Dutch company uniQure, should be approved across Europe for the treatment of an extremely rare disorder that leaves people unable to digest fat. The treatment consists of a gene that makes a protein to break down fat.
Gene therapy is an experimental technique that tries to cure diseases by replacing genes that don't work. It has never been approved in the U.S. and most trials over the past two decades have failed. China was the first country to approve a gene therapy treatment in 2003 for cancer.
Scientists have struggled to find ways to deliver the genes safely, often by using a harmless virus. There are also concerns that inserting a gene at the wrong spot could cause cancer or that the body's immune system might attack the new gene and the virus used to deliver it.
The EMA previously rejected Glybera three times but it was reconsidered at the request of the European Commission. The agency recommended approval under tough restrictions and will require the company to set up a registry to closely track patients. Previous trials of the treatment only tested it in 27 patients.
"It is only meant for patients with the greatest need," said Monika Benstetter, an EMA spokeswoman, explaining the gene therapy is intended for people with no other treatment options. She said only a handful of gene therapy treatments had been considered before one was recommended for approval but its manufacturer withdrew it before it was finalized.
Recommendations by the EMA are usually given final approval by the European Commission.
Patients with lipoprotein lipase deficiency, the inherited disease Glybera is intended to treat, often cannot eat a normal meal because it can lead to an extremely painful inflammation of the pancreas. Many patients with the disorder have a very restricted diet and only eat a fraction of their daily recommended calories. The condition affects only one to two people per million.
Jorn Aldag, CEO of uniQure, said the company was developing similar treatments for other diseases beyond rare conditions, including Parkinson's. "We believe that just like antibodies, gene therapy will one day be a mainstay in clinical practice," he said in a statement.
Benstetter said there are no other gene therapy treatments currently under consideration by the EMA and was unsure if the agency would get more applications based on Glybera's approval.
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By Naomi Kresge - 2012-07-20T19:16:23Z
Europe is on the cusp of approving the first gene therapy to be sold on the market in a western nation, a product from UniQure BV designed to treat a rare disease that disrupts fat production in the body.
The drug, called Glybera, won the backing of an advisory panel to the European Commission on its fourth attempt, the group said in a statement today. The Commission, which makes the final decision, usually follows the committees recommendation.
The move comes after 20 years of experimentation into a technology that in the past has been haunted by highly- publicized failures, including the death of 16-year-old Jessie Gelsinger in the U.S. in 1999. More recently, success in trials by Amsterdam-based UniQure and the U.S.-based companies Sangamo BioSciences Inc. (SGMO) and Neurologix Inc. (NRGXQ) are reviving the field.
This is good news for the field, definitely, said Savio Woo, a professor of genetics and genomic sciences at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York. The technology has been really making a lot of progress, and a positive approval was more or less expected to come sometime.
UniQure began preparations a few weeks ago for meetings with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to seek approval for Glybera, said Jorn Aldag, UniQures chief executive officer.
The treatment targets lipoprotein lipase deficiency, or LPLD, a rare fat-processing disorder that spurs severe or multiple pancreatitis attacks in about one or two people among every million in the population. The therapy is administered only once to be effective.
Glybera may have peak annual sales between 50 million euros ($61.1 million) and 300 million euros, depending on how its priced, Aldag said in an interview.
Its phenomenal because its the first gene therapy the EMA has approved, he said.
While two gene therapy products are sold in China, none are approved in Europe or the U.S., according to Mount Sinais Woo.
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