LiSiJie News & Uterine Fibroids

Healthcare Prof:

Although it is “easy to hoot with derision” in the “awfully complicated positions” on abortion rights taken by former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani (R) and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (R), the two possible Republican presidential candidates “make sense” when listened to “with a decent sympathy,” Ann Althouse, a law professor in the University of Wisconsin, writes in a New York Times opinion piece (Althouse, New York Times, 2/24). Giuliani, who supports abortion rights, in recent talks with conservative media outlets and voters in South Carolina said he would appoint “strict constructionist” judges to the Supreme Court. He in a recent interview with Sean Hannity of Fox News also said that a law (S 3) being reviewed by the Supreme Court that bans so-called “partial-birth abortion” should be upheld and that he supports parental notification requirements for minors seeking abortion with a judicial bypass provision. Since Romney very first ran for U.S. Senate in 1994, he has acknowledged that his position on abortion has changed from “proudly” supporting abortion rights to saying that he would “like to see” Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court ruling that effectively barred state abortion bans, overturned. Romney in 2004 stated that when he studied human embryonic stem cell study, he experienced an “awakening that led him towards the conclusion that ‘the sanctity of life had been cheapened’ by the Roe decision” (Kaiser Every day Women’s Wellness Policy Report, 2/13). Romney even though governor “took an admirably limited view of executive power and acknowledged the independence with the legal system,” and Giuliani “respects the distinctive work of judges along with the separate role with the state legislatures,” based on Althouse. “To represent what the country as a whole thinks, the president ought to take account of the deep beliefs Americans have about both reproductive freedom and also the value of unborn life,” Althouse writes. She concludes that individuals should have “patience” in what Romney and Giuliani are saying but should not be “naive” because the subsequent president will appoint judges who will bring “a version of humanity that will express something with the president’s cast of mind” (New York Times, 2/24).

“Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the whole Kaiser Everyday Well being Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for e-mail delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Day-to-day Wellness Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a cost-free service with the Henry J. Kaiser Loved ones Foundation . ? 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Loved ones Foundation. All rights reserved.

Healthcare Prof:

The New York Times on Sunday profiled Chinese public defense lawyers Li Jinsong and Li Jianqiang, who’ve differed on how to approach cases such as the defense of human rights advocate Chen Guangcheng (Kahn, New York Times, 2/25). Chen was arrested following attempting to file a lawsuit against the government for alleged human rights abuses associated together with the enforcement of the country’s one-child-per-family policy. He recorded testimony from men and women in communities in and around China’s Linyi province who experienced forced abortions and sterilizations. In August 2006, he was sentenced by a court in Shandong to four years and three months in prison for allegedly “willfully damaging property” and “organizing a mob to disturb traffic.” An appeals court in Shandong in October 2006 ordered a retrial, but the Intermediate People’s Court in China’s Shandong Province in January rejected the appeal and upheld the sentence (Kaiser Every day Women’s Health Policy Report, 1/16). After Chen was arrested, Li Jinsong and other human rights advocates launched a publicity campaign to put pressure on local officials to give Chen a fair trial and to alert national officials about what they and others stated was “an embarrassing abuse of authority at the local level,” the Times reports. Li Jianqiang, who is more “combative” than Li Jinsong, was not personally involved in the case but stated Li Jinsong made “stupid mistakes” that backed the local authorities into a corner and harmed Chen’s case. In accordance with the Times, the lawyers’ debate more than the case and other issues “intensified” soon after a trip to the U.S. in November 2006. Li Jianqiang on Nov. 27, 2006 — the same day as Chen’s second trial — posted a letter online that stated, “In our one-party dictatorship, the law is little more than an ornament and also the rights in the Constitution are laughable lies.” Li Jianqiang listed Li Jinsong’s name in the bottom of the letter. Supporters of Li Jinsong said the letter might have hurt Chen’s chances of winning the case. Though the attorneys differ, they are part of a “momentous struggle more than the rule of law in China,” based on the Times. “Instrumental or not, [Li Jianqiang's] letter shows how the rights defense movement is struggling to maintain a sense of purpose amid an intensifying police crackdown and a string of public defeats,” the Times reports (New York Times, 2/25).

“Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You’ll be able to view the entire Kaiser Day-to-day Well being Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for e-mail delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Everyday Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a cost-free service of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . ? 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Household Foundation. All rights reserved.

4 (1 votes)

Healthcare Prof:

Catholics for a Free Choice President Frances Kissling on Wednesday will step down from her position following 25 years of leading the organization, the New York Times reports. Jon O’Brien, the organization’s executive vice president, will take more than as president. Kissling has been known as the “philosopher with the pro-choice movement” by her pals and an “abortion queen” by her opponents, the Times reports. In accordance with the Times, Kissling agrees with opponents that her organization has not affected Roman Catholic Church doctrine but said that it has focused on operating with lay Catholics and others to advocate for its causes. Catholics for a Free of charge Choice in 2001 successfully advocated against the nomination of John Klink, a former representative of the Holy See in the United Nations, to lead the State Department Bureau of Population. The organization also lately worked with Reps. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) and Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) to draft legislation aimed at reducing abortions, partly by growing financing for family members preparing (Banerjee, New York Times, 2/27). Kissling said, “I have never ever shied away from controversy or speaking my mind, but I deeply think the subsequent years in reproductive rights politics should be a time when we construct bridges among those that are pro-choice and those that are pro-life,” adding, “Ending the abortion wars will be the task of those of us who have fought them” (Catholics for a Cost-free Option release, 2/27).

“Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You’ll be able to view the entire Kaiser Daily Wellness Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Day-to-day Wellness Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free of charge service with the Henry J. Kaiser Household Foundation . ? 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Loved ones Foundation. All rights reserved.

four (2 votes)

Healthcare Prof:

3.33 (three votes)

Tobacco dependence will be the leading cause of mortality in Canada. Despite the fact that most smokers express a desire to stop smoking, only a little number are able to succeed. A brand new study from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Well being (CAMH, Canada) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH, USA) reveals that nicotine use is extremely addictive in primates.

Although analysis has demonstrated that tobacco is extremely addictive in humans, there has been persistent debate more than the role nicotine plays in reinforcing smoking. This study may be the 1st of its kind to evaluate the motivational value of nicotine in experimentally naive monkeys. This study was conducted at NIH under the leadership of Dr Bernard Le Foll, CAMH Scientist and Head of the Translational Addiction Investigation Laboratory and Associate Professor in the University of Toronto.

“These results demonstrate that nicotine plays a critical role in sustaining smoking behaviour,” said lead researcher Dr. Le Foll.

While there are several factors why people smoke, this study supports earlier findings identifying biological reasons for cigarette addiction. As a way to examine the reinforcing effects of nicotine, Dr. Le Foll and colleague Dr. Steven R Goldberg (NIH) tested naive squirrel monkeys for their motivation to take nicotine. In these tests, the animals could voluntarily self-administer nicotine by pressing on a lever. Receiving nicotine was related with distinctive environmental cues, to mimic the situation related with tobacco smoke in humans. Whereas animals initially showed no preference for the active lever, over time a strong preference for the lever delivering nicotine developed. Animal subjects had been motivated to press a lever up to 600 times to get a single injection of nicotine.

“This clearly demonstrates a high motivation to obtain nicotine that develops more than time”, said Dr. Le Foll.

This novel animal model, which closely mimics the human scenario, will provide a venue for the development of novel medications for tobacco dependence.

“The significance of nicotine in tobacco smoking supports the use of nicotine replacement therapy or of varenicline (a novel medication that mimics the effects of nicotine) to treat smokers”, stated Dr. Le Foll.

###

The Centre for Addiction and Mental Wellness (CAMH) is one of the leading addiction and mental well being organizations in North America and Canada’s largest mental well being and addiction teaching hospital. CAMH can be a Pan American Wellness Organization and World Wellness Organization Collaborating Centre, and is fully affiliated together with the University of Toronto. CAMH combines clinical care, analysis, policy, education and health promotion to increase the lives of people impacted by mental well being and addiction concerns.

Contact: Michael Torres
Centre for Addiction and Mental Well being

three.6 (5 votes)

Healthcare Prof:

5 (1 votes)

Pope Benedict XVI on Saturday in a speech before a conference of scientists and theologians at Vatican City named on Roman Catholics to fight “uncompromisingly” against “the many attacks on the correct to life,” including abortion, euthanasia and eugenics, AFP/Yahoo! News reports (AFP/Yahoo! News, 2/24). The pope said that developing countries increasingly face pressure to legalize abortion and to “liberalize new forms of chemical abortion employing the pretext of reproductive health” (Associated Press, 2/24). He said that in developed countries, “there is actually a growing interest for the most sophisticated biotechnological research to introduce subtle and extensive eugenics methods inside the obsessive search for the ‘perfect child’” (Reuters, 2/24). The pope said some Catholics in secular societies become influenced by “questionable forms of tolerance” and are not heedful sufficient with the “seriousness of the problems at stake.” He said Catholics should show “courageous conscientious objection” to all practices that put “the value of human life” at risk, adding that Christians must obey their consciences “without contradictions, betrayal or compromise.” In addition, the pope known as on doctors, lawyers, politicians and scientists to consider alternatives “each time the value of human life is at stake” (AFP/Yahoo! News, 2/24). According to the Associated Press, the two-day conference, organized by the Pontifical Academy for Life, discussed how Catholics really should follow their conscience (Associated Press, 2/24).

“Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Everyday Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Every day Well being Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free of charge service of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . ? 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

four.2 (five votes)

Healthcare Prof:

5 (1 votes)

The Washington Times this week published a four-part series examining the prevalence of sex-selective abortions in India. The country in 1994 approved the Prenatal Determination Act, which bans the use of technologies such as ultrasounds and sonograms for the purpose of sex-selective abortion. The law also bans advertisements for prenatal sex determination, as well as the practice of preconception sex selection law. In accordance with a UNICEF report released in December 2006, about 7,000 fewer girls than expected are born daily in India, and about 10 million fewer girls than expected were born within the past 20 years. The most current Indian census figures found that the gender ratio decreased from 947 girls per 1,000 boys to 927 girls per 1,000 boys from 1991 to 2001. Renuka Chowdhury, minister of women and child development, earlier this month said the Indian government plans to set up orphanages in every regional district for female infants in an effort to curb sex-selective abortions (Kaiser Daily Women’s Health Policy Report, 2/21). Headlines with the series seem below.

four.56 (9 votes)

Healthcare Prof:

4 (1 votes)

The New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services last week ordered among the state’s largest abortion providers — Metropolitan Medical Associates in Englewood, N.J. — to close after finding violations that posed “immediate and severe risk of harm to patients,” the Bergen Record reports. Metropolitan Medical, which opened inside the 1970s, performs a lot more than 10,000 abortions annually and is among the few clinics in the state that perform abortions as much as 24 weeks’ gestation, the Record reports (Padawer, Bergen Record, 2/28). A woman named Rasheedah Dinkins on Thursday filed a lawsuit within the State Superior Court in Newark, N.J., against the clinic, charging clinic physicians Keith Gresham and Nicholas Kotopoulos with “negligent, careless and reckless care,” the New York Times reports. Based on Dinkins’ lawyer Adam Slater, Dinkins on Jan. 27 went to Metropolitan Medical to have an abortion of a fetus at more than 15 weeks’ gestation. After the procedure, she had pains and was taken to Newark Beth Israel Medical Center, exactly where she was unconscious for a lot more than three weeks, had two strokes and was forced to undergo a hysterectomy, in accordance with Slater. Newark Beth Israel filed a complaint against Metropolitan Medical towards the state wellness department, and the agency went to inspect the clinic on Feb. 2 and moved up a licensing inspection appointment to last week, the Times reports. According to the Times, the well being department ordered the clinic to stop seeing patients after the licensing inspection (Fahim, New York Times, 3/2). The closure order cited problems in the clinic “including, but not limited to, infection control, instruments, equipment used for sterilization of patient care use items and the processing of equipment.” The state is requiring the clinic to hire infection control and administrative consultants, each of whom ought to be approved by the state and be at the clinic at least 40 hours per week. The consultants “shall have full authority to review, revise, if required, and implement all facility policies and procedures,” the order said. In addition, the consultants must submit weekly written reports towards the health department.

Comments
“We will rescind the order once the major violations are taken care of plus a plan of corrections, approved by the department, is in place,” wellness department spokesperson Nathan Rudy stated, adding that the department will “do follow-up inspections to make sure all violations have been abated.” The wellness department said it would not publicly release specific violations until the clinic had a chance to respond towards the investigation’s findings along with a final report is issued. Based on the Record, Metropolitan Medical is telling callers that it will be closed until Tuesday and is referring patients to other local abortion facilities (Padawer, Bergen Record, 2/28). According to the Times, a staff member at Metropolitan Medical did not connect a reporter to the physicians named within the lawsuit. Dinkins on Thursday was transferred to a branch of the Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation (New York Times, 3/2).

“Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Everyday Well being Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Everyday Well being Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free of charge service with the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . ? 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

five (1 votes)

Healthcare Prof:

Former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani (R) and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (R) on Friday at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, D.C., “position[ed] themselves as allies” to conservatives despite their “mixed” records on issues such as abortion rights and stem cell research, the Los Angeles Times reports (Hennessy-Fiske, Los Angeles Times, 3/3). Giuliani, who supports abortion rights, in recent talks with conservative media outlets and voters in South Carolina stated he would appoint “strict constructionist” judges to the Supreme Court. In a recent interview with Sean Hannity of Fox News, he also stated that a law (S 3) being reviewed by the Supreme Court that bans so-called “partial-birth abortion” ought to be upheld and that he supports parental notification requirements having a judicial bypass provision for minors seeking abortions (Kaiser Everyday Women’s Health Policy Report, 2/13). Giuliani on Saturday did not mention abortion rights to the conservative conference but said, “We don’t see eye-to-eye on everything. You and I have a good deal of common beliefs that are the same and we have some that are different” (Gordon, Long Island Newsday, 3/3). According to the New York Times, Romney portrayed himself as a barrier toward efforts in Massachusetts to remove restrictions on stem cell research and abortion rights. “I fought to preserve our traditional values, and to shield the sanctity of human life,” Romney said (Nagourney, New York Times, 3/3). Since Romney first ran for U.S. Senate in 1994, he has acknowledged that his position on abortion has changed from “proudly” supporting abortion rights to saying that he would “like to see” Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court ruling that effectively barred state abortion bans, overturned. Romney in 2004 stated that when he studied human embryonic stem cell research, he experienced an “awakening that led him to the conclusion that ‘the sanctity of life had been cheapened’ by the Roe decision” (Kaiser Daily Women’s Well being Policy Report, 2/13). Other possible candidates for the 2008 Republican nomination speaking in the convention included Reps. Duncan Hunter (Calif.) and Tom Tancredo (Colo.), Sen. Sam Brownback (Kan.) and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee (Los Angeles Times, 3/3). Huckabee referenced Giuliani’s stance on abortion rights, saying, “I’m somewhat troubled when individuals say, ‘I hate abortion, but I don’t think we ought to regulate it’” (Long Island Newsday, 3/3).

NPR’s “Morning Edition” on Monday included an interview with Brownback. Inside the interview, Brownback discussed his opposition to abortion rights and human embryonic stem cell research, saying he believes in “being fully life,” adding, “I think we have to stand for life inside the womb, but we also have to stand for the young woman that’s in poverty or the guy that’s trapped in his own bondage by what he has done in prison” (Montagne, “Morning Edition,” NPR, 3/5). Audio as well as a transcript of the segment are offered online.

“Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Day-to-day Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Day-to-day Well being Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service with the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . ? 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

3.67 (6 votes)

Healthcare Prof:

Article Opinions:1 posts
The following highlights recent news of state actions on abortion-related legislation.

Healthcare Prof:

Several newspapers this week published editorials and opinion pieces related to International Women’s Day 2007 on March 8. Summaries seem below.

Editorial