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News Summaries
News Summaries from across the United States
November 16, 2007
National. Congressional efforts
to expand the State Children’s Health Insurance Program have run into a
new roadblock. Eight Democratic senators say they cannot support any
compromise that limits their states’ ability to cover parents along
with children. New York Times.
National. Death rates for black children with diabetes were twice as high as for white children during a 25-year period, possibly because of gaps in medical care and information, federal officials said. Bloomberg.
National. Older African Americans are more likely to become disabled than whites, but most of this discrepancy is due to socioeconomic status and differences in health, a new study shows. Reuters.
National. A congressional investigation found widespread tax fraud by doctors, hospitals and other health-care providers participating in the Medicaid program, but the way that the program is administered, among other reasons, may prevent improving compliance anytime soon. Wall Street Journal.
National. In one of the liveliest exchanges of the Democratic debate last night, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton said that Senator Barack Obama’s health care plan “would leave 15 million Americans out.” That, Mrs. Clinton added in an ominous nod to the early nominating states, is “about the population of Nevada, Iowa, South Carolina and New Hampshire.” Mr. Obama countered that “the fact of the matter is that I do provide universal health care.” The crux of their dispute centers on their overall approaches to health care. New York Times.
National. Reducing the number of people who don't have health insurance is an expensive and complicated task, said speakers from states that have adopted sweeping health care reforms. Albany Times Union.
New York. New York City’s eighth graders have made no significant progress in reading and math since Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg took control of the city schools, according to federal test scores released yesterday, in contrast with the largely steady gains that have been recorded on state tests. New York Times.
Opinion
National. Although extracting DNA information seems like a cut-and-dried scientific process aimed at improving health, among other things, it is so closely tied to the complicated issue of race in this country that it seems impossible to separate the two. News & Observer.
National. The story of Deep Brain Stimulation actually holds some important lessons about how innovation frequently takes place--and why it's not all that dependent on a non-universal, private health care system like the one we have in the United States. For one thing, it turns out that DBS isn't exactly an American innovation. If anybody deserves credit for developing it, it's the French--and one French doctor in particular. The New Republic.