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Reports From The White House And Kaiser Family Foundation Address Health Care Disparities
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and White House Health Czar Nancy Ann DeParle held a discussion of minority health issues at the White House yesterday, where Sebelius "said the Obama administration is committed to addressing the "alarming disparity in the delivery of quality health care"," which she said was necessary to lower costs, the Associated Press reports. The White House also "issued a summary report on minority health care showing that African-Americans are seven times more likely as whites to have HIV/AIDS, that blacks and Hispanics have diabetes rates nearly twice as high as whites, and that black men are 50 percent more likely than whites to have prostate cancer" (Evans, 6/9).
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Limiting Work Hours Of Medical Residents Could Cost $1.6 Billion Annually, Study Finds
New recommendations to limit the work hours of medical residents could cost the nation"s teaching hospitals about $1.6 billion annually to hire substitute workers, according to a new report from the RAND Corporation and UCLA.
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Advocates Eager To Learn More About Supreme Court Nominee Sotomayor's Abortion-Rights Views
Abortion-rights groups on Wednesday offered their support for Supreme Court nominee Judge Sonia Sotomayor but said that they were eager to learn more about her views on abortion rights, an issue on which she has made few major rulings in her time as a judge, the New York Times reports. According to the Times, groups on both sides of the abortion-rights debate tend to believe that Sotomayor would uphold Roe v. Wade because she was nominated by President Obama, who supports abortion rights. However, when asked on Tuesday if Obama questioned Sotomayor about her views on abortion rights before the nomination, White House spokesperson Robert Gibbs said that the president "did not ask that specifically." In addition, none of her rulings has directly dealt with the underlying issues of constitutional privacy that are the foundation for the Roe decision, according to the Times. The abortion-related cases Sotomayor has handled in the past have "turned on other legal issues," rather than privacy, and they have resulted in rulings in favor of abortion-right opponents, the Times reports. For example, in 2002, she wrote an opinion upholding the Bush administration"s "global gag rule" policy banning federal funding of international groups that offer abortion information or services. "The Supreme Court has made clear that the government is free to favor the antiabortion position over the pro-choice position and can do so with public funds," Sotomayor wrote in the opinion. In 2004, she said that antiabortion-rights protesters were permitted to sue police who they claimed used excessive force in stopping a demonstration at a clinic. Sotomayor also has ruled on several immigration cases related to people fighting deportation orders to China over its family planning policies, the Times reports. Because of the limited information on Sotomayor"s abortion-rights views, advocates have stressed that senators ask questions about her views during her confirmation hearing. NARAL Pro-Choice America President Nancy Keenan in a letter to supporters urged them to press senators to ask Sotomayor about privacy rights. Keenan wrote, "Discussion about [Roe] will -- and must -- be part of this nomination process. As you know, choice hangs in the balance on the Supreme Court as the last two major choice-related cases were decided by a 5-to-4 margin" (Savage, New York Times, 5/28). Nancy Northup, president of the Center for Reproductive Rights, said that she would be surprised if an Obama nominee did not support abortion rights but added that "other presidents have been surprised before" when their nominees" views did not align with their assumptions. Northup said that "no one has been able to give us an assurance" of Sotomayor"s views on abortion rights, adding that she would be "very concerned if the question is not asked and answered during the Senate hearings." Feminist Majority Foundation President Eleanor Smeal said, "What we know about [Sotomayor] we like, but I don"t know that answer on abortion rights" (Savage/Nicholas, Los Angeles Times, 5/28). The New York Times reports that more about Sotomayor"s views on abortion rights could come to light if a past writing on the subject surfaces, as was the case during Justice Samuel Alito"s confirmation process. Steven Waldman, editor in chief of beliefnet.com, said, "Everyone is just assuming that because Obama appointed her, she must be a die-hard pro-choice activist, but it"s really quite amazing how little we know about her views on abortion" (Savage, New York Times, 5/28). Thomas Goldstein, a leading appellate attorney and founder of scotusblog.com, said that the "fact that she hasn"t gone off on these sorts of questions" on contentious topics like abortion rights and gay marriage, "I think shows that honestly she"s not a dyed in the wool liberal." He added that there are issues on which Sotomayor could prove to be more conservative than retiring Justice David Souter (Lerer, Politico, 5/27).According to the Washington Post, many antiabortion-rights supporters are critic
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New THT Campaign Tells Younger Gay Men The Facts About Sexual Health Clinics, UK

Terrence Higgins Trust (THT) is launching a new campaign to reduce levels of undiagnosed HIV by encouraging gay men, and particularly younger gay men, to start regularly attending sexual health clinics. The campaign will use a stand-alone website (http://www.betterclinics.co.uk), media adverts, posters, condom packs and pin badges to dispel some of the myths about clinics and what the testing process involves. Despite being one of the groups most at-risk of HIV and other sexually transitted infections (STIs) in the UK, 38% of gay men have never had a sexual health screening. Factors dissuading men from accessing clinics include the time it takes, fears over confidentiality, concerns over poor treatment by staff, worries about being recognised, and confusion over paying for tests and treatment. Yet research shows that, once they have used a clinic, most gay men are satisfied with the service they receive and return for testing in the future. The campaign"s key messages include: - 9 out of 10 gay men who"ve used a sexual health clinic would recommend it. - Sexual health clinics keep your details confidential. They aren"t shared with anyone, including your GP. - You can use any clinic in the UK, not just the nearest one. - Tests and treatments are free for everyone - no matter how long you"ve lived in Britain. - You don"t need your doctor to send you to a clinic, but you can go with a friend. - If you have symptoms, say so; you should be seen sooner. Marc Thompson, Deputy Head of Health Promotion at THT, said: "There"s still a lot of misinformation out there about what going for a sexual health check-up entails; I think we"ve all heard the myth about the metal umbrella! "With this new campaign, we"re telling gay men that clinics have moved on. Going for a check-up is now easier and more convenient than ever before. Clinics are free and confidential, you can use any one you want without your doctor knowing and take a friend for support. Once you"ve gone the first time, you"ll wonder what you were worried about, so if you"ve never been tested - or are overdue a test - you should start thinking about making an appointment." The Health Protection Agency estimates that, in the UK, up to 10,000 gay men have HIV without knowing. For information on their nearest sexual health clinic, men should call THT Direct on 0845 12 21 200, or visit http://www.betterclinics.co.uk. Better Clinics is a CHAPS campaign, funded by the Department of Health. CHAPS is a partnership of community-based organisations, co-ordinated by Terrence Higgins Trust, which carry out HIV health promotion work with gay men in England and Wales. Terrence Higgins Trust


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