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A word search of the 1,502-page Senate health care bill (S. 1796) reveals that the term "tax" is used 124 times, "taxable" is used 158 times, and "excise tax" is used 12 times.

WASHINGTON (AP) - The nation's health care tab would increase even more under legislation in the House, according to a government report released Wednesday. The analysis by the Health and Human Services Department looks at the impact of the health care bill drafted by House Democratic leaders. It concludes that total national health care spending would increase by an additional 2.1 percent from 2010-2019, mostly because newly insured people would seek medical care.

<p>Considering the name of this blog, we took great concern with the left Eye of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, which appeared puffy on Wednesday while she testified to a Senate committee.</p> <p>Sebelius had a basal cell carcinoma removed from her forehead on Tuesday during a successful standard outpatient procedure, according to HHS spokeswoman Jenny Backus.</p>

WASHINGTON (AP) - Top Senate Democrats intend to try to strip the health insurance industry of its exemption from federal antitrust laws, according to congressional officials, the latest evidence of a deepening struggle over President Barack Obama's effort to overhaul the health care industry.

Government reliance on medical studies will make it harder to discard false prophecies and dogmas. At a town-hall meeting in New Hampshire this summer, President Barack Obama explained why government "expert panels" are an essential part to overhauling the health-care system. Right now the United States spends $6,000 more per person each year than other advanced nations and isn't healthier for it. He said these panels would reduce wasteful spending by providing "guidelines" for doctors on which procedures to perform. His panels are now part of legislation moving in Congress. But the idea of inserting a government panel between patients...

Scrambling to get 60 seconds out of every minute, Katie Meacham finally got the boyfriend to take her for a carriage ride in Central Park. He hated it, she reports. “He said, ‘You know this is a pity ride, don’t you?’ ” she said, laughing. Even though she is just 26, her days and time are at a premium. Ms. Meacham lives on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, but she is also a citizen of another country: cancer land. She has a kind of aggressive lymphoma, a disease that ruins the blood.

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama's willingness to consider alternatives to medical malpractice lawsuits is providing a boost for taking such cases out of the courtroom and letting experts, not juries, decide their merits. The idea of appointing neutral experts to sift malpractice facts from allegations appeals to conservatives in both political parties, who are looking to address medical liability as part of health care overhaul legislation. Trial lawyers remain steadfastly opposed.

The H1N1 vaccine will arrive too late to help most Americans who will be infected during this flu season, according to a study conducted by scholars at Purdue University, The Washington Times reported on Tuesday. The study also estimates that the virus — commonly referred to as the swine flu bug — will infect about 60 percent of the U.S. population, although only about 25 percent of Americans will fall ill.

Introduction: Surgery is the established treatment for early stage primary lung cancers (cancer that started in lung) or limited secondary cancers (cancer that started outside and spread to lung, also known as metastases or metastatic cancer). External beam radiation is an alternative local therapy to surgery, particularly for patients who are not candidates for surgery due to other medical conditions. Thermal ablation, using either heat or cold, is a newer treatment to destroy cells in lung tumors. Heat is most commonly used, and is referred to as Radiofrequency Ablation (RFA). RFA of tumors has gained significant interest and acceptance in...

The Pasadena Star News reports on a religious "vigil" held Monday night at the Pasadena City Hall by a group of about 100 health care reform advocates reportedly from various churches in the area (All Saints, Cavalry Chapel, Altadena Baptist, Jewish synagogue, etc.) propounding a big lie that there are medical "uninsured" in California who do not receive medical treatment. Read here: http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/ci_13594645 This propaganda should not go unchecked. For the record, there are no people living in California who are denied medical treatment. Everyone is potentially eligible for Medi-Cal, which is partially subsidized by the Federal government. We already...

It is seldom recognized, commented historian René Dubos, that each society and every civilization creates its own diseases.1 Is the peanut allergy epidemic man-made? And if so, how has it been created in millions of children in just 20 years and who or what are its architects? The features of the epidemic continue to puzzle doctors. In the US alone, 5.6 million people – 2% of the population – are allergic topeanuts and nuts almost all having experienced onset as toddlers. This epidemic tipped into critical mass around 1998 when the first flood of allergic children entered kindergarten sending a...

The Pittsburgh Post Gazette reports on a study released on-line in The Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology which indicates that physiology, not public policy, determines a human’s daily sodium intake. This research likely represents a important step forward in light of past and current efforts by government agencies and government funded organizations to set progressively restrictive guidelines for salt intake among U.S. citizens.

DETROIT — A half-marathoner and two other runners died during the Detroit marathon on Sunday, organizers said. Daniel Langdon, 36, of Laingsburg, collapsed at about 9:02 a.m. between the 11- and 12-mile markers, said Rich Harshbarger, vice president of consumer marketing for the Detroit Media Partnership. Rick Brown, 65, of Marietta, Ohio, collapsed at 9:17 a.m., near where Langdon went down, and 26-year-old Jon Fenlon of Waterford collapsed at about 9:18 a.m., just after finishing the half-marathon in 1:53:37, Harshbarger said. It was unclear whether Brown and Langdon were participating in the 13.1-mile half marathon or the full race. Harshbarger...

LONDON (Reuters) - Many prehistoric Australian aboriginals could have outrun world 100 and 200 meters record holder Usain Bolt in modern conditions. Some Tutsi men in Rwanda exceeded the current world high jump record of 2.45 meters during initiation ceremonies in which they had to jump at least their own height to progress to manhood. Any Neanderthal woman could have beaten former bodybuilder and current California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in an arm wrestle.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention wants these groups to have top priority, as they are at highest risk of spreading or catching the flu: Health care workers; healthy children and young adults age 2 to 24; and healthy adults up to age 49 who are caring for children younger than 6 months.

The Pasadena Star News posted a public notice online (since removed) that an interfaith group is to hold a health care "vigil" at Pasadena City Hall on Monday night, October 19. It seems to this writer that any such "vigil" is an exercise in what Theodore Dalrymple calls "moral exhibitionism," which is defined as "generosity of spirit at other people's expense; "the desire to feel more compassionate-than-thou" without regard for the larger consequences. No doubt this "interfaith" coalition is comprised of those "usual suspects" who also have advocated affordable housing, among a number of other social justice "causes," only to...

Introducing three genes corrects motor defects in monkeys.A potential gene therapy for Parkinson's disease can correct motor deficits in monkeys without causing the jerky, involuntary movements that often accompany long-term treatments for the disease. The approach is undergoing preliminary testing in a handful of human patients, who have all shown promising signs of improvement.At present, the most common remedy for Parkinson's disease involves replacing dopamine — the neurotransmitter that is depleted in patients with the disease — by administering the dopamine precursor levodopa, or L-DOPA. Most patients initially regain near-normal motor control, but after several years on L-DOPA the majority...

Health care workers in New York will no longer be forced to get the H1N1 swine flu vaccine, CBS 2 has learned. A state Supreme Court judge issued a restraining order Friday against the state from enforcing the controversial mandatory vaccination. The order came as the Public Employees Federation sued to reverse a policy requiring vaccination against the seasonal and swine flu viruses, arguing that state Health Commissioner Richard Daines overstepped his authority. Three parties – the Public Employees Federaion, New York State United Teachers, and an attorney representing four Albany nurses – challenged the order and for now the...

If you don’t believe that the Republican party leadership works in concert with the Democrat party leadership to protect the financial interests of unscrupulous big business, as distinguished from honorable businessmen, then you need to brush up on your history starting with the trusts and monopolies of the late 1800’s early 1900’s. If you do this and follow the path forward you will stumble upon the very actions of Congress which have resulted in today’s lack of competition in the purchase of health insurance policies. I will spare you the colorful historical details and hit the highlights for brevity’s sake...

The swine flu virus is spreading rapidly throughout California, public health officials said today, citing physician reports of higher-than-normal flu illnesses for this time of year. More than 5% of patients coming into doctor's offices are presenting flu-like symptoms, which is much higher than the usual 2%, according to an estimate based on about 50 physicians across California who monitor flu activity for the state. "We are seeing a continued ramp-up of the virus activity," Dr. Mark Horton, California's public health officer, said at a news conference today. "That is very unusual for this time of year." Horton said he...

The most important rule in health care is "first do no harm". Unfortunately Congressional Democrats seem totally oblivious to this rule. Many Democrats are so egotistical that they think anything they do will be an improvement. They seem incapable of understanding that changes can make a situation worse instead of better just like giving a patient the wrong medical treatment can worsen the patient's condition. The wrong medical treatment can kill. Making the wrong changes in the health care system can reduce access to health care and reduce the quality of health care. In one of my favorite episodes of...

The Democratic-controlled Congress reached another hurdle in achieving health-care "reform." The Senate Finance Committee passed a version, 14-9, with one Republican vote. At last, "bipartisanship"! It requires people to get health insurance, expands Medicaid, provides tax credits to help low- and middle-income people buying coverage, creates "health insurance exchanges" for individuals and small businesses, and requires employers who don't offer coverage to help pay for employees' government-subsidized coverage. The price? No one really knows – and few really care. The only certainty is that whatever Congress says it will cost will fall woefully short of the real cost. Cost projections...

Congress will probably pass a tax on sugared drinks as part of the health bill. The rationale is it will reduce caloric intake of “unhealthy” drinks. The real reason is simply to increase taxes, with a believable cover, like all prior “sin taxes.” I decided to do a comparison of Classis Coke to my favorite drink, freshly squeezed Florida orange juice. Well the Coke has 100 calories for an 8 oz. serving and the fresh orange juice a whopping....

Ian Pearl has fought for his life every day of his 37 years. Confined to a wheelchair and hooked to a breathing tube, the muscular dystrophy victim refuses to give up. But his insurance company already has. Legally barred from discriminating against individuals who submit large claims, the New York-based insurer simply canceled lines of coverage altogether in entire states to avoid paying high-cost claims like Mr. Pearl's. In an e-mail, one Guardian Life Insurance Co. executive called high-cost patients such as Mr. Pearl "dogs" that the company could "get rid of." A federal court quickly ruled that the company's...

Multiple-session early psychological interventions are no better at reducing posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms than no intervention at all and might even increase symptoms in some individuals, a review of 11 randomized controlled studies shows. “There was no evidence that a multiple session intervention aimed at everyone following a traumatic event was effective. There was a trend that just failed to reach significance for no intervention to result in less self-reported PTSD symptoms at 3 to 6-month follow-up than a multiple session intervention,” wrote Neil P. Roberts, D.Clin.Psy., of the Traumatic Stress Service at Cardiff and Vale National Health Services (Wales),...

New Study Evaluates Surgical Masks Vs. N95 Respirators For Preventing Influenza Among Health Care Workers Surgical masks appear to be no worse than, and nearly as effective as N95 respirators in preventing influenza in health care workers, according to a study released early online today by JAMA. The study was posted online ahead of print because of its public health implications. It will be published in the November 4 issue of JAMA. Influenza is the most important cause of medically attended acute respiratory illness worldwide and the authors write there is heightened concern this year because of the influenza pandemic...

Q: Is it true that if I use my credit card at fast food places, my credit score will decrease or that it will affect my score in some way because it looks like I cannot afford to buy food? I pay my bill in full every month. -- Burger and Fries Lover A: Dear Burger: The fast answer is no, where you eat doesn't have an impact on your credit score, but that's not the full story. Your credit score is just one of the many factors that issuers use when making lending decisions, and while paying plastic for...

(NaturalNews) Prepare to have your world rocked. What you're about to read here will leave you astonished, inspired and outraged all at the same time. You're about to be treated to some little-known information demonstrating why seasonal flu vaccines are utterly worthless and why their continued promotion is based entirely on fabricated studies and medical mythology. If the whole world knew what you're about to read here, the vaccine industry would collapse overnight. This information comes to you courtesy of a brilliant article published in The Atlantic (November 2009). The article, written by Shannon Brownlee and Jeanne Lenzer, isn't just...

(CBS) As members of Congress debate a "public option" for health care coverage, they remain safe and secure in their own generous health plan. CBS News correspondent Sharyl Attkisson reports it's subsidized by millions of your tax dollars annually. The government doesn't even keep track the total cost. What exactly does Congress get? Sen. Lindsey Graham agreed to show CBS News first hand, flashing his Blue Cross Blue Shield insurance card. Blue Cross Blue Shield is one of five plans offered to members of Congress. Most Americans, 74 percent are offered only one plan - if their employer offers insurance...

Yield: 24 servings (serving size: 1 bar) RECIPE INGREDIENTS Non-stick cooking spray 3 cups favorite granola 1 cup wheat germ 1 1/2 cup almond butter 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/3 cup whole-wheat flour 3/4 cup honey 1 cup dried cherries or dried cherry-flavored cranberries 1 cup slivered California Almonds

WASHINGTON - Nobody knew for sure what Senator Olympia J. Snowe would do yesterday when the Finance Committee gathered to vote on its health care bill - not even Snowe. Chairman Max Baucus, Democrat of Montana, had been courting her vote for months, investing long hours in closed-door negotiations with her and the other members of the “Gang of Six.’’ In the late summer and early fall, President Obama spoke with her on the phone and invited her to the White House to address her concerns.

BOSTON, Mass. — One day last month, clad in white plastic garments from head to toe, Dr. David Sinclair showed a visitor around his germ-free mouse room here at Harvard Medical School. Skip to next paragraph Multimedia Graphic Caloric Restriction RSS Feed Get Health News From The New York Times » Enlarge This Image CJ Gunther for The New York Times IN THE LAB Dr. David Sinclair is trying to develop drugs to extend health, and life. The mice, subjects in studies of health and longevity, are kept in wire baskets under intensive nursing care. A mouse gym holds a...

CatholicVoteAction brings to our attention a duplicitous tactic being employed by homosexual activists in the lead-up to Maine's Nov. 4th marriage vote: CatholicVoteAction.org Calls on Maine Group to Pull ‘Catholic’ Gay-Marriage Ad Homosexual advocates have released a shameless new ad featuring a grandmother and two gay men urging Maine voters this November to approve ‘same-sex’ marriage. The grandmother in the new commercial speaks about her Catholic faith and the importance of the institution of marriage, but then urges voters to support ‘same-sex’ marriage. Here is the video: Link Look at how subtly this ad works: "I've been a Catholic...

My Senator is one of those people voting 'aye.' I voted for that person last year but I'm sure as hell not going to next election. Is this debacle actually going to effect things in 2010 & 2012 or is the Dems control growing too fast to stop by then. Here's the link to the video: http://storyballoon.org/videos/senate-finance-committee-voting-on-health-care-reform/

I don't think I'm alone when I just assumed Senator Snowe R-Maine was going to help the Dems push Obamacare through. Over and over again we get this build up of 'will Snowe vote for it?' 'Will Collins vote for it?' When everyone already knows they are going to. Well, she's done it. Here's Senator Snowe speaking on the House floor about her decision to help the Dems. "When History Calls, History Calls." VIDEO: http://storyballoon.org/videos/senator-snowe-on-her-decision-to-help-dems-push-obamacare-through-when-history-calls-history-calls/

Sign petition to expel Snowe from GOP at http://gopetition.com/online/27432.html

Watch these guys, we cannot fail to keep our eyes on them. Watch, listen and take copius notes And make remarks right here!

HEALTH - Blood oxygenation appears to be the key to surviving swine flu for patients suffering respiratory failure, new research shows. The observational study, carried out by New Zealand and Australian flu investigators between June 1 and August 31 this year, showed most patients who experienced respiratory failure after contracting swine flu survived if they were treated with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), a type of life support that adds oxygen to the blood. The study focused on 68 patients with severe swine flu associated acute respiratory distress, who received ECMO in 15 intensive care units across New Zealand and Australia....

"(Romney's)The state’s ambitious plan to shake up(shake down) how providers are paid could(will) have a hidden price for(from) patients: Controlling Massachusetts’ soaring medical costs, many health care leaders believe, may(will) require residents to give up their nearly unlimited freedom to go to any hospital and specialist they want..."

- snip- Fort Lauderdale police are investigating a veteran registered nurse who her employers say knowingly violated infection-control procedures at Broward General Medical Center, potentially exposing more than 1,800 patients to blood-borne diseases such as HIV, and hepatitis B and C. - end snip -

Major hospital, private practices, and large health group are not giving the swine vaccine as originally planned because of the red tape involved with the government.

A senior aide to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) told CNSNews.com that it is “likely” that Reid will use H.R. 1586—a bill passed by the House in March to impose a 90-percent tax on bonuses paid to employees of certain bailed-out financial institutions—as a “shell” for enacting the final version of the Senate’s health care bill, which Reid is responsible for crafting. Under the procedure, the substance of House Resolution 1586 would be removed and replaced with the entire Senate health care package. The maneuver would initially require the support of 60 senators to vote for cloture on the...

Swine Flu Put Many Hospitalized Patients Into ICU Swine flu killed 7 pct of hospitalized US patients; ICU's in Australia hard-hit, study showsOne quarter of Americans sick enough to be hospitalized with swine flu last spring wound up needing intensive care and 7 percent of them died, the first such study of the early months of the global epidemic suggests. That's a little higher than with ordinary seasonal flu, several experts said. What is striking and unusual is that children and teens accounted for nearly half of the hospitalized cases, including many who were previously healthy. The study did not...

Senators aren't counting on reform savings when it comes to their constituents. Senate Finance votes next week, and no doubt this freak of political nature will pass amid fanfare and self-congratulation that their new entitlement will reduce deficits. Never mind that such a spectacle has never happened in the history of the republic. P.T. Barnum had nothing on this crowd, and the bill hasn't even hit the Senate floor yet.

"Step right up: A new entitlement that cuts the deficit! Washington spent the week waiting for the Congressional Budget Office to roll in with its new cost estimates of the Senate health-care bill, and what a carnival. Behold: a new $829 billion entitlement that will subsidize insurance for tens of millions of people—and reduce deficits by $81 billion at the same time. In the next tent, see the mermaid and a two-headed cow. * * * Senate Finance votes next week, and no doubt this freak of political nature will pass amid fanfare and self-congratulation that their new entitlement will...

The Baucus Concepts are disasterous, but that’s for another post. For this post, let me get across a simple concept: THERE IS NO BAUCUS BILL. Your esteemed Senators on the Senate Finance Committee will not be voting on legislation because THERE IS NO BAUCUS BILL. Your esteemed Senators have so little respect for you that some of them are willing to vote in favor of legislation which does not exist because THERE IS NO BAUCUS BILL. The actual legislation will be drafted in secret by Harry Reid and a few other people, including staffers whose names and political connections you...

Genome-wide association studies have identified hundreds of genetic clues to disease. Kelly Rae Chi looks at three to see just how on-target the approach seems to be. Download a PDF of this story Five years ago human geneticists rallied around an emerging concept. Technology had granted the ability to compare the genomes of individuals by looking at tens of thousands of known single-letter differences scattered across them. These differences, called single nucleotide polymorphisms or SNPs, served as reference points or signposts of common variation between individuals. The idea was that common variants in the genome might contribute to the genetics...

As the Senate Finance Committee prepares to vote on health care legislation, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops have made it known that none of the existing bills are adequate. All of them include abortion funding. “So far, the health reform bills considered in committee…have not met President Obama’s challenge of barring use of federal dollars for abortion and maintaining current conscience laws,” the USCCB wrote in its Sept. 30 letter to members of the Senate. “These deficiencies must be corrected.” The bishops’ letter refers to all of the existing health care reform bills currently on the table –...

A couple of days ago, we learned President Obama’s rock tour for universal healthcare may have given his plan a tepid shot in the arm. 46% of Americans support it now (Rasmussen Reports, October 5, 2009, http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/current_events/healthcare/september_2009/health_care_reform). The week before, 41% of America said they wanted universal healthcare. No matter. Consider that even after Obama’s non-booster shot, fewer than half of U.S. citizens want the healthcare fixit the president is proposing. We have the best heath care in the world and many who can afford it come to the America to get treated for ailments and illnesses when they are...