links to government, health-related journals, and medical facility resources in Podcast formats
REPORT UNLAWFUL SALES OF MEDICAL PRODUCTS ON THE INTERNET TO THE FOOD & DRUG ADMINISTRATION
REPORT AN EMERGENCY TO THE CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION
Featured West Virginia News and Editorials
from the State Journal by Thom Stevens...
WV Health Care Reform: Not Just Deja Vu All Over Again
by Thom Stevens | Thursday, August 14, 2008 ; 06:00 AM
I believe the new initiatives have the potential to be the most effective opportunity for major health reform in this state during the 34 years I have been involved with state government...
from the State Journal by Walt Williams...
Pharmaceutical 'Data Mining' Focus of Inquiry
WV State Lawmakers examine possibility that companies target certain populations
Walt Williams | Thursday, July 31, 2008 ; 06:00 AM
West Virginians take more prescription drugs on average than their counterparts in other states and the costs of those drugs are rising. Some people believe the reason for the latter is because drug companies are specifically targeting populations by purchasing databases showing what medications physicians are prescribing.
Marshall University Offers West Virginia Free E-Prescriptions
iHealthBeat A Service of the California HealthCare Foundation July 25, 2008
Marshall University is offering West Virginia physicians no-cost electronic prescribing software as part of a coalition to provide e-prescribing technology to physicians nationwide, the Huntington Herald-Dispatch reports.
from the Charleston Gazette...
July 9, 2008 [full editorial]
THE STATE Board of Medicine says 3,800 licensed physicians have offices in West Virginia, and 2,200 out-of-state doctors also are licensed to practice here. Meanwhile, 111 pharmaceutical firms were forced to disclose that they showered 14,933 "gifts, grants or payments" on West Virginia physicians during the last half of 2007 - with some payola exceeding $50,000.
from the Charleston Daily Mail...
The Drug Culture Hurts West Virginia
July 9, 2008 [full editorial]
Wyoming County's experience provides insight into the seriousness of a problem that affects every county in the state. Where are most of the drugs coming from? The government, say Wyoming County Prosecuting Attorney Houck and County Sheriff C.S. Parker. There aren't any "big dealers" - other than Medicare and Medicaid, for prescription drugs - obtained legally, sold illegally for a profit.
Featured Regulatory News, Opinions, and Positions
American Medical Student Association PharmFree Scorecard 2008 [UPDATED]
The AMSA PharmFree Scorecard 2008 evaluates conflict-of-interest policies at the 150 medical colleges and colleges of osteopathic medicine in the United States assessing policies related to potential conflicts of interest created by industry marketing at the level of the individual physician and trainee. The Association of American Medical Colleges proposed strong guidelines for many of these domains and addressed institutional and research conflicts of interest in earlier reports.
Read about opinions and positions taken by advocacy and industry groups, and related news about legislation or government action by visiting the Regulatory News, Opinions, and Positions Page.
See All Regulatory News
Featured Pharmaceutical and Healthcare News
Cocaine Use by U.S. Young Falls; Prescription Use Up (Update2)
By Aliza Marcus Sept. 4 Bloomberg News
Cocaine use among young adults fell 23 percent last year as the cost rose, and more are turning to drugs such as painkillers found in medicine cabinets to get high, the U.S. government said in an annual report.
Most Requested Resources
Towards a Healthy West Virginia:
A Strategic Vision and Action Plan
Prepared for the Governor’s Office by Public Works LLC. April 2007
Access To Medicine Index
One out of 3 people lacks access to essential drugs or vaccines. Improving access to medicines could save more than 10 million lives each year. The Access To Medicine Index highlights efforts by drug companies to help close the gap and encourages them - and all other stakeholders - to do more.
2008 Access To Medicine Index Report
Consumer Reports Best Buy Drugs
Best Buy Drugs is a public education project. It will help you talk to your doctor about prescription drugs, and find the most effective and safe drugs that also give you the best value for your health care dollar. [Other Prescription Drug Resources]
Prescription Drugs: Abuse & Addiction
The nonmedical use or abuse of prescription drugs is a serious and growing public health problem. An estimated 48 million people (ages 12 and older), ~20% of the U.S. population, have used prescription drugs for nonmedical reasons in their lifetimes. [National Institute on Drug Abuse]
What is Alzheimer's Disease?
Alzheimer’s disease is a brain disorder named for German physician Alois Alzheimer, who first described it in 1906. Scientists have learned a great deal about Alzheimer’s disease in the century since Dr. Alzheimer first drew attention to it. [Alzheimer's Association West Virginia Chapter]
Health Facts and Studies from The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, the Milken Institute, and other research and information resources
West Virginia Media Resources
Feature 特別記事 Notabilis Destacado Vedette
Sick Around The World
PBS and FRONTLINE Sick Around the World, first airing on Tuesday, April 15, 2008, at 9 P.M. ET on PBS
FRONTLINE teams up with T.R. Reid, a veteran foreign correspondent for The Washington Post, to find out how five other capitalist democracies--United Kingdom, Japan, Germany, Taiwan and Switzerland--deliver health care and what the United States might learn from their successes and their failures. The remarkable differences in how these countries handle health care are revealed.
Watch the entire program Sick Around The World online
Bioterror
PBS and NOVA Bioterror, originally broadcast on November 13, 2001
The film follows three New York Times reporters as they delve into the murky past of bioweapons research and grapple with the current threat of anthrax and other attacks. Agents of disease have been used as weapons of terror for centuries, long before scientists knew how germs spread illness. But where once plague-infested corpses were catapulted over castle walls, today genetically modified "superplague" could unleash global devastation. This illustrated feature reviews the past—and the unfolding—history of biowarfare and bioterrorism.
From Bioterror, see HOW VACCINES ARE MADE
A new effort called the RxeSEARCH Educational Initiative delivers an innovative curriculum and a set of hands-on learning experience to educate today's youth and future leaders about how medicines are made. It follows the complexities of the pharmaceutical development process, from initial discoveries to therapies delivered to patients. Along the way, students and teachers integrate and enhance skills and knowledge in chemistry, biology, mathematics, social studies and the language arts in an integrated approach in an 11-lesson curriculum that takes two to three weeks.
PhRMA, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, representing the research-based U.S. pharmaceutical industry, is taking the lead in bringing the concept and the curriculum to more schools through collaborations with additional pharmaceutical companies. In addition to Bristol-Myers Squibb, which developed the initial curriculum and program, among the other companies participating are Schering-Plough, focusing on a Newark high school; Wyeth, working in schools in Iowa; GlaxoSmithKline, focusing on schools in the Philadelphia area, and Johnson & Johnson. Thus far, the program also has attracted the participation of a number of school districts to pilot the program among some of their high school students; the initiative has been broadened to five states and some 19 school districts. Ultimately, the goal is for the program to grow into other states.