Month: March 2013

Thought you’d bury your head in the sand when it comes to the sequestration, right? Well, that may not be so easy to do when it comes to healthcare.

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas (Reuters) – Democratic Governor Mike Beebe on Monday vetoed legislation that would ban most abortions in Arkansas after 12 weeks of pregnancy, a restriction that would be the most severe in the nation. The bill’s supporters say they plan to seek a vote on Tuesday to override Beebe’s veto, which would require only a simple majority in Arkansas. Beebe said in a veto letter that the bill “blatantly contradicts” the U.S. Constitution as interpreted by the Supreme Court, and he questioned the potential cost to taxpayers of defending it against legal challenges. …

NEW YORK (Reuters) – New York Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman broke his right fibula and dislocated his ankle upon landing from a parachute jump for charity in Florida, the team said on Monday. Cashman, 45, the main executive who decides which multimillion-dollar contracts to offer on Major League Baseball's highest paid team, was attempting to raise awareness for the Wounded Warrior Project, which aids U.S. military veterans when they return from war. He was injured on the second of two tandem jumps with a parachutist from the U.S. …

(Reuters) – A panel of advisors to the Food and Drug Administration recommended that the agency reject a drug for hot flashes associated with menopause made by Hisamitsu Pharmaceutical Co Inc's subsidiary Noven Pharmaceuticals Inc. The panel voted 10-4 against approval, with the majority saying the drug's benefit was not sufficient to offset its risks. The panel was evenly divided over whether the drug was in any way effective. (Reporting By Toni Clarke. Editing by Andre Grenon)

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – People who have had a colonoscopy in the past decade are less likely to be diagnosed with advanced colon cancer than those who haven’t been screened recently, according to a new study. Researchers found less-invasive tests, known as sigmoidoscopies, were also tied to a lower risk of advanced tumors – but only those growing in one side of the colon. It’s still not clear what that means for cancer survival, according to Dr. Chyke Doubeni, who led the new study at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine in Philadelphia. …

WASHINGTON (AP) — Your bosses want you to eat your broccoli, hit the treadmill and pledge you'll never puff on a cigarette. But a new study raises doubts that workplace wellness programs save the company money.

(Reuters) – Monster Beverage Corp, defending its Monster Energy drinks from mounting criticism about potential health risks, said on Monday its medical investigators found no evidence that the drinks caused the death of a 14-year-old girl. The family of Maryland teenager Anais Fournier sued the company last year after she died of cardiac arrest her parents blamed on "caffeine toxicity" after she drank two Monster Energy drinks on consecutive days. Monster, the top-selling U.S. energy drink, has come under fire from U.S. regulators and politicians. …

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Only about a third of patients surveyed at one U.S. medical center said their doctors told them about the possible risks of a CT scan, such as radiation exposure, a new study finds. Researchers, who published their findings in JAMA Internal Medicine on Monday, also found that most patients thought their doctors made the final decision to have the scans. “I think that sounds pretty consistent of what my experience would be as a patient, physician and with family members,” said Dr. …