Sebelius clears HHS confirmation hurdle

The Senate Finance Committee voted to send the nomination of Kathleen Sebelius as health and human services secretary to the full Senate.

The nomination process for Sebelius, the Kansas governor whom President Barack Obama chose in February, has hit some snags over her stance on abortion rights and tax troubles.

According to an Associated Press report:

The committee vote came after several Republicans voiced concerns in recent days about Sebelius' ties to Dr. George Tiller, a late-term abortion doctor who is under investigation by the Kansas medical board.

The GOP also questioned her commitment to ensuring that the government doesn't try to interfere with the doctor-patient relationship.

"I believe in the right of every American to choose the doctor, the hospital, the health plan of his or her choice," Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., said before the vote. But he contended that Sebelius had displayed "insufficient commitment to these principles."

Sebelius had offered assurances that she believed it was the job of doctors, not the government, to prescribe care. That wasn't enough for some GOP lawmakers worried that the Obama administration's plans to overhaul the nation's costly health care system could move the country toward a government-operated health care system.

Sebelius is the White House's second pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. Former Sen. Tom Daschle withdrew his name in February after tax issues arose.

House votes to let FDA regulate tobacco

The House of Representatives has voted to give the government the power to regulate tobacco products.

From the Associated Press report:

The 298-112 was a significant victory for anti-smoking groups that have long sought to subject cigarettes to the same government scrutiny that food items on the nation's grocery shelves face.

Under the bill, the Food and Drug Administration would be able to regulate, but not ban, cigarettes and other tobacco products. The FDA could make ingredients public, ban flavoring and prohibit marketing campaigns.

The Senate may take up the issue later this month.

Sebelius says health reform would be her mission if confirmed

Senate hearings for Kathleen Sebelius to be confirmed as the Secretary of Health and Human Services began today in the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, a mostly friendly panel for the Kansas governor to face.

Sen. Ted Kennedy, a long-time advocate for health care reform and chair of the committee, kicked off the proceedings by praising Sebelius.

"I’ve benefitted from the best of medicine, but we have too many uninsured Americans. We have sickness care and not health care. We have too much paperwork and bureaucracy. Costs are out of control. But today we have an opportunity like never before to reform health care," Kennedy, who is battling cancer, said. "And we need a secretary of health who has the vision, the skill, and the knowledge to help us get there. Governor Kathleen Sebelius has those traits and more."

Sebelius said in her opening statement that she would fight to achieve one of President Barack Obama's campaign promises and early initiatives.

"Should I be confirmed, health reform would be my mission--as it is the president’s--along with the tremendous responsibility of running this critical department," she said.

But Sebelius also said she would work to improve the Centers For Disease Control and the Food and Drug Administration, which has been much criticized after several disease outbreaks caused by tainted food. (Read about the latest recall of pistachios.)

"As Americans focus more on prevention and leading healthier lifestyles, HHS must live up to its responsibility to protect the public from health risks," Sebelius said. "It is a core responsibility of HHS, through the FDA, to ensure the food we eat and the medications we take are safe."

Injured workers find a "world of hurt"

The New York Times starts a new series today examining the challenges faced by injured workers in New York State, as they deal with the vast bureaucracy that is the state's Workers' Compensation Board. According to the paper, which spent 18 months investigating the issue, the $5.5 billion agency is a "subbasement of the legal world," that "struggles to treat workers with due speed, protect employers from fraud or mute tensions in the workplace."

The difficulties facing workers, who can "wait months or years for money or care" don't come as a surprise to anyone who has followed the issue. In 2000, Consumer Reports published its own investigation, "Workers Comp: Falling down on the job," which found many of the same issues affecting workers across the country.

According to our report, in many cases, medical care wasn't available "without a struggle." The system, designed to help workers who suffer work-related injuries get the care they need, instead forced "ill and injured workers now [to] fight a series of battles: first, to get medical care; next, to withstand exams by insurance-company doctors who have an incentive to find excuses not to pay; then, to get a fair assessment of any permanent disability; and finally, to win a hearing if there’s a dispute."

Judging from the article in the Times, the past decade has brought little improvement. Injured wokers face a system that is "dysfunction and ... adversarial." Across the state, "in about one in six cases, insurers dispute that injuries are real or were suffered on the job. Until recently, these cases had averaged nearly nine months to resolve. And many of them remain unresolved years later."

Obama goes online to talk about the economy

President Barack Obama hosted an online town hall meeting today from the White House.

The president answered 12 questions in a little more than an hour--six were from the web site and six were from the audience. About 3.5 million people voted on which questions should be asked, the president said.

The White House said that 104,081 questions were submitted by 92,933 people and that about 67,000 people watched on WhiteHouse.gov, in addition to those who watched on television. 

The general topic was the struggling economy, but the questions ranged from the job market to small business loans to what the government is doing about the auto industry.

The president did answer one question which wasn't officially asked, but was one of the most popular topics in the voting on WhiteHouse.gov.

"I have to say that there was one question that was voted on that ranked fairly high and that was whether legalizing marijuana would improve the economy and job creation," Obama said with a chuckle. "And I don't know what this says about the online audience, but I just want--I don't want people to think that--this was a fairly popular question; we want to make sure that it was answered. The answer is, no, I don't think that is a good strategy ... to grow our economy."

One family's story from inside the salmonella outbreak

As the already long list of recalled peanut products continues to grow in the aftermath of the salmonella outbreak, it can be easy to forget that such a massive problem can become very personal very quickly.

For Jennifer and Justin Krieger, that point was made all too clear when their four-year-old son, David, fell ill during a ski trip in January. After five days of watching their son endure excruciating pain in a hospital, they found out David had been infected with salmonella.

The Kriegers told their story to Consumers Union, the publisher of Consumer Reports:

At one point, the doctor came into David’s room and told us that something was definitely growing in his stool sample. You can imagine the horror. The next day it was confirmed that David had been infected with the Salmonella bacteria.

As a parent, the worst thing in life is to see your child fall ill. The thoughts and worries that consume you are unbearable. All you want is to see them laugh, play….eat….again. Eventually, David was stable enough for us to fly back home. He was discharged on January 5th. The diarrhea remained for the next two weeks. Although the most important thing, clearly, is that he recovered, it breaks my heart when he talks about how he wished he had been able to ski. At the hospital, David wouldn’t watch anything but the skiing shows saying “if I feel better, can I go skiing tomorrow?” We dread the worries and memories that will resurface the next time he says “my tummy hurts.” (Read the whole story here.)

David Krieger recovered from his battle with salmonella, but not all who have gotten sick have been so lucky.

As of March 15, 2009, 691 people in 46 states have been infected with salmonella in connection with this outbreak, according to the FDA, and infection may have contributed to nine deaths.

You can search the database of recalled peanut products on the FDA web site.

Visit NotInMyFood.org for more about the Consumers Union campaign to improve food safety.

HHS names comparative effectiveness research team

The Health and Human Services Department named 15 people to fill the Federal Coordinating Council for Comparative Effectiveness Research, which was created to advise federal agencies using the $1.1 billion provided in the economic stimulus bill.

"The council will consider the needs of populations served by federal programs and opportunities to build and expand on current investments and priorities," according to the department's announcement.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act appropriated funds for:

• $300 million for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
• $400 million for the National Institutes of Health
• $400 million for the Secretary of Health and Human Services to support comparative effectiveness research

"Comparative effectiveness research can improve care for all Americans and is an important element of President Obama’s health reform plan," HHS Spokeswoman Jenny Backus said in a statement. "President Obama is committed to openness and transparency and the Coordinating Council will host open meetings and a listening session as it begins its important work."

How can you put comparative effectiveness to use for yourself? Consumer Reports has just launched Best Drugs for Less that identifies the best drugs for over 20 common conditions including diabetes, depression, insomnia, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol.

Happening in Washington: CR gives your prescriptions a workout

Consumer Reports is launching a public campaign in support of comparative effectiveness research to urge policy makers to get behind the effort to provide doctors and patients with independent comparisons of different treatments for medical conditions.

We've set up an interactive display in Washington's Union Station today to get the word out.

That's our booth to the right, where  we're running some medications through a bit of vigorous testing.

(Click for a larger photo.)

If you're in the nation's capital, stop by and pick up a copy of our latest publication, Best Drugs for Less.

If you can't make it in person, you can learn about Best Drugs for Less online.

Best Drugs for Less provides unbiased, independent evaluations to help people choose medicines that are safe, effective, and affordable.  The magazine aims to help patients and doctors in cutting through the clutter of drug advertising so they can make informed decisions about their medications.

Get started with your own comparative research by checking out our list of 10 ways to reduce your drug costs.

By the numbers: How old is old?

Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and Kurt Cobain all died at age 27. For their fans, the end undoubtedly came too soon.

But what if 27 was the age when our mental powers start to fade?

New research from the University of Virginia found that reasoning, speed of thought and spatial visualization all peak at 22, then begin to decline at 27, the BBC reports.

"Results converge on a conclusion that some aspects of age-related cognitive decline begin in healthy, educated adults when they are in their 20s and 30s," Professor Timothy Salthouse told the Telegraph.

The study, published in the academic journal Neurobiology Of Ageing, tested 2,000 men and women lasted over seven years.

Luckily for the generation now in our late 20s and early 30s, one of our favorite pastimes--playing video games--may improve mental agility. As the CR Health Blog reported a little while back:

A study looked at 40 adults in their 60s and 70s who hadn't played a video game for at least two years. Half received nearly 24 hours of training on a game called Rise of Nations, which gives players points for building cities, feeding and employing citizens, expanding territory, and creating great works of art, technology, and architecture. The other half didn't play or train on any game.

At White House summit, Obama calls for health reform in 2009

The White House convened a health care reform summit on Thursday, and President Barack Obama set ambitious goals for the attendees.

For moral and fiscal reasons, Obama said an overhaul of the American health system must begin in 2009.

"Our goal will be to enact comprehensive health care reform by the end of this year," the president said. "That is our commitment. That is our goal."

Acknowledging that health care reform is a perennial loser in Washington, Obama said that it is necessary now because of the toll skyrocketing health care costs are putting on an already struggling economy.

"The same soaring costs that are straining families' budgets are sinking our businesses and eating up our government's budget, too," Obama said.

Polls show that Americans agree with the need for the government to overhaul the health care system. A CNN/Opinion Research poll found that 72 percent favor increasing the federal government's influence over the country's health care system in an attempt to lower costs and provide health care coverage to more Americans. Twenty-seven percent said they opposed.