THIS ISSUE AVAILABLE ONLINE WITH EXPANDED INFORMATION AND PHOTOS AT:
http://www.hhs.gov/news/newsletter/weekly
IN THIS ISSUE:
1) Health Disparities Summit
2) Secretary Thompson with St. Malachy's College Orchestra
3) PREVENTION: April is Child Abuse Prevention Month
4) Science in the News: Heard it From a Fly
5) Medicare Minute
6) Secretary Thompson's Public Schedule
Health Disparities Summit
Secretary Thompson called on health professionals to help overcome racial health disparities among all Americans during remarks before the National Minority Health Foundation. A recent HHS report indicated that there are significant gaps between the health of all ethnic backgrounds.
"Our nation faces few challenges more pressing than providing all Americans with access to quality health care," Secretary Thompson said. "A big part of this challenge involves not just reducing, but eliminating disparities in the quality of care available to communities of color."
HHS currently has a number of programs aimed at improving access quality health care to minorities. These efforts include culturally competent health education and awareness campaigns, the creation of eight Centers for Population Health and Health Disparities, increased funding to address HIV/AIDS in minority communities, and enacting the new Medicare Modernization.
Thousands of citizens in minority communities have participated in "Take A Loved One to the Doctor Day" since it was launched in September 2002. This annual event is a cornerstone of the department's broader "Closing the Health Gap" education campaign.
Early in his administration, President Bush outlined a five-year initiative to create 1,200 new or expanded health center sites that could increase the number of people served from about 10 million to 16 million in 2006.
"We are working to break down barriers that prevent people from buying health insurance and to help the uninsured-this is a major hurdle to reducing racial disparities," Secretary Thompson said. "Over the past three years, we have approved Medicaid waivers and state plan amendments to allow state governments to expand access to health coverage for more than 2. 6 million people and to expand the range of benefits offered to 6.7 million other Americans."
For more information on HHS initiatives please visit: www.hhs.gov
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Secretary Thompson with St. Malachy's College Orchestra
At the invitation of Secretary Tommy Thompson and Education Secretary Rod Paige nearly 70 students from northern Belfast's St. Malachy's College Orchestra recently performed at the Hubert Humphrey Building in Washington, D.C.
The St. Malachy's College Orchestra under the direction of Father Gerard Magee is composed of 65 members between the ages of 13 and 19 years of age. This trip marks the first time the orchestra has played in the United States and the first school orchestra to perform before two U.S. cabinet secretaries in Washington.
The St. Malachy's College Orchestra visit to the United States included performances at the Kennedy Center as well as the St. Malachy's Parish Church and the Cardinal O'Hara High School and West Catholic High School in Philadelphia, PA.
The orchestra's tour included visits to special needs schools and schools in disadvantaged communities orchestra members spent time with students teaching them music.
After their performance at the Hubert Humphrey Building, Secretary Thompson gave the students a tour of the department's facilities as well as the Secretary's Command Center.
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PREVENTION: April is Child Abuse Prevention Month
In 2001 there were 903,000 known cases of child abuse and or neglect in the United States, according to the Administration for Children and Families, resulting in 1,300 deaths.
Child abuse or maltreatment is an act or failure to act by a parent, caretaker, or other person that results in physical abuse, neglect including medical neglect, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, or an imminent risk of serious harm to a child.
Children who experience maltreatment and abuse are at increased risk for experiencing adverse health effects and behaviors as adults, including smoking, alcoholism, drug abuse, physical inactivity, severe obesity, depression, suicide, sexual promiscuity, and certain chronic diseases.
Victims of child maltreatment are also at increased risk of violence as adults. A national survey found that victims who were physically assaulted by caregivers were twice as likely to be physically assaulted as adults.
"Our hearts break when we hear of a child being physically or emotionally abused or neglected," HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson said. "The abuse of children remains a national tragedy that demands our commitment and action. President Bush's budget plan gives the child welfare system at the community level more resources and more flexibility to better protect children from abuse and neglect."
If you suspect child abuse or neglect, call your local child protective services (CPS) agency or the CPS agency in the state in which the abuse occurred. The Childhelp USA National Child Abuse Hotline at 800-422-4453 (TDD 800-222-4452) can tell you where to file your report and can help you fill out the report. In many states, the identity of persons reporting abuse or neglect is kept confidential and will not be released to persons reported.
For more information please visit: http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/factsheets/cmfacts.htm
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Science in the News: Heard it From a Fly
Think those tiny, pesky flies circling the fruit bowl in your kitchen are simply a nuisance? Think again! Scientists continue to learn secrets about human health from basic research with simple organisms such as insects, worms, mice, and rats. Fruit flies have been a particular favorite for researchers investigating the role of heredity in the formation of tissues and organs. Both insects and people develop according to a genetically determined body plan, and scientists know that many of the genes involved in this process are very similar among animals.
Using fruit flies as a model system, National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) grantee Grace Boekhoff-Falk of the University of Wisconsin in Madison recently made a fundamental discovery about hearing. She and her coworkers discovered an insect gene nicknamed "spalt" that profoundly affects flies' ability to hear. The scientists found that experimental flies created to lack the spalt gene were deaf, as measured by direct tests of the flies' hearing organs located inside their antennae.
Boekhoff-Falk and her team also discovered that the spalt gene is nearly identical in flies and people. Consequently, what she learns about spalt in fruit flies may also apply to humans, and her work may help scientists find new approaches to diagnosing certain inherited hearing disorders.
- Written by Alison Davis, Ph.D.
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 100,18:10293-10298
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Medicare Minute
Mark B. McClellan, M.D., Ph.D., administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, recently announced two new steps to help Medicare beneficiaries enroll in the Medicare drug card program.
First, states that have the authority to act as an "authorized representative" of a beneficiary (as defined by state law) would be permitted to enroll beneficiaries in drug cards on the beneficiary's behalf. This step will make it easier for low-income beneficiaries in states with pharmacy assistance programs to get $600 in additional help.
Second, Medicare will issue a standard enrollment form that will be accepted by all Medicare Approved Discount card programs. This standard form will make it easier for community-based organizations, health professionals, and consumer groups to assist beneficiaries with the enrollment process.
For more information on the Medicare Modernization Act please visit, www.medicare.gov or call 1-800-Medicare.
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Secretary Thompson's Public Schedule:
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Last updated: April 20, 2004
United States Department of Health and Human Services
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