Women have conflicting attitudes about participating in clinical trials because of uncertainties about trusting the experimenters, fear of the trial itself, and hope that the research will result in medical progress, according to a new study at Wake Forest University School of Medicine. [click link for full article]

CMS and the Social Security Administration must improve efforts to enroll eligible Medicare beneficiaries in a subsidy program under the prescription drug benefit, Senate Special Committee on Aging Chair Herb Kohl (D-Wis.) said on Wednesday at a hearing of the committee, [click link for full article]

HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt visited Louisiana on Wednesday to promote a plan to reduce the number of uninsured residents in the state that he developed last year with the Louisiana Health Care Redesign Collaborative, the [click link for full article]

Trends in Diet Quality for Heart Disease:The quality of people’s diets designed to prevent coronary heart disease has “moderately improved” over the last two decades, according to researchers at the University of Minnesota.The researchers analyzed data from more than 5,000 men and more than 6,000 women who took part in the Minnesota Heart Survey to measure whether the volunteers were eating according to American Heart Association dietary guidelines. [click link for full article]

Université Laval Faculty of Medicine researchers have discovered that taking calcium and vitamin D supplements while on a weight loss program lowers the risk of cardiovascular disease. Researchers Geneviève C Major, Francine Alarie, Jean Doré, Sakouna Phouttama, and Angelo Tremblay published the details of their findings in the January issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. [click link for full article]

The House on Wednesday approved 286-140 a $463 billion spending resolution (HJ Res 20) for fiscal year 2007 that includes a $1.3 billion increase for international HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria programs, the Washington Post reports (Kane, Washington Post, 2/1). [click link for full article]

Thousands of people are jetting off for a week of sun, snow, and après-ski. And while they may worry about breaking limbs, how many consider the dangers of skin cancer?It is one of the most common cancers in the UK, with more than 69,000 new cases reported every year. The incidences of the most dangerous type - melanoma - have has doubled over the past 20 years. [click link for full article]

DailyCare, a silicon valley based biomedical company, announced the launch of the 1st over-the-counter ECG, the palm-sized ReadMyHeart 100. The thumb-activated device enables consumers to easily detect and monitor their heart health in only 25 sec. The ReadMyHeart 100 is now available online for $349 at http://www.dailycareusa.com. [click link for full article]

A new study to find a non-invasive alternative to liver biopsy when diagnosing fibrosis found that a series of simple blood tests can accurately diagnose the condition. Fibrosis, the formation of scar-like tissue in the liver, usually indicates damage and can lead to cirrhosis. The new series of markers, called FibroIndex, was found to more accurately diagnose fibrosis than two other indices that are commonly used. [click link for full article]

DailyCare, a silicon valley based biomedical company, announced the launch of the 1st over-the-counter ECG, the palm-sized ReadMyHeart 100. The thumb-activated device enables consumers to easily detect and monitor their heart health in only 25 sec. The ReadMyHeart 100 is now available online for $349 at http://www.dailycareusa.com. [click link for full article]