Leading cardiovascular physicians and researchers who support Houston-based Association for Eradication of Heart Attack (http://www.aeha.org/) applauded a bill introduced this morning in the Texas Legislature that would require insurance reimbursement for heart attack preventive screening procedures. The bill, filed by Representative René O. [click link for full article]

Medicare Part B premiums in 2008 could increase by 17%, or $15.90, to $109.40 monthly, according to a report released on Tuesday by the TREA Senior Citizens League, the Palm Beach Post reports. [click link for full article]

A new research laboratory at Rutgers University-Camden seeks to determine how children develop cognitive skills, how cultural heritage can shape psychological perspectives, and the role memory plays in making judgments.Rutgers-Camden professors and students working in the Culture, Cognition, and Development Laboratory are pursuing behavioral research that will offer a deeper understanding of how children and adults alike perceive the world around them. [click link for full article]

People from lower socioeconomic backgrounds who suffer a heart attack come to the emergency department more often, are less likely to be treated aggressively and have higher mortality rates a year after the attack, says new University of Alberta research that has important implications for access to cardiac care.Dr. Padma Kaul and a group of U of A researchers investigated 5622 patients in Alberta who went to a hospital emergency department with a first heart attack. [click link for full article]

Allergy to cats is extremely common and can be very severe. Cat dander, made from glands in the skin, is the main source of cat allergen. This allergen, called Fel…

The contaminant bisphenol-A (BPA) - widely used to make many plastics found in food storage containers and dental products - can have long-term effects in female development, according to a recent study by Yale School of Medicine researchers.Lead investigator Hugh S. Taylor, M.D. [click link for full article]

Nature has outfitted us with a pair of ears for good reason: having two ears enhances hearing. University of Wisconsin-Madison scientists are now examining whether this is also true for the growing numbers of deaf children who’ve received not one, but two, cochlear implants to help them hear. [click link for full article]

The United Kingdom should do more to help train and support health workers in developing countries in an effort to strengthen their health care infrastructures, Lord Nigel Crisp, former chief of the U.K. National Health Service, said in a report released on Tuesday, BBC News reports. [click link for full article]

The following highlights recent news of state actions on abortion-related legislation.Colorado: The Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday voted 4-3 to reject a bill (SB 143) that would have banned all abortions except in cases of rape or incest or to save the life of a pregnant woman, the [click link for full article]

For breast cancer patients taking tamoxifen, switching to an aromatase inhibitor within three years significantly improves survival rates, according to a new study. Published in the March 15, 2007 issue of [click link for full article]