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Category: Health

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: expert reaction to unpublished conference abstract suggesting eating rate has sustained effects on energy intake from Ultra-Processed Diets

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    A conference abstract presented at NUTRITION 2025 looks at eating rate and its effects on energy intake from Ultra-Processed Diets. 

    Dr Amanda Avery, Associate Professor in Nutrition and Dietetics, University of Nottingham, said:

    “This very well considered study explores whether eating rate can make a difference to the amount of food we eat. Previous research has suggested that a 20% difference in eating rate leads to a 9-15% difference in food intake.

    “In this study, the abstract being showcased at the American Nutrition conference,  the researchers used two different diets using commercially prepared ultra processed foods (UPFs). One diet used UPFs with textures that meant that eating rate was slower whilst the second diet used UPFs with textures leading to faster eating rates.

    “Healthy young adults, both males and females with healthy body weights were invited to take part in the study where they were then randomised to be in one ‘block’ or the second block for assignment to the diet. They were not aware which diet they were consuming when – they had one diet for two weeks, then had a two week ‘rest’ and then had the second diet for two weeks. This means that we can compare the results between individuals besides between the two groups.

    “The participants were offered as much food as they wanted when on either of the two diets. Incredibly, but perhaps not surprisingly, the findings on energy intake were consistent – all participants consumed less energy from food when on the two week UPF – slow eating rate diet. The average energy intake was 369kcal/day less when people were following the slow eating rate diet.

    “Whilst there were no significant differences in body weight, this is not surprising given that the study was only being conducted for a two-week period and because participants were switched from one diet to another. However if a person was choosing a diet which led to an extra 350+kcal being consumed each day, then one could expect to see associated increases in body weight over time. 

    “As mentioned, the study was well conducted with many reasons as to why participants may not be able to take part in the study. The researchers were keen to exclude anyone who had strict control over their food intake and also those people who were intentionally trying to reduce their body weight – thus other factors that may have contributed to the findings were limited in the study design.

    “In terms of what this study adds – the study really reinforces the importance of people sitting down and taking time to enjoy their food. Eating foods quickly and ‘on the hoof’ may lead to extra energy intake which may long-term lead to weight gain. Ideally, we should be choosing foods with more texture, such as ultra-processed foods with more texture, but also balanced with vegetables, whole fruits, wholegrain cereals, beans, legumes, lean meat, fish, so that we have to chew the food. As this study has found, food with very little texture, such as certain UPFs, may lead to excess energy intake which over time may increase the risk of obesity, as demonstrated by other studies that have compared the intake of ultra processed with more minimally processed foods.”

     

    Professor Julian Hamilton-Shield, Professor in Diabetes and Metabolic Endocrinology, University of Bristol, said:

    “This study reinforces previous epidemiological, experimental and clinical trial data demonstrating that any manoeuvre to slow eating rate consistently, in this current study by meal texture, reduces an individual’s total calorie intake. Whilst it can be difficult to sustain a reduced eating speed, altering food texture that slows eating speed seems an attractive additional tool for population-based, weight management strategies.”  

    The abstract ‘Eating Rate has Sustained Effects on Energy Intake from Ultra-Processed Diets: A Two-Week Ad Libitum Dietary Randomized Controlled Trial’ by Ciarán G. Forde et al. was presented at the NUTRITION 2025 conference, and the embargo lifted at 19:00 UK time Monday 2 June 2025.

    Declared interests

    Professor Julian Hamilton-Shield: I have conducted experimental and trial studies on slowing eating speed by different methodology, finding results for calorie intake in agreement with the study being described

    Dr Amanda Avery: besides my academic position, I also hold a very part-time position as Consultant dietitian in Nutrition, Research & Health Policy at Slimming World.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Minister Smyth address to Medicine 2025

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Speech

    Minister Smyth address to Medicine 2025

    Minister Smyth addressed the Royal College of Physicians annual conference

    Since 1948, this organisation has been one of the greatest allies advocating for universal access to health care, high standards in clinical practice, and evidence based medicine.

    And today, I really want to thank our members for everything that you have done over the past 14 years to hold our NHS together.

    Through no fault of your own, you’ve been through the worst crisis in the history of the NHS waiting list at historic highs, patient satisfaction at record lows, people struggling to see a GP, ambulances not turning up on time. Any department is full to bursting.

    That founding promise that the NHS will always be there for us when we needed it, broken.

    But as someone who had my own career 30 years ago in the health service, I completely understand how demoralising this has been for so many staff, how powerless people have felt desperately trying to stop standards slipping or holding a broken system together.

    That’s how I felt as an NHS leader locally, watching the disastrous 2012 reorganisation imposed from the top down, despite all the warnings from frontline leaders and staff. And since then we’ve also had to deal with underinvestment and the global pandemic.

    But while those blows may have left the NHS broken, it’s not beaten.

    Every day there are amazing people delivering outstanding and compassionate care.

    Despite all of those challenges, day in, day out, you show up for work and you fight to deliver the very best care possible for your patients.

    Since coming into office, this government has done everything we can to support you. To restore that basic founding principle that the NHS should always be there for us when we need it. With our Plan for Change, we have hit the ground running.

    As our first step, we promised two million more appointments in our first year.

    Promise made, promise kept: we delivered our promise seven months early and we’ve reached our target, delivering not two, but three million more appointments since July and counting.

    We’ve got waiting lists down by over 200,000 people.

    We ended the strike within three weeks and have now delivered two above-inflation pay rises for NHS staff.

    We’ve invested an extra £26 billion in health and care.

    We’ve recruited 1,500 more GPs, and agreed a GP contract for the first time since the pandemic.

    We’ve delivered the biggest investment to hospitals in a generation.

    The biggest expansion of carer’s allowance since the 1970s.

    A boost for older and disabled people through the Disabled Facilities Grant.

    The biggest real-terms increase to the Public Health Grant in nearly a decade.

    We’ve given pharmacies the biggest funding uplift in a generation.

    For patients, we’ve frozen prescription charges.

    We’ve struck a new deal that will mean women will be able to get the morning-after-pill from pharmacies across the country, absolutely free of charge.

    A lot done, but we know, a hell of a lot more left to do.

    But from day one, we have been clear that investment must come with reform.

    Our job is twofold.

    First, to get the NHS back on its feet, treating patients on time again, and second, to reform the service for the long term, so it is fit for the future.

    This summer we will publish our 10 Year Plan for Health.

    Shifting the focus of healthcare out of hospital and into the community with more investment in primary and community care.

    Bringing our analogue health service into the digital age, arming staff with modern equipment and cutting edge technology.

    And thirdly, turning our sickness service into a preventative health service to help people live well for longer and tackle the biggest killers.

    We’re supporting the effort of prevention through our Smoking and Vapes Bill, to protect children and the most vulnerable to make this generation of kids the first smoke-free generation, and to save untold billions spent on their future care.

    The ban on junk food advertising targeted at children will be a first step in addressing the growing problem of childhood obesity, and those same kids are benefiting from breakfast clubs, so they start school with hungry minds and not hungry bellies.

    Our Mental Health Bill will stop the disgraceful incarceration of learning-disabled adults.

    We’re working with health unions, councils and employers to deliver the first ever Fair Pay Agreement for social care staff.

    And Louise Casey is leading the Commission on Social Care, which will finally get a grip on a system that is broken for too many families.

    Because, as you all know so well, the pressures facing hospitals don’t start in hospitals, just as the problems facing the NHS don’t necessarily start in the NHS, they are a reflection of wider society.

    Fixing broken Britain will require more than fixing a broken NHS.

    After this speech, I’m going to add my own post-it note to your interactive map.

    When my team asked me to think about the most pressing issue in my constituency of Bristol South, I was very quick to answer. Poverty.

    The health service can fix people when they’re broken, but we don’t want people broken.

    The factors that make my constituents unwell are wide ranging, socioeconomic and environmental.

    In other words, the conditions in which we are born, grow, live and work. Secure jobs. Fair pay. Decent housing. Safe streets. Clean air. Accessible transport. The time and affordable facilities to exercise and nutritious food.

    These are the essential building blocks of a healthy life.

    And that’s why this government is focused on economic growth and improving healthy life expectancy for all, while halving the gap in healthy life expectancy between different regions of England.

    And it’s why reform of the health service is so important, because every pound we spend on the health service is a pound that can’t be spent on what you and I call the social determinants of ill health.

    But what everyone else calls feeding hungry children, building warm homes and cleaning up our water and the air that we breathe.

    The NHS has often been compared to an oil tanker that has immense capacity but is slow to change direction. Shifting the focus of our health service will be an immense task, and one that we can only accomplish with your help.

    We’ve already been clear that we’re embarking on a decade of national renewal and that’s why we’re launching a 10 Year Plan.

    Since coming into office, we’ve sought to reset the relationship with medics to improve working lives and restore value.

    This government was never going to be able to completely reverse a decade and a half of decline in only ten months, but this year’s pay awards, the second above inflation pay rise in a row, demonstrates our commitment to rebuilding the NHS and rebuilding the pay conditions and morale of all NHS staff.

    When I joined the NHS 30 years ago, I saw the NHS at what I thought was the worst.

    I remember later on working with the team at the Bristol Royal Infirmary on urgent care, discussing those awful trolley waits, coming into work every day, people trying to find a space or somewhere to discharge people from A&E, conversations that, sadly, are all too familiar again today.

    But I also saw, especially in the years leading up to 2010, the pride people have when they’re working in an improving, well-run system.

    When you’re able to go home at the end of the day, knowing that your patients received the best possible care and the pride, you know that you’re working at the top of your license as part of a team rebuilding a healthier Britain.

    The NHS cannot be saved by one person sitting behind a desk in Whitehall.

    We will only succeed if this is a team effort. From the Prime Minister to the 1.5 million people who work in the service, and the millions of us who use it to take decisions needed to lead healthier, more active lives.

    Turning the NHS around will take time.

    It really won’t be easy, but the prize, the prize available to us is huge and if we get this right, we will be able to say that we were the generation that took the NHS from the worst crisis in its history, got it back on its feet and made it fit for future generations.

    Updates to this page

    Published 2 June 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Security: JOHN P. HEEKIN SWORN IN AS U. S. ATTORNEY FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA – John P. “Jack” Heekin took the oath of office this morning from Chief District Judge Mark E. Walker to become the 42nd U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.  Mr. Heekin was appointed by Attorney General Pam Bondi as the interim United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida on May 6, 2025, and was nominated to that office by President Donald Trump that same day. Mr. Heekin succeeds Michelle Spaven, who was named Acting U.S. Attorney in early February of 2025.

    U.S. Attorney Heekin said: “I am deeply honored to serve as the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Florida, and look forward to working alongside our outstanding prosecutors, support staff, and law enforcement partners to keep our communities safe. Together, we will fulfill the commitment to public safety advanced by President Donald J. Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi, and we will make the Northern District of Florida the safest place in America to live, work, and raise a family.”

    As U.S. Attorney, Mr. Heekin is the top-ranking federal law enforcement official in the Northern District of Florida, which includes Florida’s 23 panhandle counties, from Escambia in the west to Alachua in the east.  The district has offices in Pensacola, Tallahassee, and Gainesville.  The office is responsible for prosecuting federal crimes in the district, including crimes related to terrorism, public corruption, child exploitation, human trafficking, financial fraud, health care fraud, firearms, and narcotics.  The office also defends the United States in civil cases and collects debts owed to the United States.

    U.S. Attorney Heekin recently served as the Deputy Chief of Staff and General Counsel to U.S. Senator Rick Scott (FL) in Washington, D.C., covering a legislative policy portfolio related to the federal judiciary, immigration, law enforcement & criminal justice, and constitutional issues, and advising the Senator on judicial and executive nominations.

    Prior to that, USA Heekin served in the administration of Governor Rick Scott as his Chief Deputy General Counsel, and later as Deputy Chief of Staff, overseeing the Governor’s criminal justice agencies, including the Florida Department of Corrections, the Department of Juvenile Justice, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, and the Commission on Offender Review.  He also served as the Governor’s Executive Clemency Advisor and oversaw the execution of death warrants for Florida’s death row inmates.  He acted as Chief Counsel to the Governor’s Financial Emergency Board for Opa-locka and served as the General Counsel to the Governor and Florida Cabinet sitting as the Administration Commission and the Florida Land and Water Adjudicatory Commission.  He began his legal career as an Assistant State Attorney prosecuting criminal offenses for the 15th Judicial Circuit of Florida in Palm Beach County.

    He earned a Bachelor’s degree from Bucknell University, and his Juris Doctor with a certificate in Comparative and International Law from the Columbus School of Law, Catholic University of America, where he graduated cum laude.  While in law school, he authored two published works: “Leashing the Internet Watchdog: Legislative Restraints on Electronic Surveillance in the U.S. and U.K.,” published in The American Intelligence Journal (Vol. 28, No. 1 (Fall 2010)), and “ADHD and the New Americans with Disabilities Act: Expanded Legal Recognition for Cognitive Disorders,” published in The William & Mary Policy Review (Vol. II, No. 1 (Fall 2010)).

    He is a member of the Florida Bar, the District of Columbia Bar, the U.S. Supreme Court Bar, the Federalist Society, and the Republican National Lawyers Association.

    U.S. Attorney Heekin recognized Ms. Spaven for her exemplary service to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida and North Florida communities.  Ms. Spaven will continue her career with the U.S. Attorney’s Office as First Assistant U.S. Attorney.

    His primary office will be in Tallahassee.

    The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General.  To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website.  For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI: Quantum eMotion Closes Brokered LIFE Financing of $12,000,000

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO THE U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES

    MONTREAL, June 02, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Quantum eMotion Corp. (“QeM” or the “Corporation”) (TSX.V: QNC; OTCQB: QNCCF; F: 34Q0) is pleased to announce that it has closed its previously announced best efforts brokered private placement for total gross proceeds of $12,000,000 (the “Offering”), consisting of the issuance of 8,000,000 units of the Corporation (each a “Unit”) at a price of $1.50 per Unit (the “Offering Price”), pursuant to the listed issuer financing exemption (the “LIFE Exemption”) under Part 5A of National Instrument 45-106 – Prospectus Exemptions (“NI 45-106”). A.G.P. Canada Investments ULC (the “Agent”) acted as sole bookrunner for the Offering and A.G.P./Alliance Global Partners acted as the sole U.S. agent to the Corporation in connection with the Offering.

    Each Unit consists of (i) one common share in the capital of the Corporation (a “Share”), and (ii) one common share purchase warrant (a “Warrant”). Each Warrant entitles its holder to acquire one additional common share (a “Warrant Share”) of the Corporation at a price of $1.82 for a period of 3 years from the date of issuance.

    The Corporation intends to use the net proceeds raised from the Offering to accelerate the pace of its research and development (“R&D”) efforts, expand the R&D team, hire staff for the commercialization initiatives underway and for general working capital purposes.

    Subject to compliance with applicable regulatory requirements and in accordance with NI 45-106, the securities issued pursuant to the LIFE Exemption are expected to be immediately freely tradeable and will not be subject to a hold period under applicable Canadian securities laws.

    There is an offering document related to the Offering that can be accessed under the Corporation’s profile at www.sedarplus.ca and on the Corporation website at https://www.quantumemotion.com/.

    As consideration for their services, the Agent has received an aggregate cash fee equal to 6.0% of the gross proceeds of the Offering. In addition, the Corporation issued to the Agent non-transferable warrants (the “Agent Warrants”) representing 4.0% of the aggregate number of Units issued pursuant to the Offering. Each Agent Warrant entitles its holder to purchase one common share of the Corporation at price of $1.66 for a 30-month period from the date of issuance.

    This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of any of the securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful, including any of the securities in the United States. The securities have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws, or an exemption from such registration requirements is available.

    About QeM

    The Corporation’s mission is to address the growing demand for affordable hardware and software security for connected devices. QeM has become a pioneering force in classical and quantum cybersecurity solutions thanks to its patented Quantum Random Number Generator, a security solution that exploits the built-in unpredictability of quantum mechanics and promises to provide enhanced protection for high-value assets and critical systems.

    The Corporation intends to target highly valued Financial Services, Healthcare, Blockchain Applications, Cloud-Based IT Security Infrastructure, Classified Government Networks and Communication Systems, Secure Device Keying (IOT, Automotive, Consumer Electronics) and Quantum Cryptography.

    For further information, please visit our website at https://www.quantumemotion.com/ or contact us at: info@quantumemotion.com

    Marc Rousseau, Chief Financial Officer
    Tel: (514) 886-0045
    Email: info@quantumemotion.com
    Website: www.quantumemotion.com

    Cautionary Note regarding Forward-Looking Statements

    This news release contains “forward-looking information” within the meaning of applicable securities laws, which is based upon the Corporation’s current internal expectations, estimates, projections, assumptions and beliefs. Such forward-looking statements and forward-looking information include, but are not limited to, statements concerning the Corporation’s expectations with respect to the use of proceeds and the use of the available funds following completion of the Offering, and the completion of the Corporation’s business objectives, and the timing, costs, and benefits thereof. Forward-looking statements or forward-looking information relate to future events and future performance and include statements regarding the expectations and beliefs of management based on information currently available to the Corporation. Such forward-looking statements and forward-looking information often, but not always, can be identified by the use of words such as “plans”, “expects”, “potential”, “is expected”, “anticipated”, “is targeted”, “budget”, “scheduled”, “estimates”, “forecasts”, “intends”, “anticipates”, or “believes” or the negatives thereof or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “might” or “will” be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements or forward-looking information are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those reflected in the forward-looking statements or forward-looking information, including, without limitation, risks and uncertainties relating risks inherent to the cybersecurity industry, the value of the Corporation’s intangible assets, completing proof of concept studies, protecting intangible assets rights, timing and availability of external financing on acceptable terms or at all, the possibility that future results will not be consistent with the Corporation’s expectations, increases in costs, changes in legislation and regulation, changes in economic and political conditions and other risks involved in the cybersecurity industry and inherent to new technologies, such as risk of obsolescence, slow adoption and competing technological advances; and those risks set out in the Corporation’s public documents filed on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.

    Should one or more of these risks and uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described in forward-looking statements or forward-looking information. Although the Corporation has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be other factors that could cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. For more information on the Corporation and the risks and challenges of its business, investors should review the Corporation’s annual filings that are available at www.sedarplus.ca. The Corporation provides no assurance that forward-looking statements or forward-looking information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements and information. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements and forward-looking information. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, the Corporation disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking information.

    Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Celebrating Survivorship: Triumph Over Breast Cancer

    Source: US State of Connecticut

    It was a quiet winter afternoon, January 4, 2024, one Kim Thacker remembers with remarkable clarity. Sitting in an armchair in her living room, she had left work early, feeling more tired than usual. At 3 p.m., her phone rang. It was her radiologist.

    “I was expecting a call at some point,” Thacker recalls, “but nothing prepares you for hearing the word cancer.”

    She had undergone a series of breast biopsies the previous week, but the official diagnosis, invasive lobular carcinoma, hit like a wave she could hardly absorb. “It took months to process it,” she says. “In many ways, I’m still processing it.”

    Kim Thacker is positive starting her first chemotheraphy treatment.

    Within days of that life-changing call, Thacker and her husband sat face-to-face with her care team at UConn Health. They walked through every detail of her diagnosis, translating the language of her scans into something human, something understandable. That clarity, she says, was essential.

    “My only symptom was fatigue,” Thacker shares. “I had no lumps, nothing visible or palpable. It turns out that’s typical for my cancer type, which grows in strands rather than forming a mass. If I hadn’t gone in for my routine mammogram, it might have gone undetected for a long time.

    At just 42 years old, this was only Thacker’s second mammogram. That screening likely saved her life.

    From the very beginning, Thacker felt she was in good hands at UConn Health’s Carole and Ray Neag Comprehensive Cancer Center. Her team included breast surgeon Dr. Rene Relos, radiologist Dr. Robert Dowsett, clinical psychologist, Dr. Judith Cooney, and oncologist Dr. Yueming Chang, along with a dedicated group of nurses and technicians who would walk alongside her every step.

    “The care I’ve received at UConn Health has been incredible,” she says. “Even though they see dozens of patients each day, they always make me feel like I’m the most important one in the room.”

    Kim and infusion nurse Shaily De La Cruz Delgado on her last day of treatment.

    That sense of personal attention was a lifeline, especially during chemotherapy. Kim remembers one nurse in particular with gratitude and affection, infusion nurse, Shaily De La Cruz Delgado.

    “I will never forget Shaily, my chemo nurse. Her kindness and positivity carried me through some of the hardest days.”

    “Working with Kim was one of the most rewarding experiences I’ve had,” says De La Cruz Delgado. “Her sensitivity and positive demeaner made her experience a positive one. I enjoyed our conversations about her life outside of the infusion room and how eager she was to get back to her normal life as a wife, mom and teacher.”

    Thacker’s treatment was intensive: a bilateral complete mastectomy, followed by chemotherapy, radiation, and now ongoing care that includes regular injections and a daily medication regimen. Today, her bloodwork shows no signs of cancer.

    She considers herself to be in the early “survivor” stage, grateful, cautious, and grounded in a new perspective.

    “Life has changed in every way,” she says. “My priorities have shifted. I try to live each day with deep joy in my heart and not worry so much about the future. Life is unpredictable for all of us.”

    “Kim did an incredible job navigating the challenges of an unexpected and life-changing cancer diagnosis,” says Cooney. “Through individual and group health psychology sessions, she learned effective strategies to manage physical, emotional, and cognitive distress—such as relaxation techniques, reframing negative thoughts, exercise, spirituality, support, and mindfulness.”

    Following treatment, Thacker not only returned to work but reconnected more deeply with her family and the activities that reflect her values. Her dedication led to more than just coping; she discovered strength, resilience, and gratitude, transforming her experience into one of personal growth.

    “By shifting her focus from anxiety to meaning, Kim deepened her relationships, with her husband, children, and the supportive communities around her, including their church, workplace, and extended family across the country,” says. Cooney.

    For those just beginning their cancer journey, Thacker offers her heart and hard-won wisdom.

    “There will be very hard days,” she says. “But they won’t last forever. Joy will return, deeper, richer than before, because your perspective will have changed. You are not alone.”

    She’s also found space for humor, even in the strangest moments.

    “People say the oddest things when they’re trying to be supportive,” she laughs. “Someone once told me, ‘I understand how hard breast cancer is, because my grandma died from it.’ At the time, it stung. Now, I try to see it for what it is, an awkward attempt at connection. And honestly some of it is just funny now.”

    Today, Thacker is focused on healing, not just her body, but her life. She continues to receive care at UConn Health, surrounded by a team that empowers her every step of the way. “I am so thankful for my care team,” she says

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Does the key to uniting against divisive politics lie in our personal lives?

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Peter Beresford, Professor of Citizen Participation, University of East Anglia

    Shutterstock/Top Vector Studio

    Modern Britain is plagued by a sense of disempowerment and political exclusion – a feeling that is, somewhat ironically, shared between groups of people who otherwise feel divided from one another.

    This division has opened the door to a frightening rightwing populism that seeks to set “us” against “them”. And so far, the response from traditional political parties seems to amount to little more than trying to mimic rightwing rhetoric.

    It’s possible that the solution to this drive towards division is simply hiding in plain sight. The term “populist politics” merely means “a political approach that strives to appeal to people who feel their concerns are disregarded”.

    It’s unfortunate but not inevitable that voters are being offered merely the illusion of being listened to rather than real action to address their concerns. People don’t actually want more promises. They want a real say – whether they live in a neglected town in northern England or face personal barriers and discrimination.

    Get your news from actual experts, straight to your inbox. Sign up to our daily newsletter to receive all The Conversation UK’s latest coverage of news and research, from politics and business to the arts and sciences.

    But here’s where the biggest contradiction lies. While formal politics has been moving hard right, our personal politics have been headed determinedly in the opposite direction.

    We have seen a powerful pressure towards the equalisation of roles and relationships in society, across gender, sexuality, ethnicity, age and disability. And these trends stretch far deeper than any narrow preoccupation with the equality, diversity and inclusion agendas that are attacked as “woke” and “elitist”.

    The new social movements that have been the force for such personal, social, cultural and environmental change have also had another underlying agenda – people pressing for a real say in state and other organisations and structures that affect their lives. The growing demand has been for more participation and fewer traditional top-down, paternalistic approaches.

    This has been conspicuous in areas like the NHS and care where patients and service users are demanding more information and explanations and staff are being trained to expect this and respond positively.

    Thus, the rallying call of the women’s movement, “the personal is political”. And here perhaps lies the way forward – shifting the ground from phoney populism to real participation. Can we build on the quiet transformation that’s been taking place in our personal lives and relationships to rebuild our formal politics – highlighting that “the political is personal” too?

    The minority politics we now have which privileges a few over the many is unlikely ever to end until the rest of us can unite as many (albeit overlapping) minorities on equal terms. The present tendency to sort our differences and relative oppression into a hierarchy will merely serve the interest of the ultimate minority – rich and powerful organisations and individuals.

    Joining forces

    The only convincing way to challenge rightwing populism is to give all the groups now set against each other a real say in change. Crucially, it means building equal and inclusive alliances between our different groups and movements – real grassroots work – emulating and learning from the progress we have undoubtedly made in our personal politics.

    It means highlighting what we have in common as much as our differences. None of us has one single monolithic identity – we have multiple overlapping identities which offer insights and understanding into other experiences.

    We’re not so different as populists would have us believe – and we don’t have to hate ourselves or others for being tagged as such. You may be divorced or in a blended family. You almost certainly have experienced your own money worries or faced mental health issues personally or with a loved one. Such intersectionality enters all our personal lives, even if we aren’t familiar with the term.

    Some of the most disempowered groups have key contributions to offer here. Disabled people, including mental health service users, people with learning difficulties and long-term conditions actually have some of the most helpful learning to offer more broadly because of the scale of routine exclusions they face.

    They remind us of the importance of challenging barriers in our environment, such as inaccessible buildings, or communication barriers imposed by ignoring the access needs of deaf, blind and other groups.

    Like the black civil rights movement before them, disabled people have majored in sharing their experiences to build their personal confidence and assertiveness as a basis for empowerment.

    Of course, all this is easier to say than do, it takes time. That’s why in terms of formal political calendars, it’s a strategy we can’t afford to delay. The general election clock is ticking and already Reform is eyeing up next year’s Welsh elections.

    It means building from the bottom, not yielding to top-down rhetoric, and learning from the massive amount of experience we already have from our different movements and activism. As the black lesbian feminist Audre Lorde wrote: “We will not rebuild the master’s house using the master’s tools.” We have to the have confidence instead to join forces to use our own.

    Peter Beresford receives funding from the National Institute for Health Reseearch Applied Research Collaboration East of England as a part-time academic at the University of East Anglia and some of the work in this book was made possible through reseearch undertaken as part of this post

    – ref. Does the key to uniting against divisive politics lie in our personal lives? – https://theconversation.com/does-the-key-to-uniting-against-divisive-politics-lie-in-our-personal-lives-257696

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Justin R. Simmons Appointed as Interim U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    SAN ANTONIO – Attorney General Pamela Bondi has appointed Justin R. Simmons as Interim United States Attorney for the Western District of Texas pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 546, which provides that “the Attorney General may appoint a United States Attorney for the district in which the office of United States Attorney is vacant.” This appointment took effect on May 30, 2025.

    “I want to thank President Trump and Attorney General Bondi for placing their trust in me to lead the incredible AUSAs and support staff we have working here in the Western District,” said Simmons. “I am humbled and honored to serve in this role.”

    Simmons joined the Western District of Texas as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in December 2020 and has prosecuted a wide variety of cases, including cases involving trans-national criminal organizations, human trafficking, gun crimes, white-collar crimes, and immigration offenses.

    Simmons also served as the SAR Coordinator for the district, a role in which he was tasked with leading a group of federal, state and local law enforcement agents and officers in reviewing and evaluating SARs filed by various financial institutions. Simmons also served as the Elder Justice Coordinator, giving presentations to various groups in the San Antonio area regarding the many criminal schemes perpetrated on the elderly. Additionally, he served on the leadership team for the South Texas Officers and Prosecutors Human Trafficking Task Force, giving various presentations to law enforcement personnel regarding financial investigations in the human trafficking context.

    “The Western District of Texas has for many years been on the front lines of the fight against the narco-terrorists that have enriched themselves to the detriment of the United States,” said Simmons. “In keeping with the President’s priorities, we will continue to push back against their efforts by aggressively enforcing the laws of the United States. We will also continue to root out and bring to light those who would enrich themselves by perpetrating fraud on the government or individual citizens. Additionally, our civil litigators will continue with their important work representing the interests of the United States in our federal courts. Hand in hand with our law enforcement partners, we will do our part to make the Western District a place where the American people cannot just survive but thrive. I look forward to leading in this effort.”

    Prior to joining the U.S. Attorney’s office, Simmons was a commercial litigator at the law firm of Scheef & Stone in Frisco, Texas, and, before that, he was an Assistant District Attorney in Collin County, Texas.

    Simmons received his bachelor’s degree in business administration and management from Samford University in 2004, and his Juris Doctorate from Texas A&M in 2016.

    ###

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI New Zealand: WorkSafe makes significant shift to rebalance its activities, launches road cone hotline

    Source: New Zealand Government

    WorkSafe makes significant shift to rebalance its activities, launches road cone hotline      

    As part of a broader suite of health and safety reforms, the Government has agreed to a range of changes that will significantly refocus WorkSafe from an enforcement agency to one that engages early to support businesses and individuals to manage their critical risks, Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says.

    “During my public consultation, I heard many concerns from a wide range of Kiwi businesses and workers about WorkSafe’s inconsistency, culture and lack of guidance. It was a constant theme on the roadshow from all parts of the country.  

    “I have listened to these concerns and today I am sharpening the focus of WorkSafe to change the culture of the agency. For too long, businesses and employers have asked for more guidance and help from WorkSafe on how to comply with health and safety legislation, only to be told it’s not WorkSafe’s job. 

    “A culture where the regulator is feared for its punitive actions rather than appreciated for its ability to provide clear and consistent guidance is not conducive to positive outcomes in the workplace. 

    “Changes begin with today’s launch of WorkSafe’s road cone tipline to look into and provide guidance on instances of over-compliance in temporary traffic management,” says Ms van Velden.  

    The tipline will be complemented by a joint engagement programme by WorkSafe with NZTA and key industry stakeholders, educating those involved with temporary traffic management to adopt a risk-based approach. 

    “In addition, WorkSafe has started slashing outdated guidance documents from its website and will be updating guidance where necessary. Fifty documents have already been removed and more will follow. These documents were identified as being no longer relevant, not reflecting current practice and technology, or containing content that is covered by other more up-to-date guidance. Removing and replacing outdated guidance will make it much easier for people to find the help they’re looking for and ensures WorkSafe is giving consistent and clear advice.

    “I will also restructure WorkSafe’s appropriation to increase fiscal transparency and support delivery of my expectations. 

    “For some time, WorkSafe has struggled to effectively articulate the cost and effectiveness of its activities, making it difficult to monitor and assess the value of activities or the merit of requests for further funding. 

    “To address this, I will split WorkSafe’s appropriation into four new categories

    1. Supporting work health and safety practice
    2. Enforcing work health and safety compliance
    3. Authorising and monitoring work health and safety activities, and
    4. Energy safety.  

    “This change will come into effect later this year and will provide a clear framework that focuses WorkSafe through change in culture and expectations,” says Ms van Velden.  

    “I want to make sure that the public receives a better experience in their everyday interactions with WorkSafe. The public will be able to provide feedback on the timeliness and effectiveness of WorkSafe’s guidance, inspections and other engagements. I expect this will promote continuous improvement,” says Ms van Velden.

    A Letter of Expectations has been sent to WorkSafe formalising the Minister’s expectations of WorkSafe. 

    “I want to thank WorkSafe’s Board, Chief Executive and staff for acknowledging the work ahead, making WorkSafe’s work programme fit for purpose,” says Ms van Velden. 

    Notes to Editors:

    • The road cone hotline will be accessible from 7am through the following link: worksafe.govt.nz/roadcones
    • The Cabinet paper attached and published on Health and safety reform | Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment under Background documents heading
    • Minister’s Letter of Expectations to WorkSafe is attached, outlining more detail about these changes.

    Strategic Baseline Review: Independent reviews of WorkSafe | Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment

    MIL OSI New Zealand News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Congressman Raul Ruiz Urges Governor Newsom to Prevent Imminent Closure of Palo Verde Hospital

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Raul Ruiz (36th District of California)

    Blythe, CA – Today, Congressman Dr. Raul Ruiz (CA-25) issued the following statement after sending a letter to Governor Gavin Newsom urging emergency action to prevent the closure of Palo Verde Hospital in Blythe, California:

     “Palo Verde Hospital, the only acute-care facility within 100 miles of Blythe, is facing closure today. That means shutting down emergency care, discharging critically ill patients, and leaving over 18,000 residents, and thousands more in surrounding rural areas, without access to lifesaving services.

     “This is a public health emergency. The closure of this hospital puts lives at risk and would leave a massive health care gap in one of the most underserved regions of our state. Patients will suffer. People will die.

    “I’m calling on Governor Newsom to step in immediately with $4 million in emergency support to keep this hospital open. We need urgent action to stop this closure, protect lives, and give the hospital time to stabilize.

    “As an emergency physician, I know what it means when care is out of reach. I will continue fighting to preserve access to rural health care and keep our hospitals open.”

    Read the letter, here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: In the Dead of Night, House Republicans Push to Rip Health Care from 14 Million Americans

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Lori Trahan (D-MA-03)

    WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congresswoman Lori Trahan (MA-03) issued the following statement after voting against the GOP reconciliation bill, which was considered by House Republicans overnight and passed before 7:00am this morning:
    “While Americans were asleep, House Republicans advanced their disastrous reconciliation bill that rips health care away from 14 million Americans – including 270,000 in Massachusetts – to bankroll tax breaks for their billionaire donors. It slashes $3.7 billion from MassHealth, threatening health care for children, seniors, and working families. At its core, this bill is a heartless transfer of wealth from those who need help the most to those who need it the least.”
    “Donald Trump’s so-called ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ guts SNAP benefits, taking food off the tables of thousands of families across the Commonwealth already squeezed by higher prices. Instead of closing tax loopholes for the ultra-wealthy, Republicans chose to make it harder for parents to feed their kids. It’s a shameful betrayal of the people we’re elected to serve.”
    “Despite all their talk of fiscal responsibility, this bill – crafted in secret by Donald Trump and passed in the middle of the night by House Republicans – adds $3.8 trillion to the deficit. That reckless spending triggers automatic cuts, including nearly half a trillion dollars from Medicare. The math doesn’t lie: this bill isn’t about helping working people – it’s about enriching the wealthy at everyone else’s expense.”
    “I voted no, and I will keep fighting to stop this dangerous bill from becoming law. Working families, seniors, veterans and children across this country deserve leaders who fight for them – not sell them out to the highest bidder.”
    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: St. Louis Nonprofit Executive Admits $2.3 Million-Dollar Student Meal Fraud

    Source: US FBI

    ST. LOUIS – The owner of a nonprofit on Tuesday admitted fraudulently obtaining more than $2 million in funds intended to feed low-income Missouri children, both before and during the coronavirus pandemic.

    Cymone McClellan, 32, of St. Louis, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. She admitted that she and Terra Davis, 43, submitted $2.3 million worth of false and fraudulent meal reimbursement claims to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services from about January 2019 to June 2022, on behalf of their nonprofit, Sister of Lavender Rose (S.O.L.R.). Davis was McClellan’s second-in-command at S.O.L.R.

    McClellan and Davis submitted false reimbursement claims for a total of 860,876 meals that they purportedly supplied to Missouri children. But McClellan actually only purchased enough food and milk to serve fewer than a quarter of those meals, her plea agreement says.

    McClellan provided bogus sign-in sheets to DHSS falsely claiming to have taken the attendance of meal recipients at certain food distribution locations. S.O.L.R. submitted management plans to DHSS falsely asserting that state meal reimbursement dollars were spent only in connection with the provision of meals to low-income children, and that the nonprofit did not use meal money to make purchases over $5,000. McClellan’s management plans also falsely claimed that all checks were signed by her finance director, who was not a signor on S.O.L.R.’s account.

    McClellan admitted spending $60,000 of the money that was to be used for feeding children for the down payment on a house in Collinsville, Illinois. She spent another $86,172 on a house in Florissant, Missouri, and almost $135,000 more to buy five vehicles: a 2021 Chevrolet Traverse, a 2012 Chevrolet Express G3500 van, a 2020 Mercedes-Benz Metris van, a 2012 Ford E350 box truck and a 2018 Lexus RX SUV.

    As part of her plea, McClellan has agreed to forfeit the vehicles and houses. At her sentencing, now set for August 26, she will be ordered to repay the rest of the money.

    Davis pleaded guilty in December to the same wire fraud conspiracy charge. She is scheduled to be sentenced on June 5.

    This case was investigated by the FBI and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorney Derek Wiseman is prosecuting the case.  

    Anyone with information about pandemic fraud should call the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or report via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Two St. Louis Area Doctors Admit Health Crimes

    Source: US FBI

    ST. LOUIS – Two doctors from the St. Louis, Missouri area have pleaded guilty to federal crimes.

    Dr. Asim Muhammad Ali, 54, pleaded guilty Thursday to one count of conspiracy to illegally distribute controlled substances and to maintain a drug-involved premises. Dr. Mohd Azfar Malik, 71, pleaded guilty in April to two counts of making false statements related to health care matters. Malik, a psychiatrist, also agreed to surrender his Drug Enforcement Administration registrations authorizing him to administer controlled substances.

    As part of his plea agreement Thursday, Dr. Ali admitted agreeing to perform health care services for Medicare patients of a company Dr. Malik owned, Psych Care Consultants LLC, but bill using Dr. Malik’s name and Medicare billing number. The doctors billed Medicare for “annual wellness visits,” a yearly appointment in which the health care provider develops, creates, or updates a personalized prevention plan and performs tasks including a cognitive function assessment. Dr. Ali did not see them in person but called asked a series of questions. Dr. Ali admitted that Medicare paid $3,902 for the fraudulent claims.

    Dr. Malik admitted submitting claims for payment to Medicare, Medicaid and private health insurers in which he falsely claimed to have performed in-person services when he was out of Missouri or out of the country. In one example in the plea agreement, Dr. Malik admitted submitting a claim to Missouri Medicaid for an initial inpatient hospital visit on Dec. 3, 2023. Dr. Malik was in Hawaii at the time. He also admitted billing a private insurance company for the intravenous infusion of ketamine when he was out of town. The infusion was conducted by Dr. Ali. Dr. Malik knew Dr. Ali was under indictment and lacked a DEA registration authorizing him to administer controlled substances, including ketamine. Dr. Malik admitted causing a total loss of $19,442 to Medicare, Medicaid, and the private health care insurers,

    Dr. Ali also pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to illegally distribute controlled substances, one count of illegally prescribing controlled substances, one count of paying illegal kickbacks for referrals and one count of a submitting false claims last year in a separate 2020 case. He admitted involvement in a conspiracy to pay kickbacks for urine specimens referred for testing to one of his companies, Central Diagnostic Laboratory. Dr. Ali also pre-signed prescriptions for controlled substances to be given to patients on their next visit to one of his other businesses, the Institute for Pain Management LLC. Dr. Ali did not see the patients on the dates they received the prescriptions and rarely looked at patient charts or determined a legitimate medical need for the controlled substances that they were prescribing. Dr. Ali also signed prescriptions for patients who appeared to be selling or giving away their controlled substances. 

    Dr. Ali is scheduled to sentenced on August 25 for both cases. Dr. Malik is scheduled to be sentenced on August 11.

    The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration and the Missouri Medicaid Fraud Control Unit investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Amy Sestric is prosecuting Thursday’s case and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amy Sestric, Derek Wiseman and Jonathan Clow are prosecuting the 2020 case.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Banking: UK biopharma venture financing QoQ doubles to $1.1 billion in Q1 2025, reveals GlobalData

    Source: GlobalData

    UK biopharma venture financing QoQ doubles to $1.1 billion in Q1 2025, reveals GlobalData

    Posted in Business Fundamentals

    UK biopharmaceutical companies experienced a quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) surge in venture financing, reaching $1.1 billion in the first quarter (Q1) of 2025—twice the amount raised in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2024 and exceeding all quarterly totals from 2021. This surge highlights investor appetite for breakthrough innovation, but growing dependence on US capital and policy-driven cost pressures signal an urgent need to strengthen domestic investment for sustainable growth, says GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

    While global biopharmaceutical venture financing witnessed a downturn over 2022 and 2023, the UK demonstrated resilience with sustained year-over-year growth, doubling from $827 million in 2022 to $1.7 billion in 2024, according to GlobalData’s Pharmaceutical Intelligence Center Deals Database.

    In 2021, British Patient Capital launched the “Life Sciences Investment Programme (LSIP)” – a GBP200 million initiative that aimed to attract GBP400 million additional venture financing for UK life sciences. Under the new Mansion House Accord announced by the UK government in May 2025, leading pension providers have committed to invest 5% of their funds towards private UK-based companies, potentially unlocking $25 billion of domestic funding for UK businesses by 2030.

    Alison Labya, Business Fundamentals Pharma Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “The growth in venture financing for UK biopharmaceutical companies in Q1 2025 was primarily driven by two mega-rounds – Isomorphic Labs with $600 million and Verdiva Bio with $411 million. This suggests increased investor selectivity where available capital is being concentrated into a smaller number of companies with high commercial potential.”

    Furthermore, US investors were involved in almost totality for the $1.1 billion of the total venture financing deal value raised in Q1 2025 by UK biopharmaceutical companies, compared to UK investors’ involvement of only $112.7 million. A dependency on US capital could prompt companies to relocate to the US and limit the reinvestment of returns into the UK biopharmaceutical sector, weakening its long-term growth.

    Labya concludes: “UK biopharmaceutical companies continue to attract investor interest; however, sustained venture financing and initiatives to boost domestic investment will be crucial for translating UK-based innovation into commercial success.

    “Investor appetite could be impacted by the rise in rebate rates from 15.5% to 32.2% for H2 2025 under the Statutory Scheme announced in March 2025, along with an increase to 22.9% under the 2024-2028 Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicines Pricing, Access and Growth (VPAG). An anticipated increase in costs associated with these drug pricing policy changes could deter companies from developing drugs in the UK, which may slow UK-based innovation and reduce patient access to medicines.”

    Note: Includes announced and completed venture capital deals involving companies headquartered in the UK with at least one innovator drug where marketed, pre-registration, Phase III, Phase II, Phase I, preclinical, and discovery stages are considered. Includes deals where a deal value was publicly disclosed.

    For further insights into the latest Deal Trends in the Pharma Sector, please see our Venture Capital Investment Trends in Pharma – Q1 2025 and M&A Trends in Pharma – Q1 2025 reports.

    MIL OSI Global Banks –

  • MIL-OSI USA: ENG INTRODUCES COMPREHENSIVE LEGISLATION TO END PERIOD POVERTY AND IMPROVE ACCESS TO MENSTRUAL PRODUCTS

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Grace Meng (6th District of New York)

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Rep. Grace Meng (D-NY) announced that she reintroduced her Menstrual Equity for All Act, a bold, whole-of-government approach to eradicating period poverty and improving access to menstrual products.

    Menstruation is a natural part of life for roughly half of the world’s population at one point or another. Yet, today, millions of people in the United States continue to experience period poverty. In fact, one in three American adults who menstruate report struggling to afford menstrual products, and one-third have missed school or work because they could not access these products. An estimated 86% of people who menstruate use tampons, up to 72% use pads, and 75% use panty liners. Most of them use these products on a monthly basis. It is estimated that an individual will spend over $6,000 on menstrual products in their lifetime. 

    “Period products are essential for millions of people who menstruate,” said Congresswoman Meng. “Access to these products is not only a health care right, but also a human right. It is unacceptable that they are still out of reach for more than half the population. This legislation takes critical steps toward ending period poverty by expanding access to menstrual products for individuals across a range of populations, such as in schools and universities, workplaces, and correctional and detention facilities, and through existing federal programs like the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, and Social Services Block Grants. Without it, women, girls, and menstruators will continue to miss out on educational and career opportunities simply because they cannot afford period products. We must keep fighting for them.”

    Specifically, Meng’s Menstrual Equity for All Act would:

    • Give states the option to use federal grant funds to provide students in elementary and secondary schools with free menstrual products;
    • Incentivize institutions of higher education to create pilot programs that provide free menstrual products to students;
    • Ensure incarcerated individuals and detainees in federal, state, and local facilities (including immigration detention centers), have access to free menstrual products;
    • Allow homeless assistance providers to use grant funds that cover shelter necessities (such as blankets and toothbrushes) to also use those funds to purchase menstrual products;
    • Require Medicaid to cover the cost of menstrual products;
    • Direct large employers (with 100 or more employees) to provide free menstrual products for their employees in the workplace;
    • Require all public federal buildings to provide free menstrual products in the restrooms;
    • Provide states and localities with funds through the Social Services Block Grant program to support free menstrual products programs;
    • Eliminate the federal sales tax on period products; and
    • Create a pilot program within the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program to help families in need access menstrual products.

    “We know that period supplies are basic essentials that all people who menstruate require to participate in daily life – going to work, school, and engaging in everyday events,” said Joanne Goldblum, CEO of the Alliance for Period Supplies. “The Menstrual Equity for All Act ensures equitable access to period supplies so that millions of people can earn, learn, and thrive. We thank Congresswoman Meng for championing the Menstrual Equity for All Act and fully support the bill as it offers a comprehensive solution to a major public health issue. Its passage is long overdue.”

    “The fact of the matter is that nearly 1 in 4 students across the country are unable to afford period products and a quarter of students are unable to do their schoolwork due to a lack of access to these products,” said Michela Bedard, Executive Director of PERIOD. “The Menstrual Equity for All Act will improve student success in and out of the classroom through expanded menstrual health education and period product access.”

    “Women’s Voices for the Earth applauds Congresswoman Meng for her longstanding commitment and leadership on menstrual equity,” said Debra Erenberg, Co-Executive Director, Women’s Voices for the Earth. All people who menstruate need and deserve access to safe and healthy intimate care products. We look forward to working with the Congresswoman to pass this groundbreaking piece of commonsense legislation.”

    Meng originally introduced her Menstrual Equity for All Act in 2017. Since then, she has led numerous efforts to improve access to menstrual products and promote menstrual health. Earlier this month, she introduced a resolution to designate May as “National Menstrual Health Awareness Month.” The resolution recognizes the impact that the stigmatization of menstruation has on the lives of women, girls and people who menstruate.

    This legislation was introduced with 61 cosponsors. It is supported by the Alliance for Period Supplies, The Center for Baby and Adult Hygiene Products, Days for Girls, The Flow Initiative, Helping Women Period, ISSA – The Worldwide Cleaning Industry Association, Mass NOW, Mujeres and Menstruators United, National Federation of Business and Professional Women’s Clubs, Period Education Project, PERIOD., and Period Law.

    The full text of the bill can be found here.

     

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Dr. Cato T. Laurencin of UConn Receives Bioactive Materials Lifetime Achievement Award

    Source: US State of Connecticut

    Professor Sir Cato T. Laurencin, MD, Ph.D., KCSL, received the prestigious Bioactive Materials Lifetime Achievement Award at a ceremony held in May at a recognition ceremony in China. It was the highlight of the Westlake Advanced Regenerative Medicine Engineering Conference, which was the first international meeting on regenerative engineering, a field he founded and has pioneered.

    The Bioactive Materials Lifetime Achievement Award was established in 2020 to recognize excellence in research and development in the field. The award transcends individual honor, serving as a catalyst for advancing the field, fostering international collaboration, and inspiring innovation.

    Bioactive Materials is an international, peer-reviewed research publication covering all aspects of bioactive materials.

    The presentation ceremony was chaired by Prof. Zheng Yufeng of Peking University, editor-in-chief of Bioactive Materials. More than 300 experts and scholars from the global biomaterials and medical engineering fields convened to witness this milestone event. Bioactive materials have emerged as a core driver of medical revolution. At the event, Laurencin announced the beginning of the “Year of Regenerative Engineering.”

    Three eminent scholars spoke in celebration of Laurencin’s legacy and outstanding achievements in the field of regenerative engineering. Professor Robert Langer, F.R.Eng. Sc.D., (MIT), gave a moving tribute, “Dr. Laurencin is a distinguished scientist who has made groundbreaking discoveries in regenerative engineering, trained generations of students, demonstrated leadership across universities and globally, and inspired countless individuals as a role model.”

    Professor Liu Changsheng (Shanghai University), a 2021 Inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, noted, “As a pioneer in regenerative engineering, Professor Laurencin has driven the integration of engineering and biology, enabled clinical translation of technologies, and pioneered polymeric biomaterials for musculoskeletal repair. His contributions are profound, and this award is well-deserved.”

    Professor Guillermo Ameer (Northwestern University) a 2022 Bioactive Materials Lifetime Achievement Award recipient said, “We look to Dr. Laurencin to continue leading the field of regenerative engineering as a role model, bridging gaps and advocating for equity for those with limited resources.”

    At UConn Laurencin is the University Professor and Albert and Wilda Van Dusen Distinguished Endowed Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at UConn School of Medicine, professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, professor of Materials Science and Engineering, and professor of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Connecticut. He is the chief executive officer of The Cato T. Laurencin Institute for Regenerative Engineering, a cross-university institute created and named in his honor at the University of Connecticut.

    Laurencin is the founder and pioneer of the field of Regenerative Engineering. He is an expert in biomaterials science, stem cell technology, and nanotechnology and was named one of the 100 Engineers of the Modern Era by the American Institute of Chemical Engineers. He received the Founder’s Award (highest award) from the Society for Biomaterials, the Von Hippel Award (highest award) from the Materials Research Society, and the James Bailey Award (highest award) from the Society for Biological Engineering and the Priestley Medal (highest award) from the American Chemical Society. He received the NIH Director’s Pioneer Award, NIH’s highest and most prestigious research award, for his field of Regenerative Engineering and the National Science Foundation’s Emerging Frontiers in Research and Innovation Grant Award.  Laurencin is the editor-in-chief of Regenerative Engineering and Translational Medicine, published by Springer Nature, and is the founder of the Regenerative Engineering Society. He is a fellow of the American Chemical Society, a fellow of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, a fellow of the Biomedical Engineering Society, a fellow of the Materials Research Society, and a AAAS fellow. The American Association for the Advancement of Science awarded Laurencin the Philip Hauge Abelson Prize given ‘for signal contributions to the advancement of science in the United States’.

    Laurencin is an elected member of the National Academy of Sciences, an elected member of the National Academy of Engineering, an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine, and an elected fellow of the National Academy of Inventors. He is the first surgeon in history elected to all four of these academies. He is an elected fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and an elected fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Active internationally, he is an elected fellow of the Indian National Academy of Sciences, the Indian National Academy of Engineering, the African Academy of Sciences, The World Academy of Sciences, and is an Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

    Laurencin is the recipient of the National Medal of Technology and Innovation, America’s highest honor for technological achievement, awarded by President Barack Obama in ceremonies at the White House. He is the first individual in history to receive one of the oldest/highest awards of the National Academy of Medicine (the Walsh McDermott Medal) and the oldest/highest award of the National Academy of Engineering (the Simon Ramo Founder’s Award).

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Civic Prayer Breakfast to start Stoke-on-Trent Day with unity, reflection and community spirit

    Source: City of Stoke-on-Trent

    Published: Monday, 2nd June 2025

    Stoke-on-Trent Day will begin with a powerful moment of reflection as faith leaders, civic figures and community members gather for the Centenary Civic Prayer Breakfast.

    The event is hosted by Saltbox, at the historic Kings Hall, Stoke from 7:30am to 10:00am.

    This year’s breakfast will take place on the first Stoke-on-Trent Day – marking the day that King George V declared Stoke-on-Trent a city on 5 June 1925.

    Stoke-on-Trent Day will be a yearly celebration on 5 June that celebrates the history, culture, the built and natural environment and the communities that make the city.

    This year’s breakfast marks a special milestone in more ways than one. Not only does it honour 100 years of city status, but it also reaffirms the city’s long-standing commitment to unity, collaboration and public service through one of the largest events of its kind in the UK.

    Last year, more than 300 faith leaders, civic representatives and community activists came together to pray for the city’s future and build relationships across the public, private and voluntary sectors. Since launching in 2010, the Stoke-on-Trent Civic Prayer Breakfast has become a national benchmark, inspiring similar events across the country.

    Lloyd Cooke, CEO of Saltbox said: “The Civic Prayer Breakfast is always a joyful and positive occasion and this year’s special Centenary Day event promises to be even more impactful with over 400 guests attending.”

    This year’s event features a keynote address by Robert Mountford, West Midlands Churches Ecumenical Officer, and a live interview with Dr Fiona Hibberts, Deputy Chief Nurse at University Hospitals North Midlands. Guests will also enjoy performances from Presence Worship’s Paul Critchley, members of the City of Stoke-on-Trent Symphony Orchestra, and the St Peter’s CofE Academy Gospel Choir.

    Tickets are £15, including a full English breakfast, individual table service and free parking.

    The Lord Mayor of Stoke-on-Trent, Councillor Steve Watkins, said: “The Civic Prayer Breakfast is a chance to pause and reflect on what matters most – our people, our values and our shared future. In this Centenary Year, I’m proud that our city continues to lead the way in community collaboration and spiritual unity.”

    To book for the Civic Prayer Breakfast:

    By card: Call 07825 745142

    By cheque: Saltbox, Bemersley House, Gitana Street, Hanley, ST1 1DY

    In person: Methodist Book Centre, Gitana Street, Hanley, ST1 1DY

    Email enquiries: email@saltbox.org.uk

    For more Centenary events or to download the Stoke-on-Trent Day celebration toolkit, visit www.sot100.org.uk and follow #SOT100 on social media.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Governor Stein and North Carolina Department of Public Safety Promote Safe Gun Storage During NC S.A.F.E. Week of Action

    Source: US State of North Carolina

    Headline: Governor Stein and North Carolina Department of Public Safety Promote Safe Gun Storage During NC S.A.F.E. Week of Action

    Governor Stein and North Carolina Department of Public Safety Promote Safe Gun Storage During NC S.A.F.E. Week of Action
    lsaito

    Raleigh, NC

    Governor Josh Stein proclaimed June 1-7 as the North Carolina S.A.F.E. Week of Action. Sponsored by the N.C. Department of Public Safety, this Week of Action seeks to unite communities, families, and organizations statewide in promoting the lifesaving importance of safe firearm storage.

    “Safely storing firearms can be the difference between life and death,” said Governor Josh Stein. “When people understand the risks, they are more likely to take action to protect themselves and their families. That’s what S.A.F.E. week is all about – keeping people safe from gun violence.” 

    According to FBI data, the rate of gun theft from vehicles is three times as high as it was 10 years ago. Gun thefts are also on the rise, with 10 North Carolina cities ranking in the top 100 U.S. cities for reported gun thefts from vehicles in 2022.  

    These trends highlight the urgent need for effective strategies to prevent gun-related tragedies. To reduce gun violence and needless tragedy, Governor Stein proposed more than $2.2 million for safe storage in his budget proposal. Research indicates that secure firearm storage is crucial to lowering the risk of gun violence. 

    “Every conversation and every gun lock distributed brings us closer to a safer North Carolina,” said North Carolina Department of Public Safety Deputy Secretary William Lassiter. “Our collective efforts are reaching families across the state and making a real impact.” 

    Organizations throughout North Carolina are highlighting NC S.A.F.E. during the Week of Action by hosting community events that emphasize the importance of safe gun storage. At these events, gun locks will be distributed to residents across the state. A complete list of events can be found here. Some key events include:

    • Press conferences with TSA at Charlotte Douglas International Airport
    • Community Day with Atrium Brenner’s Children’s Hospital in Winston-Salem
    • Asheville Police Department: NC S.A.F.E. Awareness Event
    • Press conference with state and local officials in Elizabeth City  

    “As healthcare providers and safety advocates, our priority is protecting the health and well-being of every child,” said Dr. Becca Palmer, Assistant Pediatrics Professor at Wake Forest School of Medicine. “Safe firearm storage is a simple but powerful step we can all take to prevent tragedies and save lives.”

    To date, the NC S.A.F.E. campaign has earned more than 89 million ad impressions and nearly 332,000 visits to the NC S.A.F.E. website. The campaign has also distributed 130,000 free gun locks to help North Carolinians safely store their guns. In addition, the campaign launched the NC S.A.F.E. for Schools program to help school districts share safe storage resources with families in their community.

    Click here to learn more about NC S.A.F.E. and to download community resources.

    Click here to view Governor Stein’s proclamation designating NC S.A.F.E. Week of Action.

    Jun 2, 2025

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Congressman Nick Langworthy Announces EPA Grant to Monitor Water Quality at Lake Erie Beaches

    Source: US Congressman Nick Langworthy (NY-23)

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressman Nick Langworthy (NY-23) announced that New York State has been awarded $328,000 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for monitoring water quality at Great Lake beaches and to notify the public if elevated levels of illness-causing bacteria make swimming unsafe. 

     

    This funding is authorized by the Beaches Environmental Assessment and Coastal Health (BEACHES) Act and it ensures that every American has access to clean and safe water. Each goal of the BEACHES Act supports the EPA’s “Powering the Great American Comeback” initiative. 

     

    “It is crucial that our beach communities along Lake Erie received this funding to ensure the beaches are safe and open for business,” said Congressman Langworthy. “I will always be an advocate of the public receiving the information they need to enjoy all Lake Erie has to offer – including water sports, beachgoing, and recreation.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: York meets air pollution targets citywide for first time

    Source: City of York

    As we approach Clean Air Day on 19 June, City of York Council has released figures showing that all of York is meeting national air pollution targets for the first time.

    Latest air quality monitoring figures from the council for 2024, reported to the Combined Executive Member Decision Session on 3 June 2025, show that the health-based air quality objectives were met at all locations in York for the first time, except during the Covid lockdowns, when traffic emissions reduced due to home working and closure of non-essential retail.  

    Air quality monitoring in some areas of the city, such as around Gillygate and Bootham, has shown that maximum annual levels of nitrogen dioxide pollution improved by 27 per cent in 2024 compared with 2023.

    The significant improvement in air quality is due to actions taken by the council, its partners and by residents. This includes further electrification of buses and council fleet vehicles, policies that incentivise the uptake of more low-emission taxis, anti-idling campaigns encouraging people to turn off their engines when stationary or waiting in traffic and improved electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure – all of which have all helped improve air quality further throughout 2024.

    The council encourages people to walk, cycle or use public transport wherever possible to reduce their exposure and contribution to air pollution, and make the switch to electric vehicles if budgets allow.

    Air pollution is linked to a range of health problems at every stage of life – from premature birth and effects on organ development in childhood,  to causing heart and lung disease, diabetes and strokes in adulthood.

    Every year, air pollution causes up to 43,000 deaths in the UK.

    Find out more through the Clean Air Hub about how air pollution impacts our mental and physical health and the planet’s wellbeing.

    Residents can also sign up for the council’s free pollution forecasting and alert service which sends air pollution alerts and health advice to those most likely to be affected by air pollution to help them minimise their exposure when future pollution episodes are forecast, and to encourage all of us to leave the car at home if possible on those days, to avoid worsening pollution for everyone.

    Cllr Jenny Kent, the Council’s Executive Member for the Environment and Climate Emergency, said:

    “This is brilliant news – what a fantastic achievement to help us celebrate Clean Air Day. By being proactive on improving the air we all breathe, the council has helped to meet air pollution targets for the first time ever in York.

    “Having walked the stretch along Holgate for over a decade with prams and children, along with hundreds of young people travelling to and from 9 schools in the area, I know first hand what a difference this makes. We made a commitment to improve air quality when we published our fourth Air Quality Action Plan last summer and it is rewarding to see that the measures are working. Cleaner air is helping improve the health and wellbeing of everyone in York.

    “This is a really big achievement which we should celebrate, but we are not complacent; we need to see these results and the longer-term downward trend continue”.

    Peter Roderick, director of Public Health at City of York Council, said:

    “Even though we can’t see it, air pollution impacts our health whatever age we are. Improving air quality not only benefits our physical health and the environment but can also protect our mental and brain health. For the whole of York to meet air pollution targets for first time since Covid is a great achievement.

    “We hope Clean Air Day will help raise awareness of air pollution across the city and encourage people to consider their air quality impact in helping to protect everyone’s health. We can all make improvements; share a lift to work, work from home or walk, catch the bus or cycle, if possible.

    “The latest results for the city demonstrate how far we have come in recent years to improve local air quality for everyone, however we recognise that more can be done. Through the council’s Air Quality Action Plan and other complementary strategies, we aim to go beyond National Air Quality Objectives and work towards meeting stricter World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines in the longer term to further improve public health; this will allow us all to benefit from lasting health improvements”.

    Mick Forbes, Engineering Director of First Bus North & West Yorkshire, said:

    “The results are very positive and provide real evidence of the environmental benefits we are achieving with our fully zero-emission fleet on the streets of York, which started on routes through Gillygate in September 2023.

    “We are delighted this is recognised in the air quality assessment by City of York Council and will continue to support its efforts to create cleaner air in the city.

    “By working together with the council we have been able to invest millions of pounds with government funding support to transform our James Street depot, which is one of the first in the country to be declared net zero.”

    Find how to protect your health and cut emissions at the Clean Air Hub 

    Free Clean Air Day resources for use by individuals, schools, businesses, health organisations and community groups are available on the Clean Air Day website 

    The council’s iTravel York website provides a host of sustainable travel resources, including walking resources and cycling resources

    This year’s Clean Air Day campaign on 19 June aims to highlight that air pollution affects your health from before your first breath until your last.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI: Duke University Student Receives the SBB Research Group Foundation STEM Scholarship

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    CHICAGO, June 02, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The SBB Research Group Foundation named Esther Hong Park a recipient of its STEM scholarship. The $2,500 award empowers students to create value for society by pursuing higher learning through interdisciplinary combinations of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM).

    Esther Hong Park, a first-year undergraduate student, studies biology at Duke University. Park also has contributed to the design of a new cost-efficient, modern chest tube to reduce complications in thoracotomies and serves as Hospitality Officer at Duke Remote Area Medical.

    “Esther is just starting out in her STEM career, but she’s already contributed so much. We are excited to see what she does as she continues her education,” said Matt Aven, co-founder and board member of the SBB Research Group Foundation.

    For eligibility criteria and more information on the Foundation’s STEM scholarship, please visit http://www.sbbscholarship.org.

    About the SBB Research Group Foundation

    The SBB Research Group Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that furthers the philanthropic mission of SBB Research Group LLC (SBBRG), a Chicago-based investment management firm led by Sam Barnett, Ph.D., and Matt Aven. The Foundation sponsors the SBB Research Group Foundation STEM Scholarship, supporting students pursuing Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) degrees. In addition to its scholarship program, the Foundation provides grants to support ambitious organizations solving unmet needs with thoughtful, long-term strategies.

    Contact: Erin Noonan
    Organization: SBB Research Group Foundation
    Email: scholarship@sbbrg.org
    Address: 450 Skokie Blvd, Building 600, Northbrook, IL 60062 United States
    Phone: 1-847-656-1111
    Website: https://www.sbbscholarship.com/

    A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/344fa260-3041-4acd-82f7-8d01bc70ad4d

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI USA: UConn Health Half Marathon: Running While Pregnant

    Source: US State of Connecticut

    If you’re pregnant, is it okay to exercise and if so, how strenuous can your workout be? Dr. Nicole Gavin, high risk pregnancy specialist at UConn Health, continued running throughout her three pregnancies and offers some advice for other mothers.

    [embedded content]

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: AFRICA/DR CONGO – Testimony from Bukavu: Children are the silent victims of war

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Kinshasa (Agenzia Fides) – Children are the silent victims of all wars: in Gaza, Ukraine, Sudan, and in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. From Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu, currently under the control of the M23 rebel movement since mid-February (see Fides 17/2/2025), we have received a testimony that reflects the dramatic humanitarian situation in the region. Although the rebels have announced the creation of an administration to manage the conquered territories, the situation in South and North Kivu remains precarious, especially for the most vulnerable: women, children, and the elderly. We publish the full testimony, omitting the name of the person who shared it for security reasons.Sister Charline welcomes me to the ward of the Bukavu General Hospital, where, together with Sister Marie-Jeanne, she coordinates the reception and care for malnourished children. “Before the war there were about 40, now there are 84; there are even three per bed,” she tells me as she invites me into the large rooms. In one of them, a mother is dressing her eight-year-old daughter: she is about to return home. She is very thin, but has passed the critical phase. The girl says goodbye with a smile. The most serious cases are in the intensive care unit, including that of a baby abandoned in the hospital by its mother, from a combat zone. A nurse cares for him with care. The war has made it impossible to grow crops, harvest, and trade… and this, along with the looting, has caused hunger. “When we have enough adequate food, they recover in two weeks; otherwise, it takes up to two months… or they die. We try to send them home as soon as possible to make room for others, but sometimes the mothers tell us they will be short of food there again… I give them a little flour; I can’t do more,” Sister Charline adds, desolately. I go to greet Natalina. In her Ek’Abana center, she welcomes children accused of witchcraft, but also, since the war began, children entrusted to her by the Red Cross while they wait to find their families. There are about 25 in total. “Cases of girls accused of witchcraft are increasing,” Natalina says. Three have arrived this week. With their parents dead or absent, the girls lived with their grandparents or other relatives. The psychologist explains: the stress of these times, the succession of illnesses, deaths, job losses, and other problems, pushes people to seek answers in prayer rooms, where irresponsible pastors point to the most vulnerable as the cause of their ills. The girl is blamed and marginalized. Sometimes, it is the grassroots communities that accompany them to the center to save them. And what about the stress of children who flinch at every noise? Of miscarriages caused by the startle of gunshots? Of the violence the children witness at the hands of the occupiers, the bandits, the population itself when, in exasperation, they lash out at the alleged thief until they kill him? Of dropping out of school after fleeing with their families? Of the humiliation of being expelled from school because parents can no longer pay the quarterly fees? Of the shortage of daily food? As I was returning, a child asked me to buy him a pancake, which is sold cheaply on the street. “Who do you live with?” “With my grandmother.” Given the crisis, I overcame my reluctance: “Take two, one for Grandma.” “Then I’ll buy some flour,” he replied. Nothing to do with a whim. All this adds to the tally of children killed directly by bombs and violence. They are silent victims, like those in Gaza, who pay the price for a debt that is all ours.” (Agenzia Fides 2/6/2025)
    Share:

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: AFRICA/KENYA – Endless violence: the Missionary Benedictine close their facilities in Kerio Valley

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Monday, 2 June 2025

    Nairobi (Agenzia Fides) – The Missionary Benedictine Sisters of the Sacred Heart Priory have closed all their facilities in Kerio Valley, Kenya, following daily violence in the region. The missionary sisters announced this on social media, announcing the closure of the mission “with immediate effect” and “indefinitely”.The decision, reads the text signed by Sister Rosa Pascal OSB, Prioress of the Missionary Benedictine Sisters, was taken “following the murder of Father Alloy Bett, parish priest of St Mathias Mulumba (see Fides, 23/5/2025) and the continued unrest in the area. This has negatively affected our missionary work” causing “mental, emotional and psychological trauma to our sisters” and, consequently, “the inability to run the essential services due to the lack of staff who are fleeing the area”.Hence the decision “to close our mission stations indefinitely, until the area is safe for service”. This action, the statement states, “is meant to ensure the safety of our sisters working in the region, our employees and those who visit our mission for different services”, at the same time, to “press the government for a lasting solution to peace in the area, including dis-arming civilians”. Among the closed facilities is the Chesongoch Mission Hospital. (F.B.) (Agenzia Fides, 2/6/2025)
    Share:

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: From period pain to heart disease, the gender health gap is real – here’s how to close it

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Jennifer Bousfield, Senior Analyst, Health and Care Research Group, RAND Europe

    Dragana Gordic/Shutterstock

    For decades, women’s health has been chronically underfunded and under-researched. The consequences of this neglect are widespread and deeply damaging.

    Millions of women live with avoidable pain, delayed diagnoses, inadequate treatments and poor access to care. The ripple effects reach far beyond individual health: they impact families, workplaces and the wider economy.

    In recent years, some progress has been made. In 2022, the UK government launched the first ever women’s health strategy for England, which was a landmark recognition that the health needs of women have been systematically overlooked in research, policy and service design.

    The strategy pledged better support for menopause, increased funding for research, the creation of women’s health hubs, which provide a convenient location for women to access multiple services, such as gynaecology, sexual health, contraception an menopause care. These hubs aim to improve access, enhance experiences, reduce health inequalities for women and improved coordination across NHS services.

    But just two years later, that momentum is at risk of stalling.

    Get your news from actual experts, straight to your inbox. Sign up to our daily newsletter to receive all The Conversation UK’s latest coverage of news and research, from politics and business to the arts and sciences.

    The government’s wider NHS reform efforts, coupled with cost-cutting, have included the withdrawal of national funding incentives for women’s health hubs. This decision has triggered concern across the health sector.

    These hubs were designed to bring together vital services – from menstrual and menopause support to contraception and fertility care – in one location. They have shown promise in narrowing gender health gaps.

    One of us (Jennifer) was involved in a recent evaluation by Rand Europe and the University of Birmingham, which found that women using the hubs reported overwhelmingly positive experiences, and collaboration between hub leaders and local healthcare services were key to their success. Yet many of these services are now at risk of being dismantled before they’ve had a chance to take root.

    This is not a marginal issue. Women make up 51% of the UK population. Still, for decades, they’ve been underrepresented in clinical research, resulting in diagnostic blind spots and treatments that don’t account for female physiology. Conditions like endometriosis, adenomyosis and heavy menstrual bleeding affect millions but remain understudied and are frequently dismissed.



    Read more:
    Symptoms of androgen excess in women are too often being overlooked – or dismissed as ‘just cosmetic’

    In other cases – such as heart disease and dementia – a lack of gender-specific understanding can be life-threatening.

    Innovation is booming — but is it reaching the right people?

    At the same time, women’s health is seeing a surge in innovation. The “femtech” sector is booming and expected to be worth US$117 billion globally by 2029 (£86 billion). From AI-powered diagnostic apps and menstrual tracking wearables, to 3D-printed pessaries, advanced ultrasonic imaging tools and new breast cancer therapies, the possibilities are exciting.

    But innovation alone isn’t enough – and it risks deepening existing inequalities if not implemented thoughtfully. The gender health gap persists, and disparities in healthcare access and outcomes are often worse for women based on geography, ethnicity or income. Without inclusive design, these shiny new tools could widen the divide rather than close it.

    There are growing concerns around bias in health technologies, particularly AI. If algorithms are trained on data that doesn’t reflect the diversity of the population, they can miss key symptoms, produce inaccurate results or fail to support women from minority backgrounds. Technology must be matched by transparency, oversight and inclusion.



    Read more:
    AI can guess racial categories from heart scans – what it means and why it matters

    Even the most advanced tools are meaningless without strong systems in place to govern them. Innovation must be embedded into accessible, well-funded services – and those services must be built around the real needs of women. Trust, relevance, and cultural sensitivity aren’t optional extras – they’re essential for success.

    As the UK government moves ahead with NHS reforms, it must not lose sight of the importance of women’s health. Getting this right means more than launching new apps or pilot schemes. It means long-term commitment and investment backed by evidence.

    At RAND Europe, our research points to two central challenges: a lack of equitable access to services and a disconnect between innovation and the needs of women.

    If we want to create meaningful, lasting change, three key priorities must be addressed:

    1. Sustainable funding: short-term pilots of new therapies or treatments often show promise, only to vanish when initial funding ends. Women’s health hubs, and similar services, need stable, long-term support to become embedded parts of the health system – not experiments at risk of collapse.

    2. Stronger cross-sector collaboration: progress depends on better coordination across the NHS, academia, industry, charities and the public. Working together can reduce the duplication of efforts, align priorities and drive real results.

    3. Accessible information and health literacy: for services and innovations to work, people need to understand them. Clear, reliable information is crucial – not just for women, but for healthcare professionals too. Empowering patients to make informed choices is key to improving outcomes.

    Women’s health is not a side issue. It’s a foundation of a healthy, fair society. Investing in it doesn’t just benefit women, it strengthens families, communities and the economy.

    The NHS ten-year plan presents a vital opportunity. If the ambitions of the women’s health strategy are to become reality, they must be baked into long-term planning with clear, measurable goals.

    Sonja Marjanovic receives grant and contract funding for wider portfolios of research on healthcare services and innovation. She works at RAND Europe, a not for profit policy research institute and she is a Trustee of The Nuffield Trust.

    Stephanie Stockwell receives grant and contract funding for wider portfolios of research on healthcare services and innovation. Stephanie Stockwell works at RAND Europe, a not f profit research institute and is on the committee for the physical activity for health division of the Chartered Society of Sport and Exercise Scientists.

    Jennifer Bousfield does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. From period pain to heart disease, the gender health gap is real – here’s how to close it – https://theconversation.com/from-period-pain-to-heart-disease-the-gender-health-gap-is-real-heres-how-to-close-it-252565

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: York celebrates meeting air pollution targets citywide for first time

    Source: City of York

    As we approach Clean Air Day later this month [19 June], City of York Council has released figures showing that all of York is meeting national air pollution targets for the first time*.

    Latest air quality monitoring figures from the council for 2024, reported to the Combined Executive Member Decision Session on 3 June 2025, show that the health-based air quality objectives were met at all locations in York for the first time, except during the Covid lockdowns, when traffic emissions reduced due to home working and closure of non-essential retail.  

    Air quality monitoring in some areas of the city, such as around Gillygate and Bootham, has shown that maximum annual levels of nitrogen dioxide pollution improved by 27 per cent in 2024 compared with 2023.

    The significant improvement in air quality is due to actions taken by the council, its partners and by residents. This includes further electrification of buses and council fleet vehicles, policies that incentivise the uptake of more low-emission taxis, anti-idling campaigns encouraging people to turn off their engines when stationary or waiting in traffic and improved electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure – all of which have all helped improve air quality further throughout 2024.

    The council encourages people to walk, cycle or use public transport wherever possible to reduce their exposure and contribution to air pollution, and make the switch to electric vehicles if budgets allow.

    Air pollution is linked to a range of health problems at every stage of life – from premature birth and effects on organ development in childhood,  to causing heart and lung disease, diabetes and strokes in adulthood.

    Every year, air pollution causes up to 43,000 deaths in the UK.

    Find out more through the Clean Air Hub about how air pollution impacts our mental and physical health and the planet’s wellbeing.

    Residents can also sign up for the council’s free pollution forecasting and alert service which sends air pollution alerts and health advice to those most likely to be affected by air pollution to help them minimise their exposure when future pollution episodes are forecast, and to encourage all of us to leave the car at home if possible on those days, to avoid worsening pollution for everyone.

    Cllr Jenny Kent, the Council’s Executive Member for the Environment and Climate Emergency, said: “This is brilliant news – what a fantastic achievement to help us celebrate Clean Air Day. By being proactive on improving the air we all breathe, the council has helped to meet air pollution targets for the *first time ever in York.

    “Having walked the stretch along Holgate for over a decade with prams and children, along with hundreds of young people travelling to and from 9 schools in the area, I know first hand what a difference this makes. We made a commitment to improve air quality when we published our fourth Air Quality Action Plan last summer and it is rewarding to see that the measures are working. Cleaner air is helping improve the health and wellbeing of everyone in York.

    “This is a really big achievement which we should celebrate, but we are not complacent; we need to see these results and the longer-term downward trend continue”.

    Peter Roderick, director of Public Health at City of York Council, said: “Even though we can’t see it, air pollution impacts our health whatever age we are. Improving air quality not only benefits our physical health and the environment but can also protect our mental and brain health. For the whole of York to meet air pollution targets for first time since Covid is a great achievement.

    “We hope Clean Air Day will help raise awareness of air pollution across the city and encourage people to consider their air quality impact in helping to protect everyone’s health. We can all make improvements; share a lift to work, work from home or walk, catch the bus or cycle, if possible.”

    “The latest results for the city demonstrate how far we have come in recent years to improve local air quality for everyone, however we recognise that more can be done. Through the council’s Air Quality Action Plan and other complementary strategies, we aim to go beyond National Air Quality Objectives and work towards meeting stricter World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines in the longer term to further improve public health; this will allow us all to benefit from lasting health improvements”.

    Mick Forbes, Engineering Director of First Bus North & West Yorkshire, said: “The results are very positive and provide real evidence of the environmental benefits we are achieving with our fully zero-emission fleet on the streets of York, which started on routes through Gillygate in September 2023.

    “We are delighted this is recognised in the air quality assessment by City of York Council and will continue to support its efforts to create cleaner air in the city.

    “By working together with the council we have been able to invest millions of pounds with government funding support to transform our James Street depot, which is one of the first in the country to be declared net zero.”

    Find how to protect your health and cut emissions at the Clean Air Hub 

    Free Clean Air Day resources for use by individuals, schools, businesses, health organisations and community groups are available on the Clean Air Day website 

    The council’s iTravel York website provides a host of sustainable travel resources, including walking resources and cycling resources

    This year’s Clean Air Day campaign on 19 June aims to highlight that air pollution affects your health from before your first breath until your last.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Record $20.2M to Strengthen Response to Domestic Violence

    Source: US State of New York

    overnor Kathy Hochul today announced a record $20.2 million investment to expand efforts to reduce intimate partner violence in 17 counties outside of New York City. This funding allows the State Division of Criminal Justice Services to support 87 law enforcement agencies and community-based organizations through the Statewide Targeted Reductions in Intimate Partner Violence (STRIVE) initiative, a ground-breaking collaborative involving district attorneys’ offices, sheriffs’ offices, municipal police agencies, probation departments, and service providers.

    “The safety of New Yorkers is my top priority, and I am committed to using every tool at our disposal to support anyone who has ever felt unsafe in their own home,” Governor Hochul said. “This record funding will save lives and reduce violence by putting offenders on notice and ensuring that the highest-risk victims and survivors receive the protection and support they need and deserve.”

    This new investment will fund 155 positions including investigators, detectives, crime analysts, coordinators and advocates to support skilled, multidisciplinary teams that work to reduce domestic violence and increase survivor capacity for safety.

    The STRIVE initiative promotes a coordinated community response rooted in survivor-centered, trauma-informed, and culturally competent practices. Modeled after the Division of Criminal Justice Services’ Gun Involved Violence Elimination (GIVE) initiative, STRIVE required each county to develop a comprehensive plan using one or more evidence-based strategies to hold those who harm accountable and increase safety capacity for victims.

    New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services Commissioner Rossana Rosado said, “The STRIVE initiative builds on our success in fighting gun violence, using the same data-driven framework, as well as proven techniques for responding to intimate partner violence. We thank Governor Hochul for her leadership and this significant investment to improve safety for victims and survivors.”

    STRIVE emphasizes six core elements: people, alignment, evidence-based strategies, engagement, skilled and supported staff, and monitoring and evaluation. The initiative places special focus on high-risk cases where victims face a serious risk of harm or lethality. Teams will use needs assessments, system mapping, and problem analysis to focus their efforts on the highest risk cases.

    Community providers will ensure responses align with existing services at the state, local, and federal levels—including social services, probation, and victim assistance programs. Progress will be monitored and evaluated using tools that track trends and inform adjustments. Using local knowledge and robust data, teams will implement one of three proven strategies to reduce domestic violence:

    The five New York City District Attorneys’ Offices also each received a share of $5 million to improve the public safety response to intimate partner violence and better address the needs of victims and survivors through early case enhancement efforts and assessments to identify and prioritize high-risk cases of abuse, among other strategies that support survivors and hold perpetrators accountable.

    New York State Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence Executive Director Kelli Nicholas Owens said, “STRIVE is an example of Coordinated Community Response, something OPDV and our partner state agencies have been investing in and promoting across the state. We know that when the systems that intersect when responding to domestic violence and other gender-based violence crimes work collaboratively, the outcomes for victims and survivors are better. STRIVE can save lives. Thank you, Governor Hochul, for supporting these efforts and for your unwavering support of those impacted by gender-based violence.”

    New York State Office of Victim Services Director Bea Hanson said, “This funding will help coordinate responses among different systems – law enforcement, domestic violence service providers, social services, and health care, among others – that respond to gender-based and intimate partner violence. It will also help expand and strengthen access to support and services so victims and survivors can reclaim their lives. I thank Governor Hochul for her leadership and commitment to supporting domestic violence survivors and crime victims, and we are proud to work with our state and local partners on this initiative.”

    The following counties, selected based on volume and rate of domestic and intimate partner violence, are receiving grant funding:

    Long Island

    • Suffolk County: $1,989,636

    Mid-Hudson

    • Dutchess County: $711,221
    • Orange County: $1,129,806
    • Westchester County: $1,419,443

    Capital Region

    • Albany County: $1,356,464
    • Rensselaer County: $775,555
    • Schenectady County: $1,177,640

    North Country

    • Jefferson County: $647,344

    Mohawk Valley

    • Oneida County: $918,308

    Central New York

    • Onondaga County: $1,876,478

    Southern Tier

    • Broome County: $750,767

    Finger Lakes

    • Cayuga County: $573,407
    • Monroe County: $2,299,070
    • Genesee County: $480,516

    Western New York

    • Chautauqua County: $847,225
    • Erie County: $2,379,496
    • Niagara County: $904,660

    A breakdown of funding by county, law enforcement agency and service provider is available online. DCJS will support the implementation and improvements in how agencies respond to intimate partner violence with dedicated training and technical assistance from national and state experts. STRIVE counties will also benefit from access to the State’s 11 Crime Analysis Centers, which provide data, intelligence and investigative support to identify perpetrators and build prosecutable cases.

    Additional STRIVE investment builds on essential, commonsense changes to New York’s Discovery Laws in the FY26 Enacted Budget to support survivors, hold perpetrators accountable and safeguard the right to a fair and speedy trial. The changes enacted will prevent cases from being thrown out over technical errors and eliminate dismissals and disruptions that have re-traumatized survivors of domestic violence and other serious crimes, and include $135 million for prosecutors and defenders to ensure compliance with discovery, a year-to-year increase of $15 million. The Enacted Budget also increases funding for rape crisis centers for the first time in a decade, with nearly $13 million for 52 centers certified by the State Department of Health; expands access to HIV prophylaxis medication to all survivors of sexual assault, not just those under 18; and improves access to public assistance for survivors of gender-based violence.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Companies House appoints Luisa Fulci as Director of Transformation and Business Change

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    News story

    Companies House appoints Luisa Fulci as Director of Transformation and Business Change

    Luisa Fulci joins Companies House as Director of Transformation and Business Change during a key phase of digital and operational change.

    Companies House has appointed Luisa Fulci as its new Director of Transformation and Business Change.  

    Luisa brings a wealth of experience from both the public and private sectors. As Digital Customer and Commercial Services Director at Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council, she led the modernisation of digital and commercial services across housing, adult social care, environmental services, public health and corporate operations. 

    Prior to this, Luisa spent 16 years at Royal Mail, where she held several senior leadership roles. As Commercial Director, she implemented major reform initiatives to customer services and delivered commercial and digital strategies that prioritised customer needs.  

    Luisa is currently a non-executive board member at HM Courts and Tribunals Service, having been appointed in April 2024. Her previous non-executive roles include board positions at East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust and Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust. At CILEx Regulation, she also advised on digital transformation and aided efforts to improve diversity in the legal profession. 

    Luisa has joined the Executive team at Companies House at a significant period of renewal. Her appointment reflects the organisation’s commitment to improving digital processes, ensuring operational efficiency and creating quality services for customers and stakeholders. 

    Reflecting on her appointment, Luisa said:

    I’m delighted to be joining Companies House at such a pivotal time of change. I’m looking forward to collaborating with my new colleagues to build on the substantial work that has already begun to create a more modern, digital and customer-focused organisation.

    Updates to this page

    Published 2 June 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI: Broadcom Announces New CloudHealth User Experience for Greater Cloud Spend Management Across Enterprise Teams

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    PALO ALTO, Calif., June 02, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Broadcom (NASDAQ: AVGO) today announced the general availability of the newest investment made to VMware Tanzu CloudHealth, a comprehensive new user experience that delivers a suite of feature enhancements and new AI-powered features like Intelligent Assist and Smart Summary. The new CloudHealth experience brings more accurate data and actionable insights to the entire FinOps Team, making it easier to achieve critical FinOps-driven outcomes and better align investments with business goals. Designed to reduce barriers to entry by making FinOps tools and capabilities available to personas of all backgrounds, it allows all stakeholders in the FinOps practice to better understand their impact and input on the organization’s cloud usage and drive a culture of accountability and collaboration.

    New AI-Powered Features Deliver a FinOps Solution for the Entire Team

    Today’s FinOps teams are expected to manage much more than spending in the growing public cloud market, as well as managing resources outside of the public cloud. According to the State of FinOps 2025 report from the FinOps Foundation, respondents stated that they expect their FinOps teams will need to manage more aspects of the cloud spend than what is expected today (source: State of FinOps by FinOps Foundation). This increased demand on the FinOps team requires tools and resources that enable them to do more, quicker. The new CloudHealth experience helps to meet these demands head-on by providing FinOps teams with a tool for the entire team.

    One of the most significant additions to the new CloudHealth experience is Intelligent Assist, a generative AI FinOps co-pilot embedded in the platform that helps users take more advantage of CloudHealth capabilities. Intelligent Assist is a large language model-enabled chatbot that allows users to gain insights about their clouds and services through natural language, such as granular custom reports or recommendations specific to their cloud usage. It makes tasks simpler for experienced users while helping to break down barriers to entry for business-oriented personas who are interested in exploring their cloud cost and usage. By enabling technical and non-technical users alike, Intelligent Assist is a crucial feature in enhancing collaboration across the FinOps team and organization, making data accessible to all decision-makers and enabling everyone to use the same data in their day-to-day operations.

    Another key addition to the new CloudHealth experience is Smart Summary, a new industry-leading approach to understanding cloud cost changes. Using Smart Summary, users can more quickly answer the key questions – what costs changed, why did they change and what action can I take to contain unintentional overrun.

    With the AI-powered capabilities of Intelligent Assist and Smart Summary, CloudHealth has demonstrated continued innovation in the cloud financial management space and reaffirms its commitment to enabling every organization to stay in control of their technology spending.

    New Experience. New Chapter. Still Breaking FinOps Barriers

    Since its founding in 2012, CloudHealth has consistently innovated in the cloud financial management space. In 2024 alone, CloudHealth was named an industry leader by seven independent analyst firms confirming its dedication to providing customers with the best insights for business decision-making and cloud spend management. Building upon this rich, storied history, the new CloudHealth experience signals a new chapter of innovation.

    “We are proud to officially introduce the general availability of the new CloudHealth experience at the FinOps X conference. Innovative, new AI-powered features like Intelligent Assist and Smart Summary provide users a greater ability to make sense of cloud data and reporting necessary to collaborate among teams to control cloud spend,” said Purnima Padmanabhan, general manager, Tanzu Division, Broadcom. “This product investment not only signifies our commitment to innovation, but also to Arrow Electronics, our strategic go-to-market partner focused on bringing CloudHealth to new markets and helping to further grow this business.”

    Last year, Broadcom tapped Arrow Electronics to become the sole global provider of the CloudHealth offering. Arrow provides sales, marketing and technical support for CloudHealth to help provide organizations of all sizes greater flexibility, scalability, and affordability in managing and optimizing their cloud business.

    “Managing cloud costs effectively is one of the biggest challenges for organizations operating in robust cloud environments,” said Cedric Doignie, vice president of new models sales at Arrow Electronics. “The new AI-infused user experience demonstrates an evolutionary advancement in cloud financial management and will allow CloudHealth users to proactively manage their cloud spending more efficiently with the continuous cost optimization features.”

    Taking the Next Step with CloudHealth

    With the AI-powered capabilities of Intelligent Assist and Smart Summary, CloudHealth has demonstrated a new level of innovation in the cloud financial management space and reaffirms its commitment to enabling organizations to stay in control of their technology spending. Learn more and request a free CloudHealth trial with Arrow.

    About Broadcom

    Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ: AVGO) is a global technology leader that designs, develops, and supplies a broad range of semiconductor, enterprise software and security solutions. Broadcom’s category-leading product portfolio serves critical markets including cloud, data center, networking, broadband, wireless, storage, industrial, and enterprise software. Our solutions include service provider and enterprise networking and storage, mobile device and broadband connectivity, mainframe, cybersecurity, and private and hybrid cloud infrastructure. Broadcom is a Delaware corporation headquartered in Palo Alto, CA. For more information, go to www.broadcom.com.

    Broadcom, the pulse logo, and Connecting everything are among the trademarks of Broadcom. The term “Broadcom” refers to Broadcom Inc., and/or its subsidiaries. Other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

    Media Contact
    Jennifer Stevens
    Tanzu Division Media Relations
    jennifer.stevens@broadcom.com 
    1-917-445-3620

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Triller Group Completes Strategic Review and Enters Into an Accelerated Development Phase Focusing on Social Media, Fintech, and Combat Sports

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Los Angeles, June 02, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The Board of Triller Group Inc (Nasdaq: ILLR) (“Triller Group”, “the Group” or “the Company”) is pleased to announce the completion of its strategic review, resulting in the reorganization of the Group into three interconnected core business units: 

    • Social Media (Triller App)
    • Fintech/Financial Service (AGBA Group)
    • Combat Sports (BKFC)

    The Board of the Company extends its gratitude to Mr. Bobby Sarnevesht for his contributions since the acquisition of the predecessor of the Company, or Triller Inc., from its founders in 2019 and wishes him success in his future endeavors.

    As the Company enters into an exciting new phase of growth, it is implementing an accelerated 6-month timeline for development, financing, and rapid scaling of the Group’s three core units.

    Social Media (Triller App)

    Under the leadership of Mr. Sean Kim since December 2024, the Triller app has undergone a significant and rapid transformation. The Triller app now offers one of the best product experience ever compared to its peers. The app is redefining content creation, distribution, and monetization, positioning itself as the premier and distinctive challenger in the U.S.-based social media market. Notably, Triller’s commitment and policy to user data ownership firmly distinguished itself from platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. Mr. Kim and his team are preparing for a comprehensive marketing campaign, building on the success of the January 2025 SaveMySocials.com initiative.

    Fintech/Financial Services

    Triller Group’s seasoned management team brings decades of expertise in integrating cutting edge financial technologies into traditional financial services businesses. The team is in advanced stages to leverage the success of the Triller app and is in the process of developing and launching a cryptocurrency for the Triller community with an industry-leading partner.

    Combat Sports

    BKFC is experiencing another banner year and is rapidly expanding its passionate global audience, spurred on by its visionary leader David Feldman. BKFC has significant synergies with Triller Group’s two other core businesses, and the Company is working to support and explore additional revenue streams for BKFC. The Company believes 2025 will be another breakthrough year for BKFC, and it is not exploring any scenarios that would affect its majority control over BKFC. 

    For the remainder of 2025, the Triller Group management team will focus on (a) delivering marketing-led growth of Triller’s premier suite of product and services, (b) pursuing strategic acquisitions and partnerships to amplify the Group’s core offerings, (c) fostering synergies among the Group’s core business units, (d) strengthening the Group’s financial position and capital efficiency, and (e) minimizing and eliminating any legacy liabilities.

    “Our new strategic roadmap centers on three key objectives: growth, product expansion and financial strength.” stated Wing-Fai Ng, CEO of Triller Group.  “Sean and his team are at the forefront of making our Triller app the most compelling alternative to TikTok. Integrating cryptocurrency into our Triller community will be one of our top priorities in 2025, creating revenue streams for creators and strengthening user engagement. We are also actively pursuing multiple acquisitions and partnerships to accelerate our technological and market leadership, while Sean and I are actively recruiting top talent and reevaluating all aspects of our brand”.

    The Board is currently working with leading executive search professionals to identify and appoint additional Board members, who align with the Company’s vision and add significant value to the business.

    While current and future shareholders should anticipate a period of unprecedented rapid development, the Company’s exciting strategic blueprint marks not the beginning, but an acceleration of the vision outlined since the merger in October 2024.

    Triller Group is committed to its core principles of collaboration, innovation, and transparency, with further updates to be shared in the coming months.

    For additional information, please visit the Investor Relations website at https://trillercorp.com/ir/.

    # # #

    About Triller Group Inc.        

    Nasdaq: ILLR. Triller Group is a U.S.-based company that operates three main businesses: the U.S.-based Triller social media app (“Triller App”), fintech and financial services under the AGBA brand in Hong Kong (“AGBA”), and Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (“BKFC”), one of the fastest growing combat sports franchises in the world.

    Triller App is a next-generation, AI-powered, social media and live-streaming event platform for creators. Pairing music culture with sports, fashion, entertainment, and influencers through a 360-degree view of content and technology, Triller App uses proprietary AI technology to push and track content virally to affiliated and non-affiliated sites and networks, enabling them to reach millions of additional users. For more information, please visit www.trillercorp.com

    Established in 1993, AGBA is a leading, multi-channel business platform in Hong Kong that incorporates cutting edge machine-learning and offers a broad set of financial services and healthcare products to consumers through a tech-led ecosystem, enabling clients to unlock the choices that best suit their needs. Trusted by over 400,000 individual and corporate customers, the Group is organized into four market-leading businesses: Platform Business, Distribution Business, Healthcare Business, and Fintech Business. For more information, please visit www.agba.com.

    Bare-Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) is a Philadelphia-based combat sports franchise dedicated to preserving the historical legacy of bare-knuckle fighting, while utilizing a specifically created rule set that emphasizes fighter safety. BKFC has held over 100 events across the world with record-breaking attendance. For more information, please visit www.bkfc.com.

    Safe Harbor Statement

    This press release contains forward-looking statements as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include statements concerning plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events or performance, and underlying assumptions and other statements that are other than statements of historical facts. When the Company uses words such as “may,” “will,” “intend,” “should,” “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “project,” “estimate” or similar expressions that do not relate solely to historical matters, it is making forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties that may cause the actual results to differ materially from the Company’s expectations discussed in the forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to uncertainties and risks including, but not limited to, the following: the Company’s goals and strategies; the Company’s future business development, including the development and launch of our cryptocurrency; product and service demand and acceptance; changes in technology; economic conditions; the outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted against us; expectations regarding our strategies and future financial performance, including its future business plans or objectives, prospective performance and opportunities and competitors, revenues, products, pricing, operating expenses, market trends, liquidity, cash flows and uses of cash, capital expenditures, and our ability to invest in growth initiatives and pursue acquisition opportunities; reputation and brand; the impact of competition and pricing; government regulations; fluctuations in general economic and business conditions in the U.S., Hong Kong and the international markets the Company plans to serve and assumptions underlying or related to any of the foregoing and other risks contained in reports filed by the Company with the SEC. For these reasons, among others, investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance upon any forward-looking statements in this press release. Additional factors are discussed in the Company’s filings with the SEC, which are available for review at www.sec.gov. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly revise these forward–looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that arise after the date hereof.

    Investor & Media Relations:

    Bethany Lai
    ir@triller.co
    investorrelations@triller.co

    # # #

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Our trans health study was terminated by the government – the effects of abrupt NIH grant cuts ripple across science and society

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Jae A. Puckett, Associate Professor of Psychology, Michigan State University

    Funding cuts to trans health research are part of the Trump administration’s broader efforts to medically and legally restrict trans rights. AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson

    Given the Trump administration’s systematic attempts to medically and legally disenfranchise trans people, and its abrupt termination of grants focused on LGBTQ+ health, we can’t say that the notice of termination we received regarding our federally funded research on transgender and nonbinary people’s health was unexpected.

    As researchers who study the experiences of trans and nonbinary people, we have collectively dedicated nearly 50 years of our scientific careers to developing ways to address the health disparities negatively affecting these communities. The National Institutes of Health had placed a call for projects on this topic, and we had successfully applied for their support for our four-year study on resilience in trans communities.

    However, our project on trans health became one of the hundreds of grants that have been terminated on ideological grounds. The termination notice stated that the grant no longer fit agency priorities and claimed that this work was not based on scientific research.

    Termination notice sent to the authors from the National Institutes of Health.
    Jae A. Puckett and Paz Galupo, CC BY-ND

    These grant terminations undermine decades of science on gender diversity by dismissing research findings and purging data. During Trump’s current term, the NIH’s Sexual and Gender Minority Research Office was dismantled, references to LGBTQ+ people were removed from health-related websites, and datasets were removed from public access.

    The effects of ending research on trans health ripple throughout the scientific community, the communities served by this work and the U.S. economy.

    Studying resilience

    Research focused on the mental health of trans and nonbinary people has grown substantially in recent years. Over time, this work has expanded beyond understanding the hardships these communities face to also study their resilience and positive life experiences.

    Resilience is often understood as an ability to bounce back from challenges. For trans and nonbinary people experiencing gender-based stigma and discrimination, resilience can take several forms. This might look like simply continuing to survive in a transphobic climate, or it might take the form of being a role model for other trans and nonbinary people.

    As a result of gender-based stigma and discrimination, trans and nonbinary people experience a range of health disparities, from elevated rates of psychological distress to heightened risk for chronic health conditions and poor physical health. In the face of these challenges and growing anti-trans legislation in the U.S., we believe that studying resilience in these communities can provide insights into how to offset the harms of these stresses.

    Studies show anti-trans legislation is harming the mental health of LGBTQ+ youth.

    With the support of the NIH, we began our work in earnest in 2022. The project was built on many years of research from our teams preceding the grant. From the beginning, we collaborated with trans and nonbinary community members to ensure our research would be attuned to the needs of the community.

    At the time our grant was terminated, we were nearing completion of Year 3 of our four-year project. We had collected data from over 600 trans and nonbinary participants across the U.S. and started to follow their progress over time. We had developed a new way to measure resilience among trans and nonbinary people and were about to publish a second measure specifically tailored to people of color.

    The termination of our grant and others like it harms our immediate research team, the communities we worked with and the field more broadly.

    Loss of scientific workforce

    For many researchers in trans health, the losses from these cuts go beyond employment.

    Our project had served as a training opportunity for the students and early career professionals involved in the study, providing them with the research experience and mentorship necessary to advance their careers. But with the termination of our funding, two full-time researchers and at least three students will lose their positions. The three lead scientists have lost parts of their salaries and dedicated research time.

    These NIH cuts will likely result in the loss of much of the next generation of trans researchers and the contributions they would have made to science and society. Our team and other labs in similar situations will be less likely to work with graduate students due to a lack of available funding to pay and support them. This changes the landscape for future scientists, as it means there will be fewer opportunities for individuals interested in these areas of research to enter graduate training programs.

    The Trump administration has directly penalized universities across the country for ‘ideological overreach.’
    Zhu Ziyu/VCG via Getty Images

    As universities struggle to address federal funding cuts, junior academics will be less likely to gain tenure, and faculty in grant-funded positions may lose their jobs. Universities may also become hesitant to hire people who work in these areas because their research has essentially been banned from federal funding options.

    Loss of community trust

    Trans and nonbinary people have often been studied under opportunistic and demeaning circumstances. This includes when researchers collect data for their own gains but return little to the communities they work with, or when they do research that perpetuates theories that pathologize those communities. As a result, many are often reluctant to participate in research.

    To overcome this reluctance, we grounded our study on community input. We involved an advisory board composed of local trans and nonbinary community members who helped to inform how we conducted our study and measured our findings.

    Our work on resilience has been inspired by feedback we received from previous research participants who said that “[trans people] matter even when not in pain.”

    Abruptly terminating projects like these can break down trust between researchers and the populations they study.

    Loss of scientific knowledge

    Research that focuses on the strengths of trans and nonbinary communities is in its infancy. The termination of our grant has led to the loss of the insights our study would have provided on ways to improve health among trans and nonbinary people and future work that would have built off our findings. Resilience is a process that takes time to unfold, and we had not finished the longitudinal data collection in our study – nor will we have the protected time to publish and share other findings from this work.

    Meanwhile, the Department of Health and Human Services released a May 2025 report stating that there is not enough evidence to support gender-affirming care for young people, contradicting decades of scientific research. Scientists, researchers and medical professional organizations have widely criticized the report as misrepresenting study findings, dismissing research showing benefits to gender-affirming care, and promoting misinformation rejected by major medical associations. Instead, the report recommends “exploratory therapy,” which experts have likened to discredited conversion therapy.

    Transgender and nonbinary people continue to exist, regardless of legislation.
    Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images

    Despite claims that there is insufficient research on gender-affirming care and more data is needed on the health of trans and nonbinary people, the government has chosen to divest from actual scientific research about trans and nonbinary people’s lives.

    Loss of taxpayer dollars

    The termination of our grant means we are no longer able to achieve the aims of the project, which depended on the collection and analysis of data over time. This wastes the three years of NIH funding already spent on the project.

    Scientists and experts who participated in the review of our NIH grant proposal rated our project more highly than 96% of the projects we competed against. Even so, the government made the unscientific choice to override these decisions and terminate our work.

    Millions of taxpayer dollars have already been invested in these grants to improve the health of not only trans and nonbinary people, but also American society as a whole. With the termination of these grants, few will get to see the benefits of this investment.

    Jae A. Puckett has received funding from the National Institutes of Health.

    Paz Galupo has received funding from the National Institutes of Health.

    – ref. Our trans health study was terminated by the government – the effects of abrupt NIH grant cuts ripple across science and society – https://theconversation.com/our-trans-health-study-was-terminated-by-the-government-the-effects-of-abrupt-nih-grant-cuts-ripple-across-science-and-society-254021

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –