NewzIntel.com

Category: Health

  • MIL-OSI USA: Meet New Head of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Elizabeth Jockusch

    Source: US State of Connecticut

    How has the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology changed since you joined in 1999?

    The crises we address in our work, like global change and the biodiversity crisis, are getting much more attention. These issues are now at the forefront of many people’s minds. In the department, that means that more people have incorporated applied components into their work.  

    For example, my work with slender salamanders, specifically those in the genus Batrachoseps, has shifted from just understanding their evolutionary history and population structure to providing crucial information for decision-makers. Several of these salamanders are candidates for endangered species listing, making my research suddenly very relevant.  

    We’re also seeing more collaborative, team-oriented work in the department and in the field as a whole. The scale at which we can conduct research has grown significantly, partly due to larger teams and advancements in technology. For example, genomic technology allows us to learn much more, even from single specimens. These changes have contributed to the increasingly computational and quantitative nature of the field. 

    Do you have goals for the department?

    Yes, I definitely want to maintain our commitment to undergraduate teaching. If you survey our grad students or even many undergrads, you’ll find that we teach the kind of courses that ignite a passion for organismal biology. We offer hands-on engagement and experiences that can set students on new trajectories or introduce them to career paths they hadn’t considered. This is true not just for biology majors, but for students across different fields like natural resources. 

    I also want to ensure that we provide top-notch graduate training. One piece of this is continuing to do research at the forefront of ecology, evolution and systematics. Another piece is helping graduate students build the kinds of diverse skillsets they will need to tackle big challenges, such as the biodiversity and global change crises.  

    What are some of the exciting research areas emerging in your department?

    The power of genomics to help us answer our questions is incredibly exciting. We can now understand how evolution works not just on a gene-by-gene basis or in a test tube, but in real-world, complex environments. It also has practical applications. For example, the ability to sequence and compare whole genomes allows us to identify novel targets for conservation in forest trees facing new diseases. This approach helps us understand the past and shape the future. 

    Another major area of interest is the intersection of ecology and evolution, especially understanding how evolution can happen rapidly enough to affect interaction patterns. This is critical for making accurate predictions about the future of biodiversity. Finally, we still have a lot to learn about organisms. Organisms have all sorts of tricks that humans haven’t fully figured out yet. New tools help us figure out how and why they do what they do. 

    What makes the UConn EEB department unique?

    The living plant collection–the EEB Botanical Conservatory, or the Greenhouses–is a premier collection that offers tremendous opportunities to students. It has living plants representing about 1% of all the world’s plants, which is pretty amazing.  It’s not just used by biology students, but also by art students, archaeology students, and many others. If you’re having a bad day in the winter, you should just go in there. There’s always something amazing to be seen. 

    The biodiversity collections are also a valuable record of biodiversity that traditionally has been used by taxonomists and systematists but has many additional uses. They’re a repository of ecological data, genetic data, and environmental data that allows us to track how the world has changed, such as how plant and animal ranges have shifted, flowering times have changed, and body sizes have changed. For example, we know that plants are flowering earlier and salamanders are getting smaller. We can also track the spread of diseases and look at contaminant levels in the environment. 

    Is there still a place for traditional naturalist approaches, like finding and naming organisms?

    Yes, taxonomy and systematics are foundational. While naming organisms might seem like service work, it’s crucial for anyone studying or quantifying biodiversity. These areas of study are built on the work of those who catalog and classify organisms. 

    But now we can look at organisms in whole new ways–not just through their morphology, but their genomes. And we can look at morphology and function in much greater detail than we could before because some of the imaging techniques that are out there now, like micro-CT scanning, are unbelievable. 

    Why is it useful for non-majors to take your classes?

    All life is touched by aspects of biology in very direct ways. Everyone is going to be facing decisions for their personal health and that of their family members that depend on making decisions about biology or understanding biology.  

    Cancer is an evolutionary process.  It’s an evolutionary disease.  Understanding how evolution works can inform how we think about it. We’ve all been witnessing evolution in action with COVID over the last four years. We’ve seen how that has seriously disrupted society in all kinds of ways, and how the evolutionary process has kept that going. 

    We’re also seeing huge changes in our environment. Lots of people think, “When I was younger, I used to see a lot more monarchs,” or songbirds, or fireflies, or whatever. Being aware of that is important; the decisions we, as a society, make will affect what the world’s going to look like in the future. 

    Tell us a little about your research.

    I’m an evolutionary biologist. I’m interested in understanding the diversity of life, and specifically, how an organism’s development over its lifespan can influence its evolution. In my lab, we primarily study arthropods, tardigrades, and salamanders.  

    We conduct some research in the UConn Forest. One of my graduate students is particularly interested in the evolution of development in salamanders, and several species in the area are useful for this study. A couple of undergraduate students have worked on the red-backed salamander, which has a color polymorphism. Some salamanders we study in California have declined and are close to becoming endangered. I wasn’t planning to become the world’s expert on an obscure group of salamanders that has a bunch of endangered species, but that’s how it panned out! When people need the most current scientific information on them, it’s usually coming from my lab.  

    What do you think are the biggest upcoming developments in your field over the next 10 years?

    I believe AI is going to have a significant impact on our field. We don’t fully understand its potential yet. We’re keen on predicting how natural systems will change in the future, such as shifts in geographic range, alterations in physical characteristics, and changes in interaction patterns. This is a complex area, but I think AI will be a valuable tool in making more accurate predictions. The increasing availability of large datasets, including those from natural history collections, will also be crucial for our research. You don’t have to use only data that you’ve collected to ask questions anymore.  

    What’s your favorite spot on campus?

    Mirror Lake!  It is such a hotbed of biological activity.  There’s so much going on there. There are things to be observed every day. Beavers came through this year and settled in temporarily and started chewing down the trees. Birds fish there every day. There’s incredible dragonfly diversity. I’ve even seen the fish mob a snapping turtle! 

    And I have to include the Fenton Meadow off Gurleyville Road for the same reasons, just a lot of diversity.  If you’re at the Fenton Meadow during one of those nights when the frogs have just come out and started to call…it’s deafening. Wood frogs and peepers and green frogs, bullfrogs, pickerel frogs, gray tree frogs, American toads, all those things breed there.  It’s just great.   

    This Q&A is part of CLAS Visionary Voices, a series highlighting the College’s new academic leaders and their innovative visions for education, research, and outreach at UConn. 

     

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Local government controls your roads, schools and utilities − but that doesn’t mean the US president doesn’t touch your life in important ways

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Zoe Nemerever, Professor of Political Science, Auburn University

    The top of the ticket often gets the most attention. Alex Brandon/AP Photo

    “All politics is local” is a common refrain – and yet, it is also true that the president has some unique powers.

    I am an expert on state policymaking, and I’m teaching presidential politics at Auburn University during this election season. Researching and teaching about both state and national politics has made me keenly aware of the stakes of the different races up and down the ballot this fall.

    Power close to home

    State and local governments shape our daily experiences in practical ways. State governments determine whether residents have access to expanded Medicaid, reproductive care, parental and family leave, and they set the state property, sales and income taxes, which we are all required to pay.

    City councils, county boards and school boards determine the quality of the roads we travel, the selection of books in school libraries and the prices of utilities such as water and sewer service.

    Most Americans will have the opportunity to vote for a variety of state and local elected officials this November. Yet many voters find their attention drawn to a more captivating contest: the presidential election.

    And it is hard to deny that the president has an outsized influence on American public policy.

    Staffing the government

    So what does the president do?

    It’s a busy job, for sure – including tasks such as signing executive orders, making treaties, vetoing or signing congressional bills, acting as the military’s commander in chief, attempting to build public support for their agenda and fundraising for the party.

    But one other big responsibility is often overlooked – that of passing out thousands of positions in the executive and judicial branches.

    The president’s appointment power is an enumerated power, meaning that it is enshrined in the U.S. Constitution.

    As the size of the judiciary and federal bureaucracy has grown over the past century, this presidential power has ballooned to include 4,000 appointments that turn over at the start of every administration. That doesn’t even include the vacancies that arise during the president’s term – for example, when a federal judge retires or dies.

    Perhaps the most well-known presidential appointment power is the power to nominate Supreme Court justices. These nominations tend to be highly political and dramatic affairs. This is due to their irregular and often sudden timing and to the high stakes of lifetime appointments.

    Some presidents don’t get to exercise this supreme power as much as they would like. But they still get to fill many other judgeships across the district courts, appellate courts and other federal courts.

    The Founding Fathers were adamant that the executive appointment power was not unilateral, as evidenced in Federalist Paper 76 penned by Alexander Hamilton. For 1,200 of the most consequential positions, the president nominates individuals, who are then confirmed – or not – by the U.S. Senate.

    The Founding Fathers perceived this as important for preventing the tyranny of a sole actor, which they had just worked so hard to leave behind under English rule.

    Assembling a Cabinet

    Some of the most consequential of these appointments are members of the presidential Cabinet.

    Much like how a head football coach assembles a team of assistants to enact their vision, the president convenes a team of policy champions to lead the 15 executive departments in the federal bureaucracy.

    Each department is run by a “secretary,” nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate. The president consults with Cabinet members at periodic meetings, but secretaries otherwise enjoy a great deal of autonomy. For this reason, the president tries to pick Cabinet members who share their policy perspective.

    Much of the agenda presidents claim credit for is, in fact, achieved by the Cabinet departments. For example, during the current Biden administration, the Department of Labor increased guaranteed overtime compensation, the Department of Health and Human Services recommended making marijuana a legal but regulated drug, and the Department of Education launched an initiative to tackle the post-COVID surge in chronic absenteeism.

    Cabinet members often fly under the radar of the media, and consequently voters, with a few exceptions. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg had his moment in the headlines earlier in 2024 when he announced a new federal rule that entitles airline passengers to prompt cash refunds when their flights are canceled or delayed. President Barack Obama’s Secretary of Education Arne Duncan was well known for his bus tours promoting the economic value of education. President George W. Bush’s Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice spearheaded the noteworthy 2008 U.S.-India nuclear agreement.

    Crisis manager in chief, ad hoc

    Presidents also have the power to touch voters’ lives in profound ways by serving as a unifying character during national crises, a role that differentiates the president from other elected officials.

    These crises, unforeseen at the time of the election, require the president to swiftly reassure a distressed nation. For example, after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, President George W. Bush delivered an address that acknowledged the grief of Americans while imparting a stern guarantee that the United States would not cower to terrorists. President Donald Trump provided direction for a national response to an unprecedented global pandemic. President Bill Clinton shared heartfelt remarks at the memorial service of those killed in the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah federal building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. And Obama honored victims of a racially motivated shooting at a church in Charleston, South Carolina.

    Presidential candidates of course cannot campaign on their ability to handle unpredictable, emergent situations. Instead, they talk up personal traits that will equip them to carry the nation through the next four years – whatever that may bring.

    During the recent 2024 presidential debate between Democratic candidate Kamala Harris and Republican candidate Donald Trump, the candidates tried to demonstrate traits such as strength, humor and mental sharpness – all of which would prove invaluable during whatever the next four years throws our way.

    This November, voters will consider a diverse spread of candidates, from city mayor to president, each with important responsibilities.

    National, state and local governments work together to shape our perceptions, good or bad, about the role public policy plays in our lives – and I’d encourage voters to pay attention to candidates at both the top of the ballot and further down.

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

    – ref. Local government controls your roads, schools and utilities − but that doesn’t mean the US president doesn’t touch your life in important ways – https://theconversation.com/local-government-controls-your-roads-schools-and-utilities-but-that-doesnt-mean-the-us-president-doesnt-touch-your-life-in-important-ways-237939

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Can you change your personality? Psychology research says yes, by tweaking what you think and do

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Shannon Sauer-Zavala, Associate Professor of Psychology & Licensed Clinical Psychologist, University of Kentucky

    Making a personality change could help you live the life you want. lechatnoir/E+ via Getty Images

    Have you ever taken a personality test? If you’re like me, you’ve consulted BuzzFeed and you know exactly which Taylor Swift song “perfectly matches your vibe.”

    It might be obvious that internet quizzes are not scientific, but many of the seemingly serious personality tests used to guide educational and career choices are also not supported by research. Despite being a billion-dollar industry, commercial personality testing used by schools and corporations to funnel people into their ideal roles do not predict career success.

    Beyond their lack of scientific support, the most popular approaches to understanding personality are problematic because they assume your traits are static – that is, you’re stuck with the personality you’re born with. But modern personality science studies find that traits can and do change over time.

    In addition to watching my own personality change over time from messy and lazy to off the charts in conscientiousness, I’m also a personality change researcher and clinical psychologist. My research confirms what I saw in my own development and in my patients: People can intentionally shape the traits they need to be successful in the lives they want. That’s contrary to the popular belief that your personality type places you in a box, dictating that you choose partners, activities and careers according to your traits.

    What personality is and isn’t

    According to psychologists, personality is your characteristic way of thinking, feeling and behaving.

    Are you a person who tends to think about situations in your life more pessimistically, or are you a glass-half-full kind of person?

    Do you tend to get angry when someone cuts you off in traffic, or are you more likely to give them the benefit of the doubt – maybe they’re rushing to the hospital?

    Do you wait until the last minute to complete tasks, or do you plan ahead?

    You can think of personality as a collection of labels that summarize your responses to questions like these. Depending on your answers, you might be labeled as optimistic, empathetic or dependable.

    Research suggests that all these descriptive labels can be summarized into five overarching traits – what psychologists creatively refer to as the “Big Five.”

    As early as the 1930s, psychologists literally combed through a dictionary to pull out all the words that describe human nature and sorted them in categories with similar themes. For example, they grouped words like “kind,” “thoughtful” and “friendly” together. They found that thousands of words could be accounted for by sorting them between five traits: neuroticism, extroversion, conscientiousness, agreeableness and openness.

    Personality traits can be sorted into the ‘Big Five’ categories. They describe how you act but not necessarily the essence of who you are.
    Whale Design/iStock via Getty Images Plus

    What personality is not: People often feel protective about their personality – you may view it as the core of who you are. According to scientific definitions, however, personality is not your likes, dislikes or preferences. It’s not your sense of humor. It’s not your values or what you think is important in life.

    In other words, shifting your Big Five traits does not change the core of who you are. It simply means learning to respond to situations in life with different thoughts, feelings and behaviors.

    Can you change your personality?

    Can personality change? Remember, personality is a person’s characteristic way of thinking, feeling and behaving. And while it might sound hard to change personality, people change how they think, feel and behave all the time.

    Suppose you’re not super dependable. If you start to think “being on time shows others that I respect them,” begin to feel pride when you arrive to brunch before your friends, and engage in new behaviors that increase your timeliness – such as getting up with an alarm, setting appointment reminders and so on – you are embodying the characteristics of a reliable person. If you maintain these changes to your thinking, emotions and behaviors over time – voila! – you are reliable. Personality: changed.

    Data confirms this idea. In general, personality changes across a person’s life span. As people age, they tend to experience fewer negative emotions and more positive ones, are more conscientious, place greater emphasis on positive relationships and are less judgmental of others.

    There is variability here, though. Some people change a lot and some people hold pretty steady. Moreover, studies, including my own, that test whether personality interventions change traits over time find that people can speed up the process of personality change by making intentional tweaks to their thinking and behavior. These tweaks can lead to meaningful change in less than 20 weeks, instead of 20 years.

    Identifying patterns that your thoughts frequently fall into can be the first step toward making a change.
    Maskot via Getty Images

    Cultivating personality traits that serve you best

    The good news is that these cognitive-behavioral techniques are relatively simple, and you don’t need to visit a therapist if that’s not something you’re into.

    The first component involves changing your thinking patterns – this is the cognitive piece. You need to become aware of your thoughts to determine whether they’re keeping you stuck acting in line with a particular trait. For example, if you find yourself thinking “people are only looking out for themselves,” you are likely to act defensively around others.

    The behavioral component involves becoming aware of your current action tendencies and testing out new responses. If you are defensive around other people, they will probably respond negatively to you. When they withdraw or snap at you, for example, it then confirms your belief that you can’t trust others. By contrast, if you try behaving more openly – perhaps sharing with a co-worker that you’re struggling with a task – you have the opportunity to see whether that changes the way others act toward you.

    These cognitive-behavioral strategies are so effective for nudging personality because personality is simply your characteristic way of thinking and behaving. Consistently making changes to your perspective and actions can lead to lasting habits that ultimately result in crafting the personality you desire.

    Shannon Sauer-Zavala receives funding from that National Institute of Mental Health to support her research.

    – ref. Can you change your personality? Psychology research says yes, by tweaking what you think and do – https://theconversation.com/can-you-change-your-personality-psychology-research-says-yes-by-tweaking-what-you-think-and-do-237190

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI USA: VA to review possible service connection between PFAS exposure and kidney cancer

    Source: US Department of Veterans Affairs

    Skip to content

    WASHINGTON — Today, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs announced that it will conduct a scientific assessment to determine if there is a relationship between per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure during military service and kidney cancer among Veterans.

    This scientific assessment — a process codified under the PACT Act — will help VA determine if kidney cancer should be considered a presumptive service-connected condition for Veterans exposed to PFAS. When a condition is considered presumptive, eligible Veterans do not need to prove that their service caused their disease in order to receive benefits for it; instead, if they served in certain locations during certain time periods, VA automatically assumes (or “presumes”) that exposure during military service caused the disease and provides benefits accordingly.

    This review is a part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to expand benefits and services for toxic-exposed Veterans and their families, and helps advance the President’s Unity Agenda and Biden Cancer Moonshot goals to understand and address environmental and toxic exposures and end cancer as we know it. As a part of these efforts, VA expedited health care and benefits eligibility under the PACT Act by several years — including extending presumptions for head cancer, neck cancer, gastrointestinal cancer, reproductive cancer, lymphoma, pancreatic cancer, kidney cancer, melanoma, hypertension for Vietnam Veterans, and much more. Since the PACT Act was signed into law, VA has extended presumptions for more than 300 new conditions, including most recently for male breast cancer, urethral cancer, and cancer of the paraurethral glands.

    “At VA, we want to understand the health conditions that Veterans are living with so we can provide them with all of the benefits they deserve — and that’s what this review process is all about,” said VA Secretary Denis McDonough. “As a result of this scientific review, we may be able to make kidney cancer a presumptive condition for Veterans exposed to PFAS, thus lowering the burden of proof on these Veterans. But make no mistake: Veterans should not wait for the outcome of this review to apply for the benefits and care they deserve. If you’re a Veteran and believe your military service has negatively impacted your health, we encourage you to apply for VA care and benefits today.”

    PFAS are a class of over 12,000 chemicals and have been used in the military since the early 1970s. VA’s assessment methodology follows guidance from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and other key stakeholders, and will consider available peer-reviewed scientific literature, Veteran claims data, and other relevant data. Regardless of whether a condition is an established presumptive condition, VA will consider claims on a case-by-case basis and can grant disability compensation benefits if sufficient evidence of service connection is found — and VA is always working to get to yes.

    VA prioritizes claims processing for Veterans with cancer and offers comprehensive cancer care services to Veterans across the nation — from screening through treatment. Since President Biden signed the PACT Act into law, VA has delivered disability compensation benefits to more than one million Veterans and their survivors, amounting to more than $7 billion in earned PACT Act benefits. During the same period, nearly 740,000 Veterans have enrolled in VA care and more than 5.6 million Veterans have been screened for toxic exposures.

    VA is soliciting public comment on the proposed scientific assessment between PFAS exposure and kidney cancer via the Federal Register. The public will have a 30-day period to provide comments. VA will also host a listening session Nov. 19, 2024, to allow individuals to share research and input. Individuals interested may register to participate. The public may also comment via either forum on other conditions that would benefit from review for potential service-connection.

    VA encourages all eligible Veterans and survivors to enroll in health care and file a claim. For more information about the PACT Act and a full list of presumptive conditions covered under the law, visit VA.gov/PACT.

    For more information about VA cancer care, visit cancer.va.gov.

    Reporters and media outlets with questions or comments should contact the Office of Media Relations at vapublicaffairs@va.gov

    Veterans with questions about their health care and benefits (including GI Bill). Questions, updates and documents can be submitted online.

    Contact us online through Ask VA

    Veterans can also use our chatbot to get information about VA benefits and services. The chatbot won’t connect you with a person, but it can show you where to go on VA.gov to find answers to some common questions.

    Learn about our chatbot and ask a question

    Subscribe today to receive these news releases in your inbox.

    Page load link

    Go to Top

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Diet-related diseases are the No. 1 cause of death in the US – yet many doctors receive little to no nutrition education in med school

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Nathaniel Johnson, Assistant Professor of Nutrition and Dietetics, University of North Dakota

    Nearly 60% of respondents to one medical school survey said they received no nutritional education at all. Peter Dazeley/The Image Bank via Getty Images

    On television shows like “Grey’s Anatomy,” “The Resident” and “Chicago Med,” physicians seem to always have the right answer.

    But when it comes to nutrition and dietary advice, that may not be the case.

    One of us is an assistant professor of nutrition and dietetics; the other is a medical student with a master’s degree in nutrition.

    Both of us understand the powerful effects that food has on your health and longevity. A poor diet may lead to cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity and even psychological conditions like depression and anxiety. Diet-related diseases are the leading causes of death in the U.S., and a poor diet is responsible for more deaths than smoking.

    These health problems are not only common and debilitating, but expensive. Treating high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol costs about US$400 billion per year. Within 25 years, those costs are expected to triple, to $1.3 trillion.

    These facts support the need for physicians to give accurate advice about diet to help prevent these diseases. But how much does a typical physician know about nutrition?

    The deficiencies in nutrition education happen at all levels of medical training.

    What doctors don’t know

    In a 2023 survey of more than 1,000 U.S. medical students, about 58% of respondents said they received no formal nutrition education while in medical school for four years. Those who did averaged about three hours of nutrition education per year.

    That is woefully short of the goals set by the U.S. Committee on Nutrition in Medical Education back in 1985: that med students should receive a total of 25 hours of nutrition education while in school – a little more than six hours per year.

    But a 2015 study showed only 29% of medical schools met this goal, and a 2023 study suggests the problem has become even worse – only 7.8% of med students reported 20 or more hours of nutrition education across all four years of med school. If this is representative of medical schools throughout the country, it has happened despite efforts to bolster nutrition education through numerous government initiatives.

    Not surprisingly, the lack of education has had a direct impact on physicians’ nutrition knowledge. In a study of 257 first- and second-year osteopathic medical students taking a nutrition knowledge quiz, more than half flunked the test. Prior to the test, more than half the students – 55% – felt comfortable counseling patients on nutrition.

    Unfortunately, this problem is not limited to U.S. medical schools. A 2018 global study concluded that no matter the country, nutrition education of med students is insufficient throughout the world.

    Bringing nutrition education back

    Even though evidence suggests that nutrition education can be effective, there are many reasons why it’s lacking. Medical students and physicians are some of the busiest people in society. The amount of information taught in medical curricula is often described as overwhelming – like drinking out of a fire hose.

    First- and second-year medical students focus on dense topics, including biochemistry, molecular biology and genetics, while they learn clinical skills such as interviewing patients and understanding heart and lung sounds. Third- and fourth-year students are practicing in clinics and hospitals as they learn from physicians and patients.

    As a result, their schedules are already jammed. There is no room for nutrition. And once they are physicians, it gets no better. Providing preventive care including nutrition counseling to patients would take them more than seven hours per week – and that’s not counting the time they would have to spend on continuing education to keep up with new findings in nutrition science.

    On top of that, the lack of nutrition education in medical schools has been attributed to a dearth of qualified instructors for nutrition courses, as most physicians do not understand nutrition well enough to teach it.

    Ironically, many medical schools are part of universities that have nutrition departments with Ph.D.-trained professors; those academicians could fill this gap by teaching nutrition to medical students. But those classes are often taught by physicians who may not have adequate nutrition training – which means truly qualified instructors, within reach of most medical schools, are left out of the process.

    This doctor said he learned virtually nothing about nutrition in medical school.

    Finding the right advice

    The best source of nutrition information, whether for medical students or the general public, is a registered dietitian, certified nutrition specialist or some other type of nutrition professional with multiple degrees and certification. They study for years and record many practice hours in order to give dietary advice.

    Although anyone can make an appointment with a nutrition professional for dietary counseling, typically a referral from a health care provider like a physician is needed for the appointment to be covered by insurance. So seeing a physician or other primary care provider is often a step before meeting with a nutrition professional.

    This extra step might be one reason why many people look elsewhere, such as on their phones, for nutrition advice. However, the worst place to look for accurate nutrition information is social media. There, about 94% of posts about nutrition and diet are of low value – either inaccurate or lacking adequate data to back up the claim.

    Keep in mind that anyone can post nutrition advice on social media, regardless of their qualifications. Good dietary advice is individualized and takes into account one’s age, sex, goals, body weight, goals and personal preferences. This complexity is tough to capture in a brief social media post.

    The good news is that nutrition education, when it occurs, is effective, and most medical students and physicians acknowledge the critical role nutrition plays in health. In fact, close to 90% of med students say nutrition education should be a mandatory part of medical school.

    We hope that nutrition education, after being devalued or ignored for decades, will soon be an integral part of every medical school’s curriculum. But given its history and current status, this seems unlikely to happen anytime soon.

    In the meantime, those who want to learn more about a healthy diet should meet with a nutrition professional, or at the very least read the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans or the World Health Organization’s healthy diet recommendations.

    The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Diet-related diseases are the No. 1 cause of death in the US – yet many doctors receive little to no nutrition education in med school – https://theconversation.com/diet-related-diseases-are-the-no-1-cause-of-death-in-the-us-yet-many-doctors-receive-little-to-no-nutrition-education-in-med-school-236217

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI USA: House Passes Wenstrup-Led Bills to Help Veterans, Expand Employee Access to Health Care, & Support Adopting Families

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Brad Wenstrup (OH-02)

    Today, the House passed H.R. 1432, the VSO Equal Tax Treatment Act or the VETT Act, and H.R. 3800, the Chronic Disease Flexible Coverage Act, legislation sponsored by Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R-OH). In addition, the House passed language from Rep. Wenstrup’s the Foster Care Adoption Oversight and Support Act in H.R. 9076, the Protecting America’s Children by Strengthening Families Act.

    H.R. 1432 – The VSO Equal Tax Treatment Act or the VETT Act is a bipartisan and bicameral bill that would update a provision in the Federal tax code that currently prevents Veterans Service Organizations (VSOs) from accepting tax-deductible donations unless they maintain a membership of at least 90 percent wartime veterans. Current rules exclude veterans who joined and served after the Vietnam War and prior to the Persian Gulf War in 1991 from being considered “wartime” veterans. The VETT Act will permit all Congressionally-chartered VSOs to receive tax-deductible donations regardless of wartime membership. Federal tax policy should encourage Americans to donate to these invaluable institutions that support our nation’s veterans.

    H.R. 3800 – The Chronic Disease Flexible Coverage Act expands choice, increases flexibility and reduces burdens in providing health care for employees. In particular, it will codify chronic disease management flexibilities to encourage employers to offer high-value health care services. This legislation would help employers provide expanded ‘”first dollar coverage” and allow employers the option to cover 14 chronic care management medical services including beta-blockers, glucometers, and cholesterol-lowering medications.

    H.R. 9076 – The Protecting America’s Children by Strengthening Families Act would reauthorize and modernize title IV-B of the Social Security Act to strengthen child welfare services and expand the availability of prevention services to better meet the needs of vulnerable families. A provision of this bill includes language from Rep. Wenstrup’s the Foster Care Adoption Oversight and Support Act, that would gather data to assess the effectiveness of post-adoption services and resources provided to families, in order to identify gaps in accessible services, inform strategic investments, and improve outcomes for adopted children and their families.

    “I am proud that the House passed this legislation today that would help our veterans, employee access to health care, and adopting families, and I hope my colleagues in the Senate move these bipartisan bills swiftly to the President’s desk to sign,” said Rep. Brad Wenstrup, D.P.M.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Translation: Bronchiolitis in infants: how to protect yourself this winter?

    MIL OSI Translation. Government of the Republic of France statements from French to English –

    Source: Republic of France in FrenchThe French Republic has issued the following statement:

    Share the page

    Are you interested in this topic?

    Log in to your account and receive an email alert as soon as an article is published by the editorial staff on: Social, health (aid and benefits, disabled person, carers and mediators, patient, medication, etc.)

    Subscribe

    Your subscription has been taken into account

    You will be alerted by email as soon as an article is published by the editorial team on: Social, health (aid and benefits, disabled person, carers and mediators, patient, medication, etc.)

    You can cancel your subscription at any time in your account publicservice.fr .

    Childhood diseases

    Published on September 25, 2024 – Directorate of Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

    Every winter, bronchiolitis affects around 30% of newborns and infants. To prepare well, the Ministry of Labor, Health and Solidarity is strengthening its awareness campaign. What are the right actions to take and the treatments available? Service-Public.fr answers you.

    Image 1Credits: Kaspars Grinvalds – stock.adobe.com

    Aimed primarily at parents but also at everyone, this campaign reminds us the right gestures to adopt to limit contamination but also to be attentive and act if the first symptoms appear.

    Since the end of 2023, a vaccine for pregnant women and preventive treatments for infants have existed:

    An injection of the Abrysvo vaccine can be administered during pregnancy, between the 7th and 8th months. The vaccine allows the mother to develop antibodies that are transmitted directly to the child, who will be immunized from birth to the first 6 months; 2 preventive treatments can be given to the infant: Synagis, intended for premature or high-risk newborns with heart or lung malformations; Beyfortus, intended for newborns and infants under 1 year old.

    These products are available in pharmacies and maternity wards (except Synagis, available only in maternity wards).

    They are 100% covered by health insurance, subject to some specificities.

    Namely

    80% of parents have received treatment since its introduction and around 5,800 hospitalizations for bronchiolitis have been avoided.

    See also

    EDITOR’S NOTE: This article is a translation. Apologies should the grammar and/or sentence structure not be perfect.

    MIL Translation OSI

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Behind the Scenes of Galaxy Ring: Product Planning a Game Changer in Health Management

    Source: Samsung

    Dating back more than 3,000 years to ancient Egypt, rings have symbolized different values throughout human history — including love, power and self-expression. With Samsung Electronics’ newly unveiled Galaxy Ring, health has now been added to that list.
    The smallest and most compact form factor in the Galaxy wearable portfolio, the Galaxy Ring fits comfortably on users’ fingers like a traditional ring. Equipped with cutting-edge sensors and Galaxy AI features, the Galaxy Ring offers a powerful health management experience.
    Samsung Newsroom sat down with Sungjin Kim and Yujin Roh from the Wearable Product Planning Group, Mobile eXperience Business at Samsung Electronics, to learn how the Galaxy Ring came to be.

    Ultra-Compact Form Factor Optimized for 24/7 Health Monitoring
    Q: What inspired the creation of the Galaxy Ring, a completely new addition to Samsung’s wearable lineup?
    Kim: We’ve been exploring new opportunities in the wearable market with a particular focus on the rapidly growing field of health management. This led us to look for the optimal form factor to provide more accurate, uninterrupted health data for personalized health solutions. After evaluating various form factors, we settled on the ring — a user-friendly, small and lightweight shape that can be worn 24/7.

    Q: What key health management benefits does the Galaxy Ring offer?Roh: Sleep is the foundation of health. The Galaxy Ring is comfortable enough to wear while sleeping and can last up to a week on a single charge,1 making it ideal for collecting detailed and in-depth sleep data. A powerful sleep AI algorithm provides advanced sleep insights to help users better understand and improve their sleep. Furthermore, Energy Score analyzes sleep quality, activity levels, sleeping heart rate and sleeping heart rate variability data to deliver a daily health index to users.
    Yujin Roh
    Q. What factors were considered during the design process?
    Kim: To maximize the advantages of the ring form, we examined the historical and biological significance of rings before incorporating these insights into the product. For example, we adopted a simple yet modern concave style to enhance the Galaxy Ring’s value as an everyday accessory. Moreover, the charging case and packaging have clamshell designs reminiscent of a jewelry box — elevating the quality of the product down to the finest details that users touch.

    MIL OSI Economics –

  • MIL-OSI: New Report Highlights Critical Turning Point for Middle Class Families

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    CHICAGO, Sept. 25, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — A “middle class” income no longer guarantees financial security, threatening both the nation’s economy and its social fabric, according to a new report released today by the Financial Health Network, the leading voice on financial health. The report, Households Under Financial Pressure, describes how daily economic challenges have heightened pessimism and political polarization; previous research found that only about one-third of Americans are considered “financially healthy.”

    Financial health is broadly defined as the ability to spend, save, borrow, and plan in ways that allow people to be financially secure and withstand financial shocks. The report stresses the need for urgent collaboration across key sectors like housing, childcare, and transportation to restore the financial security and well-being of America’s middle class.

    “The middle class might be a hot campaign topic, but let’s be clear: financial health isn’t a red or blue issue — families are struggling financially and it’s happening across race, geography, and politics,” said Jennifer Tescher, president and CEO of the Financial Health Network. “Rising costs for essentials mean more middle-class households struggle with the day-to-day and can’t save for the future, regardless of how much they work or plan ahead. No matter the outcome of this election, we all have an opportunity — and a responsibility — to build a bold new coalition that transcends political divides and is fully committed to securing financial health for all.”

    What is “Middle Class”?
    A May 2024 Gallup poll found that 54% of Americans identify as middle class … but are they?

    • Pew Research Center defines middle class as earning two-thirds to twice the national median income, or $67,819 to $203,458 in 2022 for a family of four. However, only about 50% of adults fall into this category, a figure that has declined steadily over the past five decades.
    • An Obama Administration Task Force on the Middle Class defined the middle class as “one’s ability to achieve common goals, like home and car ownership, college education for children, health and retirement security, and occasional family vacations.”
    • A February 2024 Washington Post study used “basic lifestyle elements” to define middle class achievement: a secure job, ability to save money for the future, ability to afford an emergency $1,000 expense without going into debt, ability to pay all bills on time without worry, having health insurance, and the ability to retire comfortably. With this criteria, just 35% of the population classify as “middle class.”

    Recommendations for Shaping the Future of Financial Health
    The report is part of a new initiative aimed at identifying the needs, challenges, and opportunities for financial health. Financial Health Frontiers, a new Financial Health Network initiative supported by the Citi Foundation, will explore the headwinds and tailwinds that will shape financial health in the years to come. The effort is being guided by an Advisory Council of industry experts, business leaders, policymakers, advocates, and researchers.

    The report makes several broad recommendations, including:

    • Expanding measurement, evaluation, and research efforts to assess how housing, labor, and environment policies and investments in education can support the middle class.
    • Looking more holistically at the interconnected expenses families face – things like childcare, housing, and transportation – with a particular focus on how different communities experience the barriers to a middle class lifestyle to design new solutions.
    • More intentionally fostering collaboration among business leaders, community-based organizations, and government agencies, along with policymakers and advocates working in housing, education, transportation, finance, and health care to build the middle class.

    This report will be followed by deep dives into how other financial headwinds and tailwinds – shifting demographics, the changing nature of work, climate change, and tech/artificial intelligence – will impact financial health in the future.

    About the Financial Health Network
    The Financial Health Network is the leading authority on financial health. We are a trusted resource for business leaders, policymakers, and innovators united in a mission to improve the financial health of their customers, employees, and communities. Through research, advisory services, measurement tools, and opportunities for cross-sector collaboration, we advance awareness, understanding, and proven best practices in support of improved financial health for all. For more on the Financial Health Network, go to www.finhealthnetwork.org and follow us on Twitter at @FinHealthNet.

    Media Contacts
    Michael Salmassian
    Financial Health Network
    msalmassian@finhealthnetwork.org

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Truly Good Foods Issues Allergy Alert on Undeclared Almonds and Cashews in Grabeez The Big Cheese Snack Mix 3.25 oz Cup

    Source: US Department of Health and Human Services – 3

    Truly Good Foods is recalling its 3.25-ounce packages of Grabeez The Big Cheese Snack Mix cups with a Best Before 041625 because they contain undeclared almonds and cashews. People who have allergies or severe sensitivity to almonds and cashews run the risk of serious or life-threatening allergi

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Banking: Be Internet Awesome World: A fun new game to learn about online safety

    Source: Google

    Around the world, parents and teachers are eager for best practices and resources they can trust to help them navigate important conversations about online safety with their children and students. That’s why we created Be Internet Awesome, a program designed in partnership with leading child development and safety experts, focused on topics like how to spot scams, create strong passwords and be cautious about sharing personal information online. Over the years, we’ve educated more than 100 million children globally through this program.

    Today, we’re announcing Be Internet Awesome World, a new gaming experience on Roblox that will bring these same safety lessons to life in an interactive and fun way.

    Creating an immersive and educational game

    Roblox is one of the most popular online gaming platforms, with over 79.5 million daily active users. Working with Roblox helps Google to reach kids where they’re already spending time to teach them the basics of online safety.

    In the Be Internet Awesome experience, visitors will explore the magical world of the Internauts and learn how to navigate various real-world scenarios and risks by applying safety tips and critical thinking skills. They’ll have the ability to play multiple games, each based on a specific safety topic, ranging from identifying phishing attempts to practicing kindness online. During the game, players will receive immediate feedback, helping them learn through trial and error.

    This game-based learning approach not only reinforces the lessons of Be Internet Awesome, but also reimagines the curriculum in a new and exciting format for kids. Google’s experience is now available on Roblox.

    Promoting online safety and youth wellbeing

    Expanding Be Internet Awesome to a wider audience on Roblox is just one of the ways we keep more people safer online than anyone else in the world. Here are a few additional ways we’re working to promote online safety and youth wellbeing:

    • Partnering with Highlights Magazine: Earlier this year, we teamed up with Highlights to create a special edition of the magazine based on Google’s Be Internet Awesome curriculum. We’ve also partnered with the Boys and Girls club to host a series of events to help walk kids through the lessons and activities inside the magazine.
    • Investing in Teen Mental Health: Recently, Google.org launched a $10 million Teen Mental Health Initiative to help more than a million high school students and 10,000 teachers build strong mental health habits across the country. Google partnered with leading mental health and educational organizations on this effort including Selena Gomez’s Rare Impact Fund, DonorsChoose, JED Foundation, Child Mind Institute and The Steve Fund.
    • Building AI literacy: We’ve developed tailored resources to help teach teens how to use AI responsibly, including our AI Literacy Guide, and videos focused on the five must-knows of generative AI and how to use AI to uplevel learning.

    MIL OSI Global Banks –

  • MIL-OSI USA: IAM Local 774 Members at Textron Aviation Remain On Strike; Ready to Bargain Fair Contract

    Source: US GOIAM Union

    WICHITA, Kan., Sept. 24, 2024 — Nearly 5,000 International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) Local 774 (District 70) members at Textron Aviation in Wichita remain on strike after the expiration of the current agreement on Monday, Sept. 23. IAM 774 members overwhelmingly rejected the company’s latest contract offer and voted to strike.

    IAM Local 774 members have been in negotiations with Textron Aviation for months. While both sides remain in contact, mediators have been contacted, and talks could potentially resume next week.

    Key sticking points in the negotiations include:

    1. Wages: IAM Local 774 members seek raises to keep pace with inflation and reflect their vital role in Textron’s success.
    2. Healthcare: IAM Local 774 members want affordable and comprehensive healthcare coverage for themselves and their families.
    3. Job Security: IAM Local 774 members are pushing for stronger protections against layoffs and outsourcing.
    4. Retirement Security: IAM Local 774 members demand an improved and reliable retirement plan after decades of service.

    “IAM Union members build the aircraft that make Textron Aviation a leader in the industry,” said IAM International President Brian Bryant. “Our skilled and dedicated membership deserves a contract recognizing their essential contributions and ensuring they are provided the best wages and benefits.”

    The strike has the potential to significantly impact Wichita’s economy. The nearly 5,000 workers are vital to the community, and local businesses and services could feel their absence.

    “Our members at Textron Aviation deserve a contract that reflects their hard work and dedication and secures a future where they can continue to build better lives for themselves and their families,” said IAM Southern Territory General Vice President Craig Martin. “We’re committed to fighting to help our members in Wichita improve and grow stronger with each negotiation.”

    “IAM Local 774 remains committed to securing a fair deal for our members and is prepared to stay on strike until an agreement is reached,” said IAM Aerospace Coordinator Shannon Stucker. “Our negotiating team is willing and able to sit down with Textron Aviation leadership to work on an agreement that is best for both parties.”  

    The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers is one of North America’s largest and most diverse industrial trade unions, representing approximately 600,000 active and retired members in the aerospace, defense, airlines, railroad, transit, healthcare, automotive, and other industries.

    goIAM.org [goiam.org] | @MachinistsUnion [twitter.com]

    Share and Follow:

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Chairman Aguilar: There is no greater example of Republican extremism than Trump’s Project 2025

    Source: US House of Representatives – Democratic Caucus

    The following text contains opinion that is not, or not necessarily, that of MIL-OSI – September 24, 2024

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar and Vice Chair Ted Lieu were joined by Representatives Sara Jacobs and Nikema Williams in a press conference on how Trump’s Project 2025 gives Extreme MAGA Republicans total control to criminalize abortion, gut Social Security and raise taxes for working families.

    CHAIRMAN AGUILAR: Good morning. The Vice Chair and I are grateful to be joined by incredible leaders within our Caucus, Nikema Williams and Sara Jacobs. 

    House Democrats have said from the beginning of this Congress that we will be ready to work in a bipartisan way to get things done for the American people whenever and wherever possible. But we are also going to call out extremism when it exists. And there is no greater example of Republican extremism than Trump’s Project 2025. 

    Should extreme MAGA Republicans be successful in winning the House, the Senate and the presidency, they have created the blueprint in a 920-page roadmap that lays out exactly how they plan to govern. Under their plan, Project 2025 criminalizes abortion, hurts middle class families to help the wealthy and well connected and ends Social Security as we know it. It gives Donald Trump unchecked presidential power and unparalleled control over the American people. It is both deeply troubling and deeply unpopular because of the work of House Democrats, Leader Jeffries, Whip Clark, Jared Huffman, our own Vice Chair Ted Lieu and the leaders behind me today to put a spotlight on this dangerous plan. We know that House Republicans are in trouble because they are running scared anytime we mention Project 2025. 
    Later today, the Steering and Policy Committee will convene a hearing of hard-working Americans who will testify about what Project 2025 would mean to them in their daily lives. Don’t just take our word for it. Listen to the abortion care providers and seniors who have to ration insulin, who will courageously share their stories. House Democrats are fighting for them, as House Republicans are fighting to give Donald Trump more control of our daily lives. 
    I’ll turn it over to Vice Chair Ted Lieu.

    VICE CHAIR LIEU: Thank you, Chairman Aguilar. 

    Trump’s Project 2025 isn’t just a radical document. It’s a document that Republicans this term have tried to implement through a series of appropriations bills. And as Chairman Aguilar said, we’re having a hearing today that the Steering and Policy Committee is hosting at 2:15 at HVC-215. Hope you all can make it. And I want to thank Jared Huffman earlier this year for starting the Project 2025 Task Force. 

    This is 920 pages of crazy–that’s what Project 2025 is–with deadly consequences. I’m going to go through just three of the insane things in that document. Project 2025 wants to eliminate the Department of Education, and that is on page 319 of the document. Project 2025 also wants to eliminate the National Weather Service. Think about that. We’ve got a hurricane coming into Georgia or Florida, and this is what Project 2025 authors want to do. They want to eliminate the National Weather Service–that’s on page 675 of the document. And get this: Project 2025 wants to allow children to work in hazardous conditions. Like, who comes up with this crazy stuff? That’s on page 595 of the document. 

    So again, I hope you all come to this hearing. And let me now introduce our amazing member from Georgia, the great Nikema Williams, who will talk about reproductive freedom and Project 2025.

    REP. WILLIAMS: Thank you, Vice Chair Lieu and Chairman Aguilar. Good morning, everyone. 

    I’m Congresswoman Nikema Williams, and I proudly represent Georgia’s fighting Fifth Congressional District. I’m a member of the Pro-Choice Caucus and Vice Chair of the Democratic Women’s Caucus. But y’all, before I came to Congress, I served as the VP of Public Policy at Planned Parenthood Southeast for ten years. I will always carry with me the stories that I heard from people we served on the frontlines just about how hard they had to fight to get the essential abortion care that they needed and deserve. This was long before the overturning of Roe v. Wade that was orchestrated by Donald Trump and his Republican Party. 

    We’re seeing the deadly result of abortion bans in Georgia, and around the country. Just last week, ProPublica reported on the deaths of two Georgia women, Candi Miller and Amber Thurman, who died because they couldn’t receive the care that they desperately needed. Let me say that again: Candi Miller and Amber Thurman died because of Georgia’s inhumane abortion ban that was ushered in by Donald Trump and his MAGA Republicans. These were preventable deaths. As a mama, I’m heartbroken, and as a Georgian, as an elected official, I’m pissed, y’all. Because it doesn’t have to be this way. These were policy decisions. But let me be clear: it could get even worse. Trump’s Project 2025 would lead to more heartbreak and more preventable deaths. Project 2025 would ban abortion nationwide, criminalizing patients and doctors, making it impossible for people to get the care that they need. 

    Abortion is essential health care. One in four women will access abortion care at some point in their lives. And that’s not one in four Democratic women, not one in four Republican or Independent women. That’s someone you know, someone you love, someone you go to church with, someone you grew up with, someone in your family. One in four women, y’all. 

    I will continue to fight alongside House Democrats to protect reproductive freedom in the face of extreme Republican abortion bans and the looming threat of Trump’s Project 2025, which will ban abortion nationwide. We will restore the reproductive freedom that Trump and House Republicans brag about taking away, and we will ensure that every person can get the care that they need. 

    Thank you so much, and I’ll now turn it over to another co-conspirator for justice in our Caucus, Congresswoman Sara Jacobs.

    REP. JACOBS: Well, thank you, Chairman Aguilar, Vice Chair Lieu, Nikema, for really highlighting the stakes here. 

    So, I’ve spent the past few months traveling the country talking to young people, college students and women. I’m a 35-year-old woman, so basically, this is a topic I talk about all the time with my friends and peers. And here’s the deal: all of these young people are terrified about Project 2025, and so am I. So, not only would Project 2025 make it difficult or impossible to access abortion, birth control, emergency contraception and other reproductive services, as my colleague Nikema highlighted, it would also authorize a pregnancy surveillance system. So, even if you live in a state like California, like I do, where we have strong state-level abortion and privacy laws, you would not be protected. Every abortion, every miscarriage, every stillbirth, every pregnancy loss, every pregnancy, even abortions and pregnancy losses that result from medical treatment, would be logged and reported to the federal government and used to monitor pregnancies.

    Project 2025 would supersede HIPAA. It would nullify doctor-patient confidentiality, and it would reject a right to privacy. And pretty soon, it would be used to weaponize health data against patients and providers in court. We’ve already seen this happen. 

    In 2017, Mississippi police charged Latice Fisher after digging into her Google search history and finding that she searched how to buy misoprostol abortion pills online. In 2022, Nebraska police used Facebook messages between a mother and a daughter, private Facebook messages, to prosecute an abortion that was illegal under state law. Now, imagine how much more this would happen if there was a centralized treasure trove of this information, of this data. 

    Now, House Democrats, we want to protect the sensitive data, and we have a bill to do it, My Body My Data Act. House Democrats, we want to strengthen HIPAA for the post Roe era, not gut it. And we have a bill to do that, The Safer Health Act. But you know who stands in the way? MAGA Republicans. 

    House Democrats will continue to fight to protect patient privacy, protect their right to make their own health decisions and protect them from abortion and pregnancy surveillance. So, thank you so much, now I will turn it over to Chairman Aguilar for questions.

    Video of the full press conference and Q&A can be viewed here.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: UConn Health Students Volunteer for a Heart Healthy Cause

    Source: US State of Connecticut

    “It was an extremely great turnout with over 300 walkers. We raised over $62,000!” reports Ire Opayemi, a medical student at UConn School of Medicine in the Class of 2025 who is pursuing a dual MD/MPH degree. “I think it was a great show of how much UConn Health students are involved in the community which we serve and how we’re spreading awareness of CHD.”

    Congenital heart defects (CHDs) are the most common type of birth defect in the United States, affecting nearly 1 in 100 babies each year. Despite this prevalence, CHD research and programs are severely underfunded.

    The UConn Health students participated in the 1-mile walk around downtown West Hartford. The Connecticut Walk for 1 in 100 was one of 15 similar events ACHA is hosting nationwide this year to raise funds for greater family and community outreach, education, and research.

    “The Adult Congenital Heart Association is an incredible organization that has done so much for the community by providing vital education and support groups for those living with congenital heart disease. As UConn medical and dental students, we’re working to show that we care deeply about those living with congenital heart disease and are committed to increasing awareness within the broader community,” shared UConn’s Opayemi.

    He added, “We’re also aiming to enhance providers’ understanding of congenital heart disease, inspiring some to specialize in this field and ensuring that all have the experience to connect with and relate to these patients in their care. This year, we’ve seen tremendous engagement, not just from students but from the local community as well. We’re all coming together to show we truly care about supporting and empowering people with congenital heart disease.”

    Funds generated from the Connecticut Walk support the ACHA Adult Congenital Heart Disease (ACHD) Accreditation Program, which is working to elevate and standardize care for the ACHD population nationwide. In addition, Walk for 1 in 100 helps to fund cutting-edge medical research, advocacy efforts and various educational and outreach initiatives.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Rep. Barragán Brings Attention to the Threat of Air Pollution and Extreme Heat on Latina Maternal Health

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Nanette Diaz Barragán (CA-44)

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                     

    September 24, 2024

    Contact: Kevin McGuire, 202-538-2386 (mobile)

    Kevin.McGuire@mail.house.gov

    Washington D.C. –  Today, Congresswoman Nanette Barragán (CA-44) introduced a resolution that recognizes the threat of air pollution and extreme heat on Latina maternal and infant health at a press conference alongside Guadalupe Pacheco from the National Hispanic Health Foundation and Amy Tamayo from Alianza Nacional de Campesinas.

    The resolution recognizes the significant correlation between air pollution and extreme heat to maternal and infant health, particularly within Latino communities. It highlights that these communities face disproportionate exposure to environmental toxins, leading to adverse pregnancy outcomes, including preterm birth and stillbirth.

    “Air pollution and extreme heat are not just environmental issues—they are issues of equity and health that disproportionately harm Latina moms,” stated Rep. Barragan. “This resolution calls on Congress to invest in clean air initiatives, bilingual air quality alerts, improved maternal healthcare access, and much more. We must act now to ensure that no mother has to choose between her health and her job, or between staying cool and protecting her unborn child.”

    “Many healthcare providers emphasize exercise and nutrition, but they often overlook the critical need to protect ourselves from extreme heat—especially during pregnancy. I had to undergo a c-section at 36 weeks, and while my son and I are healthy, I wish I had been warned about the dangers of high temperatures,” added Luz Drada, EcoMadres’s Program Coordinator. “This resolution ignites optimism for a healthier future for mothers and children everywhere. Together, we can fight for a better tomorrow.”

    “The National Hispanic Health Foundation supports health equity for Latina women, especially during pregnancy and infancy,” explained Guadalupe Pacheco, Director of Programs at the National Hispanic Health Foundation (NHHF).”Addressing the disproportionate risks of extreme heat and air pollution is crucial to safeguarding mothers’ and their children’s health and well-being.”

    “We are very encouraged to see Congresswoman Barragán introduce this resolution calling on Congress to address health vulnerabilities in our communities,” said Amy Tamayo, National Policy and Advocacy Director at Alianza Nacional de Campesinas. “Farmworker women are not only subjected to extreme heat in the fields, but also sexual violence and harassment, and dangerous pesticide exposure that compromises their health and that of their children’s. Pregnant farmworkers growing food to nourish the nation should not have to fear for their children’s lives or their health. Farmworker women bear the heavy burden of risking their health daily and their well being must be a national priority.”

    The resolution also outlines several actions Congress should take to address this problem, including greater investment in air quality programs, more green spaces, bilingual air quality alerts, and the education of public health professionals.  

    The resolution is cosponsored by Representatives Raul Grijalva, Nydia Velázquez, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib, Grace Napolitano, and Emmanuel Cleaver.

    The following organizations support the resolution: Ecomadres, Mom’s Clean Air Force, National Hispanic Health Foundation, National Hispanic Medical Association, Hispanic Access Foundation, American Women’s Medical Association, and Corazon Latino.

    Read the full text of the resolution here.

    # # #

    Congressmember Nanette Barragán represents California’s 44th District.  She sits on the House Energy and Commerce Committee and works on environmental justice and healthcare issues.  She is also Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC).

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Obesity in mums doubles the risk of autism in babies

    Source: University of South Australia

    25 September 2024

    Children born to mothers with obesity both before and during pregnancy have an increased risk of neuropsychiatric and behavioural conditions, including autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), according to new research from the University of South Australia.

    Funded by Centre of Research Excellence Health in Preconception & Pregnancy and conducted in partnership with Curtin University, Monash University,  SAHMRI and a team of national institutions*, the systematic review and meta-analysis of more than 3.6 million mother-child pairs across 42 epidemiological studies found that obesity during pregnancy:

    • increases the risk of ADHD in children by 32%.
    • doubles the risk of developing ASD in children (by 2.23 times).
    • increases the risk of conduct disorders by 16%

    The study also found that maternal pre-conception obesity or overweight was linked with an increased risk of ADHD, ASD, conduct disorder and psychotic disorder as well as a 30% increased risk in both externalising symptoms, and peer relationship problems.

    Lead researcher UniSA’s Dr Bereket Duko says the study provides new insights into the long-term impact of maternal body weight on child mental health.

    “Maternal obesity has long been associated with a range of adverse perinatal outcomes, including preterm birth, low birthweight, stillbirth, and it is also linked with macrosomia, or high birthweight,” Dr Duko says.

    “In this study, we examined maternal overweight and obesity before and during pregnancy, finding that both are significantly linked with psychiatric and behavioural problems in children later in life, specifically ASD, ADHD and peer relationship problems.

    “Given the rising global obesity rates among women of reproductive age, and the growing numbers of children identified with neurodiverse conditions, it’s important that we acknowledge the potential long-term consequences of maternal adiposity on child mental health.”

    In Australia, about one in 150 people have ASD with more than 8% of children aged 4-11 diagnosed with ADHD. Globally, one in eight people live with obesity.

    Dr Duko says the study’s results underscore the need for interventions targeting maternal weight management before and during pregnancy.

    “Public health efforts that target improving maternal health could help mitigate some of the risks of neuropsychiatric and behavioural disorders in children,” Dr Duko says.

    “While further research is needed to explore the biological mechanisms underlying these associations, the findings do stress the need for health interventions that promote healthy living and weight among parents to be.”

    Notes to editors:

    *Additional partners include Monash University, University of Western Australia, Fiona Stanley Hospital, University of Queensland, Edith Cowan University, and University of Sydney.

    The paper is available online here:  Associations between maternal preconception and pregnancy adiposity and neuropsychiatric and behavioral outcomes in the offspring: A systematic review and meta-analysis

    …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

    Contact for interview:  Dr Bereket Duko M: +61 410 350 140 E: Bereket.Adema@unisa.edu.au
    Media contact: Annabel Mansfield M: +61 479 182 489 E: Annabel.Mansfield@unisa.edu.au

    Other articles you may be interested in

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Governor Newsom signs consumer protection bills targeting medical debt, overdraft fees, and unfair subscription practices

    Source: US State of California 2

    Sep 24, 2024

    What you need to know: New laws will strengthen consumer protections and help save Californians money.

    SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom signed a package of bills that will strengthen protections for consumers, addressing issues that have put financial strain on Californians while setting new standards for transparency and accountability across industries.

    “Nobody wants to get ripped off, whether it’s a small subscription fee that’s seemingly impossible to cancel or massive medical debts which force families into financial ruin. We’re strengthening protections for Californians across the board and helping save consumers money.”

    Governor Gavin Newsom

    Medical debt relief

    SB 1061 by Senator Monique Limón (D-Santa Barbara) targets the devastating impact of medical debt on consumers. Under this new law, medical debt will no longer be included on consumers’ credit reports, ensuring that people are not penalized for the high costs of necessary healthcare. The bill also prohibits using any medical debt listed on a credit report as a negative factor when making credit decisions, and gives individuals more room to address their medical bills before debt collection and reporting actions can take place.

    “I am proud to author legislation to provide relief to Californians suffering from the burden of medical debt,” said Senator Limón. “No Californian should be unable to secure housing, a loan, or even a job because they accessed necessary medical care. With this new law, California is stepping up to protect consumers impacted by the effects of medical debt.” 

    Making it easier to cancel subscriptions

    AB 2863 by Assemblymember Pilar Schiavo (D-Chatsworth) addresses complicated auto-renewing subscription services that are easy to sign up for but hard to cancel. The bill requires companies offering automatic renewals and continuous services to provide consumers a means to cancel the subscription using the same medium they used to sign up; for example, a person who subscribes online has to be given an online click-to-cancel option. This ensures that consumers can easily exit from services they no longer want, without being trapped by confusing processes or hidden fees.

    “At a time when too many in our community are struggling, unwanted subscription renewals can really add up. AB 2863 is the most comprehensive ‘Click to Cancel’ legislation in the nation,  ensuring Californians can  cancel unwanted automatic subscription renewals just as easily as they signed up – with just a click or two,” said Assemblymember Schiavo. “California is setting a model for the nation on protecting consumers from unnecessary charges – giving them more control over their finances and helping to ensure fair business practices, providing a win for both consumers and small businesses. I’m grateful that this important legislation was signed, as it will mean more money in the pockets of people throughout our community.” 

    Protecting against unfair fees 

    AB 2017 by Assemblymember Tim Grayson (D-Concord) and SB 1075 by Senator Steven Bradford (D-Gardena) address unfair banking practices. AB 2017 prohibits certain banks and credit unions from charging nonsufficient funds fees when a transaction is declined due to the consumer having insufficient funds. SB 1075 sets limits on the amount credit unions can charge for overdraft fees. These bills aim to protect lower-income Californians that are disproportionately impacted by financial fees that can push them deeper into financial hardship.

    Additional consumer protection measures signed into law

    • AB 1849 by Assemblymember Tim Grayson (D-Concord) – Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act: services and repairs: travel trailers and motor homes (signed earlier this year).
    • AB 1900 by Assemblymember Dr. Akilah Weber (D-San Diego) – Consumer refunds: nondisclosure agreements (signed earlier this year).
    • AB 1971 by Assemblymember Dawn Addis (D-Morro Bay) – Administration of standardized tests.
    • AB 2202 by Assemblymember Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood) – Short-term rentals: disclosure: cleaning tasks.
    • AB 2297 by Assemblymember Laura Friedman (D-Glendale) – Hospital and Emergency Physician Fair Pricing Policies.
    • AB 2347 by Assemblymember Ash Kalra (D-San Jose) – Summary proceedings for obtaining possession of real property: procedural requirements.
    • AB 2426 by Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin (D-Thousand Oaks) – Consumer protection: false advertising: digital goods.
    • AB 2801 by Assemblymember Laura Friedman (D-Glendale) – Tenancy: Security Deposits (signed earlier this year).
    • AB 2837 by Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (D-Orinda) – Civil actions: enforcement of money judgments.
    • AB 2992 by Assemblymember Stephanie Nguyen (D-Elk Grove) – Real Estate Law: buyer-broker representation agreements.
    • AB 3108 by Assemblymember Reginald Byron Jones-Sawyer, Sr. (D-Los Angeles) – Business: mortgage fraud.
    • AB 3283 by the Committee on Judiciary – Enforcement of judgments: claims of exemption (signed earlier this year).
    • SB 919 by Senator Thomas Umberg (D-Santa Ana) – Franchise Investment Law: franchise brokers.
    • SB 924 by Senator Steven Bradford (D-Gardena) – Tenancy: credit reporting: lower income households.
    • SB 1286 by Senator Dave Min (D-Irvine) – Rosenthal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act: covered debt: commercial debts.

    Recent news

    Sep 24, 2024

    News SACRAMENTO – As Tropical Storm Helene is expected to strengthen into a hurricane as it moves toward Florida’s Panhandle, Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the deployment of California firefighters to assist in staffing a Federal Emergency Management Agency…

    Sep 23, 2024

    News What you need to know: Governor Newsom signed four bills today to help law enforcement crack down on dangerous sideshows and street takeovers. These new laws will hold participants and organizers accountable by providing law enforcement with the tools to seize…

    Sep 23, 2024

    News What you need to know: Governor Gavin Newsom today signed Assembly Bill 3216, the Phone-Free School Act, to require every school district, charter school and county office of education to develop a policy limiting the use of smartphones by July 1, 2026….

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: DCCA News RELEASE: Registration Opens for 2024-2025 Hawaiʻi LifeSmarts Competition

    Source: US State of Hawaii

    DCCA News RELEASE: Registration Opens for 2024-2025 Hawaiʻi LifeSmarts Competition

    Posted on Sep 24, 2024 in Latest Department News, Newsroom

     

    DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE AND CONSUMER AFFAIRS

    KA ʻOIHANA PILI KĀLEPA


     JOSH GREEN, M.D.

    GOVERNOR | KE KIAʻĀINA

     

    NADINE Y. ANDO

    DIRECTOR | KA LUNA HOʻOKELE

    TY Y. NOHARA

    SECURITIES COMMISSIONER

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

    September 24, 2024

    Registration Opens for 2024-2025 Hawaiʻi LifeSmarts Competition

    HONOLULU — The state Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA) Business Registration Division invites teams to participate in the 2024-2025 Hawaiʻi LifeSmarts Competition.

    LifeSmarts is a free, national educational program that teaches students critical life skills in five key areas: Personal Finance, Consumer Rights & Responsibilities, Health & Safety, the Environment, and Technology through online quizzes and in-person competitions. Teams must consist of one adult coach/teacher and at least four students.

    Registration is now open at lifesmarts.org.

    Once registered, high school or “varsity” teams can participate in the online portion of the competition from Monday, October 21, 2024, until Friday, December 6, 2024, at 7 p.m. HST. The top four highest-scoring teams will be invited to compete in the state championship competition at the Neal S. Blaisdell Center in Honolulu on February 21, 2025. The winning team will have the opportunity to represent Hawaiʻi at the national competition, scheduled for April 24 to 27, 2024, in Chicago, Illinois.

    Middle school or “junior varsity” teams with students in grades 6 to 8 can participate in an online-only competition from Monday, October 21, 2024, to Friday, December 6, 2024, at 7 p.m. HST. For more information about the Hawaiʻi LifeSmarts program, please visit www.lifesmartshawaii.com or contact LifeSmarts State Coordinator, Theresa Kong Kee, at 808-587-7400 or [email protected].

    The Hawaiʻi LifeSmarts program is locally sponsored by DCCA’s Business Registration Division and Insurance Division, in partnership with the Hawaiʻi Credit Union League, and is run by the National Consumers League. More than 3,000 local students have participated in Hawaiʻi LifeSmarts since 2004. Local businesses interested in becoming a sponsor of the Hawaiʻi LifeSmarts program are welcome to contact the state coordinator for more information.

     

    Learn more about the Hawai‘i LifeSmarts program with this video. Content from previous years, including photos, is available here.

     

    # # #

    Media Contact:

    William Nhieu

    Communications Officer

    Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs

    Email: [email protected]

    Office: 808-586-7582

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Public Notice of Intent to Issue a Categorical Exclusion to Rockland Oaks

    Source: US State of Rhode Island

    Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH) is seeking public comment on its intent to issue a Categorical Exclusion.

    RIDOH has reviewed for approval the request by the Rockland Oaks public water system (PWS # RI1000020), in cooperation with an adjacent public water system, the Scituate High School & Middle School public water system (PWS # RI1615612) for a Categorical Exclusion determination for its proposed Rockland Oaks Public Water System Improvements project. Water supply for the Rockland Oaks facility is proposed to be provided by a new distribution connection to the Scituate High School & Middle School public water system (PWS # RI1615612) and improvements to the Rockland Oaks equipment/mechanical room, with the intent of ultimately inactivating the Rockland Oaks public water system (PWS # RI1000020). In addition to developing a new transmission main to Rockland Oaks, the project scope involves development of a new public well #4 at the High School/Middle School campus and select improvements to the High School/Middle School system related to the new connection, including to the pump house, controls, storage tank, and distribution pump system, presently under construction. The project location(s) will include the Scituate High School/Middle School campus located at 94 Trimtown Road, Scituate, RI 02857 (Scituate Assessors Map 33 Lot 14) through Rockland Road and into Rockland Oaks located at 104 Rockland Road, North Scituate, RI 02857 (Scituate Assessors Map 33 Lot 127).

    It has been determined that any impacts from the project, subject to certain defined conditions and with all proposed mitigation and the required mitigation and conditions in accordance with state permits and comments, would be minor and short term in duration and that the project, subject to certain defined conditions and with all proposed mitigation and the required mitigation and conditions in accordance with state permits and comments, will not individually, or cumulatively over time, have a significant effect on the quality of the environment. Therefore, RIDOH is hereby giving notice of intent to issue a Categorical Exclusion for the proposed project pursuant to the requirements and authority set forth in Chapter 46-12.8 of the General Laws of Rhode Island and the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund regulations (216-RICR-50-05-6).

    A copy of the proposed Categorical Exclusion can be obtained by calling RIDOH’s Center for Drinking Water Quality at 401-222-6867 weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. or by emailing DOH.RIDWQ@health.ri.gov. All material submitted for review is available for public inspection weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at RIDOH, Center for Drinking Water Quality, Three Capitol Hill, Room 209, Providence, RI 02908.

    Written comments should be sent to the Center for Drinking Water Quality at the address above or emailed to DOH.RIDWQ@health.ri.gov within thirty (30) days of the date of this notice.

    A public hearing to hear or otherwise receive comments on the proposed intent to issue a Categorical Exclusion will be held if RIDOH receives such a request by twenty-five (25) persons, or by a governmental agency, or by an association having not less than twenty-five (25) members, within ten (10) days of published notice. If a public hearing is held, it will be open to the public, recorded and held at least five (5) days before the end of the public-comment period. A hearing will not be held earlier than ten (10) days after notice of its location, date, and time published. A request for a public hearing should be sent to the Center for Drinking Water Quality at the address above or emailed to DOH.RIDWQ@health.ri.gov. Notice should be taken that if RIDOH receives a request(s) as provided above on or before 4:30 p.m., October 4, 2024, a public hearing will be held at the following time and place:

    October 8, 2024, at 11 a.m. RIDOH Auditorium Three Capitol Hill Providence, Rhode Island 02908

    Interested persons should contact RIDOH to confirm if a hearing will be held at the time and location noted above.

    The location of the public hearing will be accessible to the handicapped. Interpreter services for people with hearing impairment and audiotapes for people with vision impairment will be made available. RIDOH is handicap accessible to individuals with disabilities.

    Please call RIDOH’s Center for Drinking Water Quality at 401-222-6867 for further information. For individuals requesting communication assistance, call Rhode Island Relay (TTY) at 711 or 800-745-5555 at least forty-eight (48) hours in advance.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senator Murray Challenges Republicans to Join Democrats in Affirming the Right to Lifesaving Emergency Care for Women

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Washington State Patty Murray
    ICYMI: Murray Leads Congressional Democrats in Amicus Brief Urging SCOTUS to Affirm that EMTALA Requires Hospitals to Provide Emergency Stabilizing Care Including Abortion Care, Preempts Idaho’s Draconian Abortion Ban
    ICYMI: On Senate Floor, Murray Shines Spotlight On How Trump Abortion Bans are Killing Women in America
    ICYMI – FROM PROPUBLICA: Abortion Bans Have Delayed Emergency Medical Care. In Georgia, Experts Say This Mother’s Death Was Preventable.
    ***WATCH: SENATOR MURRAY’S REMARKS HERE***
    Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), a senior member and former Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee (HELP), spoke at a press conference in the Capitol with Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Senator Mazie Hirono (D-HI) following introduction of her resolution which simply expresses the sense of the Senate that every patient has the basic right to emergency health care, including abortion care, regardless of where they live. Murray will seek unanimous consent to pass her resolution later this afternoon on the Senate floor and challenged Senate Republicans to join Democrats in affirming the basic right to lifesaving emergency care for women. Introduction of Murray’s resolution follows new reporting from ProPublica that makes plain that Republican abortion bans are preventing women from receiving lifesaving emergency health care and resulting in preventable deaths.
    “I really want to emphasize that—we are talking about women whose water breaks dangerously early, or who are experiencing uncontrollable hemorrhage, sepsis, or pre-eclampsia,” said Senator Murray at today’s press conference. “These are the patients we are saying doctors should treat under the basic right to emergency care. Today we are going to try and pass this resolution, and we are going to see if the Senate can come together with one voice, and tell women: we want to put your health first, we want to put your life first, we want to make sure you get the care you need in an emergency. It is a simple message—but sadly, it has become a necessary one. Now I don’t know if Republicans are going to let us pass this or not. Republicans sometimes talk about protecting the life of the mother, but frankly they have yet to lift a finger to ensure doctors can always do that.”
    “So we’ll see where they fall today, but even if they block this resolution—we are NOT going to stop fighting to protect women, to help everyone get the care they need, and, ultimately, to restore the reproductive rights Donald Trump ripped away,” said Senator Murray in closing.
    Since the overturn of Roe v. Wade over two years ago, nearly two dozen US states led by Republicans have passed, banned, or severely restricted access to abortion. These strict laws have created confusion around the treatment doctors can provide even when a pregnant patient’s life is in danger, as physicians fear that they may lose their medical license, be sued, or even charged with a felony if they perform life-saving emergency care. Despite the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act’s (EMTALA) requirements that Medicare-participating hospitals treat and stabilize pregnant patients in need of emergency medical care, women are being turned away from emergency rooms following the Dobbs decision.
    In Moyle v. United States, the U.S. Supreme Court had the opportunity to reaffirm that federal law requires pregnant patients to have access to life-saving emergency care in every state, but instead, the Court dismissed the case and sent it back to the lower courts, effectively punting on making a decision on the case itself. While the litigation continues in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, the health and lives of women remain at risk as uncertainty around emergency abortion care persists. 121 Congressional Republicans, including 26 Senators, filed an amicus brief arguing that EMTALA does not require hospitals to provide abortion care as emergency stabilizing care in order to save a patient’s life.
    Senator Murray is a longtime leader in the fight to protect and expand access to reproductive health care and abortion rights, and she has led Congressional efforts to fight back after the Supreme Court’s disastrous decision overturning Roe v. Wade. Murray has introduced more than a dozen pieces of legislation to protect reproductive rights from further attacks, protect providers, and help ensure women get the care they need; Murray has led efforts to push for passage of these bills on the floor multiple times. Senator Murray also co-leads the Women’s Health Protection Act, which would restore the right to abortion nationwide. This January, Murray led her colleagues in hosting a “State of Abortion Rights” briefing with women who have suffered firsthand from Republican abortion bans. On June 4th of this year, Senator Murray chaired a HELP Committee hearing titled “The Assault on Women’s Freedoms: How Abortion Bans Have Created a Health Care Nightmare Across America.” Recently, Murray also helped lead efforts to force Republicans on the record on votes to protect access to contraception and access to IVF (twice). Murray has also led her colleagues in raising the alarm about how a second Trump administration intends to wage an all-out assault on reproductive rights and abortion access in every state, as outlined in Project 2025.
    Senator Murray’s full remarks, as prepared,  are below:
    “Donald Trump has been loudly bragging about how he ended Roe v Wade. He’s been making the outrageous claim that everyone wanted that.
    “Meanwhile, Republicans have been totally ignoring the horror and heartbreak they have unleashed. Even as women and doctors are speaking out about it every day.
    “Here in America, in the 21st century, pregnant women are suffering and even dying not because doctors don’t know how to save them, but because doctors don’t know if Republicans will let them.
    “I spoke about this at length last week, but new reporting about the tragic deaths of Amber Thurman and Candi Miller tells the story with brutal clarity. There are children in Georgia today, who are growing up without a mother because of Republicans’ abortion bans.
    “And the painful reality is—these may be among the first stories reported in such detail, but they are most certainly not the only ones. The data shows in Texas, maternal deaths skyrocketed after Republicans enacted strict abortion bans.
    “How does anyone shrug that off? How does any Republican think the chaos their bans have caused will blow over?
    “No woman is going to forget when she was sent off to miscarry alone after her doctor said—look I know your life is in danger but I am not sure I am allowed to save you right now.
    “No husband is going to forget calling 911 in a panic, after finding his wife, bloody and unconscious.
    “No child is going to forget—for a single day of their life—the mother that was taken from them by Republican bans.
    “This cruelty is unforgettable—and unacceptable. Democrats will not let it become settled status quo. Americans will not let it.
    “And that’s why, last week I introduced a simple resolution which reaffirms the basic principle that: when you go to the ER, they should be allowed to treat you; when your life is in danger, doctors should be able to do their job; when you need emergency care—including an abortion—no politician should stop you from getting it.
    “That should not be controversial. Especially if everyone who talks about protecting the life of the mother seriously means it. After all—that is what emergency care is for—saving the life of the mother.
    “I really want to emphasize that—we are talking about women whose water breaks dangerously early, or who are experiencing uncontrollable hemorrhage, sepsis, or pre-eclampsia. These are the patients we are saying doctors should treat under the basic right to emergency care…
    “Today we are going to try and pass this resolution, and we are going to see if the Senate can come together with one voice, and tell women: we want to put your health first; we want to put your life first. we want to make sure you get the care you need in an emergency.
    “It is a simple message—but sadly, it has become a necessary one.
    “Now I don’t know if Republicans are going to let us pass this or not. Republicans sometimes talk about protecting the life of the mother—but frankly they have yet to lift a finger to ensure doctors can always do that. So we’ll see where they fall today.
    “But even if they block this resolution—we are not going to stop fighting to protect women, to help everyone get the care they need, and, ultimately, to restore the reproductive rights Donald Trump ripped away.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: FACT SHEET: Leaders’ Summit of the Global Coalition to Address Synthetic Drug  Threats

    US Senate News:

    Source: The White House
    Today, President Biden hosted a Summit of the Global Coalition to Address Synthetic Drug Threats, which the President directed Secretary of State Antony Blinken to launch in June 2023, in order to mobilize international action to tackle the synthetic drug crisis.  In just over a year, the Global Coalition has grown to include 159 countries and 15 international organizations working together to disrupt the supply chain for fentanyl and other synthetic drugs; detect emerging drug threats; and prevent and treat through effective public health interventions. With the Summit as a motivating force, 11 core Coalition countries announced new initiatives that will advance the work of the Coalition, including efforts to disrupt the supply chain of fentanyl and enhance public health interventions.  These international commitments complement intensive work being done domestically, including an increased focus on coordinated disruption of drug trafficking networks and concerted efforts to make the opioid overdose reversal medication, naloxone, widely available over-the-counter. As a result of these efforts, we are starting to see the largest drop in overdose deaths in recorded history.  When President Biden and Vice President Harris came into office, the number of drug overdose deaths was increasing by more than 30% year over year.  Now, the latest provisional data released from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Center for Health Statistics show an unprecedented decline in overdose deaths of 10% in the 12 months ending April 2024.  These aren’t just numbers – these are lives. Background on the Global Coalition The 159 countries and 15 international organizations that are now part of the Coalition are working together on three key lines of effort:
    Disrupt the supply chain for fentanyl and other synthetic drugs;
    Detect emerging drug threats; and
    Prevent and treat through effective public health interventions. 
    For the past year, three working groups and seven sub-working groups have met monthly to create detailed plans of action.  These working groups have made tangible progress, including implementing new efforts to increase seizures of synthetic drugs and precursor chemicals at ports of entry, sharing best practices with respect to the identification of emerging drug threats, and taking actions to schedule an increasing number of synthetic drugs and precursor chemicals, thus subjecting these drugs and chemicals to increased controls. 
    New Initiatives Being Announced
    At today’s Summit, 11 core countries announced new initiatives that will move the work of each of the Coalition’s core lines of effort even further:
    Australia, Belgium, the Dominican Republic, India, Mexico, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom will lead new efforts to disrupt the supply of fentanyl and other synthetic drugs.  These efforts include the development of regional coalitions to disrupt the transit routes for illicit drugs, precursor chemicals, and associated equipment, protect against the diversion of chemicals for illicit use, and improve the detection and disruption of production sites.
    Italy and Ghana will lead new initiatives to detect emerging drug trends, to include Italy helping other Coalition countries to develop early warning systems to identify emerging drug patterns.
    Canada and the United Arab Emirates will work to prevent and treat the overdose epidemic, including by expanding public health interventions and making life-saving medications widely available.
    Core Coalition countries also signed a Coalition Pledge agreeing to take additional actions to regulate all relevant drugs and precursor chemicals, take needed steps to fill gaps in their own domestic authorities, expand public-private partnerships to more effectively combat the supply chain for illicit fentanyl, develop mechanisms to monitor real-time data on trends in illicit drug use, and expand access to treatment.  At the Summit, President Biden called on all other Coalition countries to likewise sign this pledge.
    Domestic Actions to Fight Fentanyl and Other Synthetic Opioids
    Since day one, the Biden-Harris Administration has made disrupting the supply of illicit fentanyl and other synthetic drugs a core priority.  As part of their Unity Agenda for the Nation, President Biden and Vice President Harris have made it a priority to invest in public health and to tackle both the supply and demand for drugs.  And those efforts have paid off:
    Border officials have stopped more illicit fentanyl at ports of entry in the past two fiscal years than in the previous five fiscal years combined.  In the past 11 months, over 974 million potentially lethal doses of fentanyl were seized at U.S. ports of entry.
    The Biden-Harris Administration deployed cutting-edge drug detection technology across our southwest border, adding dozens of new inspection systems, with dozens more coming online in the next few years.
    The Biden-Harris Administration has made naloxone, a life-saving opioid overdose reversal medication, widely available over the counter, and has invested over $82 billion in treatment – 40 percent more than the previous Administration.
    In 2021, President Biden issued an Executive Order targeting foreign persons engaged in the global illicit drug trade, and the Administration has since sanctioned over 300 persons and entities under this authority, thereby cutting them off from the United States’ financial system.
    The Biden-Harris Administration has prosecuted dozens of high-level Mexican cartel leaders, drug traffickers, and money launderers, including Chapitos leader Nestor Isidro “El Nini” Perez Salas, and Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación’s top chemical brokers—placing dangerous drug traffickers behind bars.  Just last week, the son of a fugitive Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación boss, Ruben “El Menchito” Oseguera, was convicted for his violent acts, including the deadly downing of a military helicopter in Mexico, in support of his father’s drug trafficking organization.
     In July, President Biden issued a new National Security Memorandum (NSM) calling on all relevant Federal departments and agencies to do even more to stop the supply of illicit fentanyl and other synthetic opioids in our country.  The NSM directs increased intelligence collection, more intensive coordination and cooperation across departments and agencies, and additional actions to disrupt the production and distribution of illicit fentanyl.  And the Biden-Harris Administration has called on Congress to pass the Administration’s “Detect and Defeat” counter-fentanyl legislative proposal to increase penalties on those who bring deadly drugs into our communities and to close loopholes that drug traffickers exploit. As stated above, these measures are having an effect. Provisional CDC data show a 10% drop in overdose deaths in the 12 months leading up to April 2024 – the largest drop in overdose deaths in recorded history. Other International Engagements Under the leadership of President Biden and Vice President Harris, the United States has engaged around the world – both as part of the Coalition and in numerous bilateral and multilateral engagements – to spur global action in the fight against synthetic opioids. In early 2023, President Biden, together with the President of Mexico and the Prime Minister of Canada, directed the establishment a Trilateral Fentanyl Committee, and the Biden-Harris Administration engages regularly with both countries to tackle the supply chain for fentanyl. In November 2023, President Biden negotiated the resumption of counternarcotics cooperation with the People’s Republic of China (PRC), spurring the creation of a U.S. – PRC Counternarcotics Working Group that has led to increased cooperation on law enforcement actions and ongoing efforts to shut down companies that fuel illicit fentanyl and synthetic drug trafficking and cause deaths in the United States.   The United States and India have worked together to increase counternarcotics cooperation, including by signing a new Memorandum of Understanding and Framework for ongoing work to disrupt the supply of fentanyl and other synthetic drugs just this past week.  The Biden-Harris Administration has worked extensively with law enforcement partners across the globe to hold drug traffickers to account.  These partnerships pay dividends – including by generating support for extraditions that have enabled the United States to put dozens of cartel leaders, drug traffickers, and money launderers behind bars.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA News: FACT SHEET: Leaders’ Summit of the Global Coalition to Address Synthetic Drug  Threats

    Source: The White House

    Today, President Biden hosted a Summit of the Global Coalition to Address Synthetic Drug Threats, which the President directed Secretary of State Antony Blinken to launch in June 2023, in order to mobilize international action to tackle the synthetic drug crisis.  In just over a year, the Global Coalition has grown to include 159 countries and 15 international organizations working together to disrupt the supply chain for fentanyl and other synthetic drugs; detect emerging drug threats; and prevent and treat through effective public health interventions.
     
    With the Summit as a motivating force, 11 core Coalition countries announced new initiatives that will advance the work of the Coalition, including efforts to disrupt the supply chain of fentanyl and enhance public health interventions.  These international commitments complement intensive work being done domestically, including an increased focus on coordinated disruption of drug trafficking networks and concerted efforts to make the opioid overdose reversal medication, naloxone, widely available over-the-counter.
     
    As a result of these efforts, we are starting to see the largest drop in overdose deaths in recorded history.  When President Biden and Vice President Harris came into office, the number of drug overdose deaths was increasing by more than 30% year over year.  Now, the latest provisional data released from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Center for Health Statistics show an unprecedented decline in overdose deaths of 10% in the 12 months ending April 2024. 
     
    These aren’t just numbers – these are lives.
     
    Background on the Global Coalition
     
    The 159 countries and 15 international organizations that are now part of the Coalition are working together on three key lines of effort:

    1. Disrupt the supply chain for fentanyl and other synthetic drugs;
    2. Detect emerging drug threats; and
    3. Prevent and treat through effective public health interventions. 

    For the past year, three working groups and seven sub-working groups have met monthly to create detailed plans of action.  These working groups have made tangible progress, including implementing new efforts to increase seizures of synthetic drugs and precursor chemicals at ports of entry, sharing best practices with respect to the identification of emerging drug threats, and taking actions to schedule an increasing number of synthetic drugs and precursor chemicals, thus subjecting these drugs and chemicals to increased controls. 

    New Initiatives Being Announced

    At today’s Summit, 11 core countries announced new initiatives that will move the work of each of the Coalition’s core lines of effort even further:

    1. Australia, Belgium, the Dominican Republic, India, Mexico, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom will lead new efforts to disrupt the supply of fentanyl and other synthetic drugs.  These efforts include the development of regional coalitions to disrupt the transit routes for illicit drugs, precursor chemicals, and associated equipment, protect against the diversion of chemicals for illicit use, and improve the detection and disruption of production sites.
    2. Italy and Ghana will lead new initiatives to detect emerging drug trends, to include Italy helping other Coalition countries to develop early warning systems to identify emerging drug patterns.
    3. Canada and the United Arab Emirates will work to prevent and treat the overdose epidemic, including by expanding public health interventions and making life-saving medications widely available.

    Core Coalition countries also signed a Coalition Pledge agreeing to take additional actions to regulate all relevant drugs and precursor chemicals, take needed steps to fill gaps in their own domestic authorities, expand public-private partnerships to more effectively combat the supply chain for illicit fentanyl, develop mechanisms to monitor real-time data on trends in illicit drug use, and expand access to treatment.  At the Summit, President Biden called on all other Coalition countries to likewise sign this pledge.

    Domestic Actions to Fight Fentanyl and Other Synthetic Opioids

    Since day one, the Biden-Harris Administration has made disrupting the supply of illicit fentanyl and other synthetic drugs a core priority.  As part of their Unity Agenda for the Nation, President Biden and Vice President Harris have made it a priority to invest in public health and to tackle both the supply and demand for drugs.  And those efforts have paid off:

    1. Border officials have stopped more illicit fentanyl at ports of entry in the past two fiscal years than in the previous five fiscal years combined.  In the past 11 months, over 974 million potentially lethal doses of fentanyl were seized at U.S. ports of entry.
    2. The Biden-Harris Administration deployed cutting-edge drug detection technology across our southwest border, adding dozens of new inspection systems, with dozens more coming online in the next few years.
    3. The Biden-Harris Administration has made naloxone, a life-saving opioid overdose reversal medication, widely available over the counter, and has invested over $82 billion in treatment – 40 percent more than the previous Administration.
    4. In 2021, President Biden issued an Executive Order targeting foreign persons engaged in the global illicit drug trade, and the Administration has since sanctioned over 300 persons and entities under this authority, thereby cutting them off from the United States’ financial system.
    5. The Biden-Harris Administration has prosecuted dozens of high-level Mexican cartel leaders, drug traffickers, and money launderers, including Chapitos leader Nestor Isidro “El Nini” Perez Salas, and Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación’s top chemical brokers—placing dangerous drug traffickers behind bars.  Just last week, the son of a fugitive Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación boss, Ruben “El Menchito” Oseguera, was convicted for his violent acts, including the deadly downing of a military helicopter in Mexico, in support of his father’s drug trafficking organization.

     
    In July, President Biden issued a new National Security Memorandum (NSM) calling on all relevant Federal departments and agencies to do even more to stop the supply of illicit fentanyl and other synthetic opioids in our country.  The NSM directs increased intelligence collection, more intensive coordination and cooperation across departments and agencies, and additional actions to disrupt the production and distribution of illicit fentanyl.  And the Biden-Harris Administration has called on Congress to pass the Administration’s “Detect and Defeat” counter-fentanyl legislative proposal to increase penalties on those who bring deadly drugs into our communities and to close loopholes that drug traffickers exploit.
     
    As stated above, these measures are having an effect.
     
    Provisional CDC data show a 10% drop in overdose deaths in the 12 months leading up to April 2024 – the largest drop in overdose deaths in recorded history.
     
    Other International Engagements
     
    Under the leadership of President Biden and Vice President Harris, the United States has engaged around the world – both as part of the Coalition and in numerous bilateral and multilateral engagements – to spur global action in the fight against synthetic opioids.
     
    In early 2023, President Biden, together with the President of Mexico and the Prime Minister of Canada, directed the establishment a Trilateral Fentanyl Committee, and the Biden-Harris Administration engages regularly with both countries to tackle the supply chain for fentanyl.
     
    In November 2023, President Biden negotiated the resumption of counternarcotics cooperation with the People’s Republic of China (PRC), spurring the creation of a U.S. – PRC Counternarcotics Working Group that has led to increased cooperation on law enforcement actions and ongoing efforts to shut down companies that fuel illicit fentanyl and synthetic drug trafficking and cause deaths in the United States.  
     
    The United States and India have worked together to increase counternarcotics cooperation, including by signing a new Memorandum of Understanding and Framework for ongoing work to disrupt the supply of fentanyl and other synthetic drugs just this past week. 
     
    The Biden-Harris Administration has worked extensively with law enforcement partners across the globe to hold drug traffickers to account.  These partnerships pay dividends – including by generating support for extraditions that have enabled the United States to put dozens of cartel leaders, drug traffickers, and money launderers behind bars.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Federal government launches Health Emergency Readiness Canada to strengthen preparedness for future health emergencies

    Source: Government of Canada News (2)

    New agency will provide sustained focus on growing innovation and industrial capacity in the life sciences and biomanufacturing sector to support Canada’s health emergency readiness

    New agency will provide sustained focus on growing innovation and industrial capacity in the life sciences and biomanufacturing sector to support Canada’s health emergency readiness

    September 24, 2024 – Ottawa, Ontario 

    The COVID-19 pandemic has had devastating effects on Canadians and their livelihoods. That’s why the federal government is taking action to be better prepared for future health emergencies and build a stronger life sciences ecosystem in Canada.

    Today, the Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, and the Honourable Mark Holland, Minister of Health, jointly announced the launch of Health Emergency Readiness Canada (HERC), a new federal organization within Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada dedicated to protecting Canadians against future pandemics and delivering on Canada’s life sciences and medical countermeasures readiness objectives.

    HERC will serve as Canada’s focal point to help mobilize industry to respond in a coordinated approach to public health needs and to support the growth of a domestic life sciences sector. This new organization will bridge the gap between research and commercialization, meaning Canadians could get faster access to the most relevant and effective vaccines, therapeutics, diagnostics and other products, including when they need them the most.

    Once HERC is fully operational, its key features are expected to include:

    • integrated decision making to build life sciences capacity
    • strengthened partnerships with industry, academia and international counterparts
    • the development and maintenance of a Canadian industrial game plan to mobilize research and industry in the event of a health emergency
    • world-leading innovation to advance next-generation technology platforms

    With the creation of this new agency, Canada joins G7 peers that have created specialized entities to support health emergency readiness, following similar initiatives such as the United States’ Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) and the EU’s Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA).

    Media Relations
    Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada
    media@ised-isde.gc.ca

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: CONGRESSMAN BISHOP ANNOUNCES $387,750 IN FEDERAL FUNDS TO MERCER UNIVERSITY TO HELP TREAT DRUG ADDITION

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Sanford D Bishop Jr (GA-02)

    MACON, Ga. – Congressman Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. (GA-02) is pleased to announce that Mercer University has been awarded $387,750 in federal funds by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) through its Drug Abuse and Addiction Research Programs for biochemistry research that will help address the opioid epidemic and the additional complications arising from illicit contamination with fentanyl and xylazine.

    “I am pleased that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is supporting the amazing research being done at Mercer University,” said Congressman Bishop. “Through the tireless efforts of faculty and staff to better understand the biochemistry of illicit drugs, we can develop new ways to treat addiction and help prevent drug abuse.”

    “The widespread adulteration of fentanyl with xylazine has worsened the ongoing U.S. opioid epidemic, as the addition of xylazine causes new clinical consequences, including severe skin necrosis,” said Dr. Nader H. Moniri, Ph.D., Associate Dean for Research at Mercer University College of Pharmacy and Co-Principal Investigator of the study. “This NIH grant is vital for advancing the understanding of how xylazine use destroys skin tissue at a molecular level. By investigating these processes, we aim to identify pathways for developing more effective treatments and interventions.”

    Xylazine is a non-opiate sedative, analgesic, and muscle relaxant only authorized in the United States for veterinary use according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. It is not currently a controlled substance under the U.S. Controlled Substances Act. According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, the prevalence of xylazine is increasing, spreading beyond the traditional white-powder heroin markets in the northeastern United States where it has been seen for several years.

    The research supported by this grant will help better understand how xylazine affects individuals. The findings may be helpful in developing clinical treatments to counteract the negative effects seen with illicit use of the drug or substances contaminated with it.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: REPS. CLARKE AND BROWN HOLD PRESS CONFERENCE TO ANNOUNCE UTERINE CANCER STUDY LEGISLATION

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Yvette D Clarke (9th District of New York)

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

    September 24, 2024

    MEDIA CONTACT: 

    e: jessica.myers@mail.house.gov

    c: 202.913.0126

    Washington, DC — Today, Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09) and Congresswoman Shontel Brown (OH-11) held a press conference on Capitol Hill to announce their joint legislation, the Uterine Cancer Study Act. This bill would require the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the National Institute of Health (NIH) to coordinate and conduct a study on the relationship between hair straighteners and uterine cancer. 

    Recent studies have discovered that women who have used chemical hair straightening products are at higher risk for uterine cancer than those who have not – risks associated with and particularly higher in Black women.

    This study is vital to preserving the lives of those impacted by: 

    • Reviewing significant findings and recommendations from other studies regarding the relationship between hair straighteners and uterine cancer.
    • Considering the impacts on women and other individuals at risk of uterine cancer.
    • Disaggregating the results of the study according to whether the hair straighteners contain dyes or coloring, bleach highlights, or perms.
    • Determining whether the FDA should impose additional testing requirements on manufacturers of hair straightening products.
    • Focusing on the increased incidences of such cancer among women of color. 

    “Like many other Black women who have used hair straightening products, I was unaware of the potential connection and harmful impacts these chemicals would have on our overall health – putting me and other women of color at a higher risk for uterine cancer, the most common cancer related to the female reproductive system,” said Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke. “We need more research to fully understand the relationship between perms and uterine cancer. This legislation will address the detrimental effects of chemicals within hair straighteners on women’s health and hopefully, lead the FDA towards requiring manufacturers to test for cancer-causing chemicals.”

    “The research supported by the Uterine Cancer Study Act is sorely needed to identify environmental and chemical factors contributing to the racial disparities associated with uterine cancer. By investigating the connection between those factors and cancer, we can create a path toward more informed choices and better health outcomes for Black women. I am proud to join Congresswoman Clarke and champion this vital legislation,” said Congresswoman Shontel Brown.

    “Beauty standards for years demanded that our hair be straight, but we can’t help the way it grows out of our heads,” said Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman. “Chemical hair straighteners have been linked to a variety of harmful hormone-related health outcomes — including higher instances of uterine cancer. Despite this, we still know very little about the long-term health risks that these products pose. That’s why my sister, Rep. Clarke’s bill to study the relationship between these hair products and uterine cancer is so important. We need to equip ourselves with the information to make safe choices. I strongly encourage the House to pass this crucial legislation.”

    “A recent NIH study stated that more than 4% of women with uterine cancer reported use of chemical straighteners, compared to the 1% of women who did not use these products,” said Congressman Gregory W. Meeks. “Chemical relaxers have long been a part of Black Beauty and Hair Care; as a result, these purported adverse health effects disproportionately impact Black women. We need to deploy all of our available federal resources to better study and understand the real health implications on women of color. As a husband and father, I am proud to co-sponsor the Uterine Cancer Study Act of 2024.”

    “Black women have been systematically left out of conversations and decisions about their own health. Women of color and our unique experiences have historically been underrepresented in research, leading to adverse health outcomes,” said Congresswoman Robin Kelly. “We cannot allow the status quo to continue. I’m proud to co-sponsor the Uterine Cancer Study Act to address the gap in knowledge between uterine cancer and hair products. Black women deserve to take care of our hair without being exposed to toxic ingredients that increase our already heightened risk of cancer.”

    “A woman’s uterus is a sacred place. It should be the source of new birth, joy, and family, not pain or suffering. I am calling on Congress to accelerate the research on Uterine Cancer, to find out why women of color experience it at elevated rates and to discover treatments and preventative care. Let’s not politicize women’s health. We’re all in this together,” said Congresswoman Alma Adams.

    “As a Black woman, I understand how deeply rooted hair care is in our community. Many of us were introduced to hair straighteners as young girls, unaware of the risks, said Congresswoman Beatty. Now, it’s vital that we investigate the troubling relationship between these products and uterine cancer. The Uterine Cancer Study Act of 2024 will bring critical research and coordination to uncover the dangers and push for solutions that can save lives. Our community deserves answers, and this bill is a vital step to protecting ourselves and our daughters,” said Congresswoman Joyce Beatty.

    “Let’s prioritize research to better understand and diagnose uterine cancer. Uterine bleeding and uterine pain should not be categorically dismissed as normal,” said Sateria Venable, CEO, The Fibroid Foundation.

    “Women of color are being sold hair straighteners that should come with a cancer warning. We now know that women who have used chemical hair straightening products are at higher risk for uterine cancer than those who have not. However, more research is needed to understand this connection better, and the Uterine Cancer Study Act of 2024 will make determining how environmental factors contribute to these racial disparities a federal priority. Women of color’s health and livelihood need—and deserve—nothing less,” said Christian F. Nunes, National President, National Organization for Women.

    “We want to thank Congresswoman Yvette Clarke and Shontel Brown for their leadership in introducing the Uterine Cancer Study Act of 2024. Black women are at higher risk of uterine cancer, and comprehensive action is needed so that we know definitively why this is the case. We support efforts that improve research and education on uterine cancer and believe Black women should be partners in the research process,” said Zsanai Epps, DrPH, MPH, CHES, Senior Director, Reproductive Justice Initiatives, Black Women’s Health Imperative.

    “As the Executive Director of the Mississippi Black Women’s Roundtable, I commend Brooklyn Congresswoman Yvette Clarke and her colleagues for championing the Uterine Cancer Study Act 2024. This legislation promises crucial advancements in addressing the disparities in uterine cancer research and care, particularly affecting Black women, and we fully endorse its passage,” said Tomika Anderson, Executive Director, Mississippi Black Women’s Roundtable.

    The Uterine Cancer Study Act is co-sponsored by Reps. Adams, Beatty, Blunt Rochester, Cherfilus-McCormick, Crockett, Don Davis, Fletcher, Foushee, Holmes Norton, Kelly, Lee, Lofgren, McBath, McClellan, Meeks, Plaskett, Sewell, Stanford, T Carter Sr., Tonko, Velázquez, Watson-Coleman, N. Williams, Wilson, and Wasserman Schultz.

    The Uterine Cancer Study Act is endorsed by the Black Women’s Health Imperative, Society for Women’s Health Research, National Organization for Women, The Fibroid Foundation, The White Dress Project, Mississippi Black Women’s Roundtable, MANA – A National Latina Organization, National Coalition on Black Civic Participation, Pro-Choice North Carolina, Sisters in Loss Foundation, National Women’s Health Network.

    Read the full bill text here.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Burgess, Davis Introduce Bill Designating September as Sickle Cell Disease Awareness Month

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Michael C Burgess MD (R-TX)

    Washington, D.C. – Today, Congressman Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (R-TX) and Congressman Danny Davis (D-IL) introduced a resolution that designates September as Sickle Cell Disease Awareness Month.

    “Sickle cell disease has taken a toll on our nation for far too long,” said Chairman Burgess. “This bill will increase awareness about sickle cell disease and encourage further research into early detection and treatments. I am grateful Congressman Davis joined me in our effort to bring greater attention to this condition. Awareness of this disease will lead to the improvement of preventions, cures, and treatments for the American patient.”

    “Better treatments and outcomes for patients affected by sickle cell disease do not happen by chance. It will take dedication and sacrifice to champion advancements for more effective and accessible forms of care. As a co-chair of the Congressional Sickle Cell Disease Caucus, I greatly appreciate Dr. Burgess joining me in this call to transform healthcare research and therapies to save lives in a bipartisan effort,” said Congressman Danny K. Davis.

    Click HERE for bill text.

    Congressman Burgess also spoke on the House of Representatives floor in support of his bill the Sickle cell disease and other heritable blood disorders research, surveillance, prevention, and treatment Act that has passed on the House of Representatives floor, yesterday. This legislation will reauthorize the Health Resources and Services Administrations (HRSAs) Sickle Cell Disease Treatment Demonstration Program to increase access to essential care, treatment, and research for Americans living with sickle cell disease.

    Click HERE for video.

    Remarks as prepared below:

    Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of my bill H.R. 3884 the Sickle Cell Disease and Other Heritable Blood Disorders Research, Surveillance, Prevention, and Treatment Act. I am glad to see that this important legislation will be considered on the House floor this week. This bill will reauthorize the Health Resources and Services Administrations (HRSAs) Sickle Cell Disease Treatment Demonstration Program to increase access to essential care, treatment, and research for Americans living with sickle cell disease.

    Sickle Cell Disease is an inherited blood disorder that causes an individual’s red blood cells to contort into a “C” or sickle shape, reducing its ability to carry oxygen throughout the body. An adult living with SCD has an average lifespan of 20 to 30 years shorter than an adult who does not have the disease.

    Being a physician for 30 years, I worked with many families and treated patients in my practice suffering from this complex disease. Proper treatment requires early knowledge, intervention, and care coordination. It is important that we have the resources to encourage more research and data to better inform how to evaluate treatment plans while improving quality of life for patients and families affected by this disease.

    This legislation will continue to improve physician and patient education as well as assist with best practices for care coordination. By having access to these programs, the patient and physician will continue to have the ability to identify the problem early on, therefore providing more time to terminate the disease from having a horrific effect on the wellbeing of the patient.

    I thank my fellow members, Representatives Davis and Carter for championing this important legislation with me as we improve the lives of those living with sickle cell disease by providing better access to care in our communities. I am also honored to introduce a bill tomorrow that will recognize September as “National Sickle Cell Awareness Month”, so communities around the nation can be educated on this disease and prevent it from taking any more human lives. Thank you Mr. Speaker and I yield back.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Tonko Cheers House Passage of His Legislation Addressing Alzheimer’s

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Paul Tonko (Capital Region New York)

    WASHINGTON, DC — Congressman Paul D. Tonko (NY-20) celebrated the passage yesterday of the National Alzheimer’s Project Act (NAPA) Reauthorization Act, bipartisan legislation he authored that reauthorizes the National Alzheimer’s Project Act through 2035 to provide a roadmap for federal efforts in responding to Alzheimer’s and other dementias. Also advanced in the House that Tonko helped lead is the Alzheimer’s Accountability and Investment Act that ensures scientists speak directly to Congress on resources they need to effectively treat the disease and the Building Our Largest Dementia (BOLD) Infrastructure for Alzheimer’s Reauthorization Act, which drives public health research, early detection infrastructure, and support for caregivers. Tonko has pushed to advance all three bills through committee and the House.

    “Millions across our nation are suffering from Alzheimer’s and other dementias; they and their loved ones carry a heavy burden,” Congressman Tonko said. “But this tremendous burden is not carried alone. It’s been my privilege to be a part of the fight to end Alzheimer’s and to work alongside tireless, compassionate advocates to support those living with Alzheimer’s. The legislation recently advanced in the House would provide immense assistance to those living with this disease and deliver needed hope. I’m grateful to my colleagues for joining me in advancing this critical legislation.”

    Tonko’s NAPA Reauthorization Act as well as the Alzheimer’s Accountability and Investment Act have advanced through the Senate and will now move to the President’s desk. The BOLD Infrastructure for Alzheimer’s Reauthorization Act awaits passage through the Senate.

    Since the beginning of his time in Congress, Tonko has championed the push to address Alzheimer’s and related dementias. Earlier this year, he joined his colleagues to introduce the bipartisan Accelerating Access to Dementia and Alzheimer’s Provider Training (AADAPT) Act that would provide Alzheimer’s training and education for primary care providers to help them deliver quality care to their patients.

    Tonko also spoke before the Health Subcommittee earlier this year to call for the advance of these bills and question experts and Alzheimer’s advocates about the importance of this legislation.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Attorney General Alan Wilson announces Irmo woman charged with stealing from Charleston nursing home residentRead More

    Source: US State of South Carolina

    (COLUMBIA, S.C.) – South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced that his office’s Vulnerable Adults and Medicaid Provider Fraud unit (VAMPF) has arrested Rose Sherrie Davis, 64 years old, of Irmo, SC for one count of Exploitation of a Vulnerable Adult {43-35-0085 (D)}, one count of Financial Identity Fraud {16-13-0510(B)}, two (2) counts of Financial Transaction Card Fraud, value more than $500 in a six-month period {16-14-0060(a)(1-5)}, and one count of Breach of Trust with Fraudulent Intent, value $10,000 or more {16-13-0230(A)}. Davis was booked into the Charleston County Detention Center on September 20, 2024.

    An investigation by VAMPF revealed that, between November 10, 2021 and April 29, 2022, Davis is alleged to have knowingly made unlawful and unauthorized use of the funds and assets of a vulnerable adult. Specifically, it is alleged that Davis, while being entrusted as the victim’s power-of-attorney, used the personal identifying information to access the victim’s bank accounts and converted $102,109.04 of the victim’s money for her own personal use. It is also alleged that Davis, with the intent to defraud, obtained and used two debit cards belonging to the victim to make charges of over $500 in a six-month period. The victim, a vulnerable adult under South Carolina law, resided at NHC Healthcare West Ashley in Charleston at the time of the alleged misconduct. 

    This case was referred to VAMPF through a hotline (1-888-NO-CHEAT) complaint from a concerned citizen and will be prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Office. 

    Exploitation of a Vulnerable Adult is a felony and, upon conviction, has a penalty of up to five years in prison, a fine not exceeding $5,000, or both. Breach of Trust value more than $10,000 is a felony and, upon conviction, has a penalty of up to 10 years in prison or a fine at the discretion of the court. Financial Transaction Card Fraud, value more than $500 in a six-month period is a felony and, upon conviction, has a penalty of up to five years in prison, a fine of not less than $3,000, or both. Financial Identity Fraud is a felony and, upon conviction, has a penalty of up to ten years in prison, a fine at the discretion of the court, or both.

    Pursuant to federal regulations, VAMPF has authority over Medicaid provider fraud; abuse and neglect of Medicaid beneficiaries in any setting; and the abuse, neglect, and exploitation of individuals residing in assisted living facilities or nursing homes. 

    Attorney General Wilson stressed all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until they are proven guilty in a court of law.

    The South Carolina Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, dba VAMPF, receives 75 percent of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant award totaling $2,698,638 for federal fiscal year 2024. The remaining 25 percent, totaling $899,546 for FFY 2024, is funded by South Carolina.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Sullivan, Grassley, & Colleagues Hold Biden-Harris Admin Accountable for Abuses in Unaccompanied Migrant Children Program

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Alaska Dan Sullivan

    09.23.24

    WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) joined his Republican colleagues, led by Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), in sending a letter urging President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to work with Congress to root out abuses in their administration’s unaccompanied migrant children program and stop the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)’s cover-up of the crisis. HHS has failed to comply with two out of three Department of Homeland Security (DHS) subpoenas and other information requests issued amid its investigation into more than 100 suspicious sponsors.

    More than 500,000 unaccompanied migrant children have crossed the southwest border under the Biden-Harris administration, while cartel trafficking activity surged an estimated 2,500 percent. Amid this crisis, the lawmakers note that the Biden-Harris administration limited background checks for sponsors of unaccompanied children, cut back on familial DNA testing at the border and decreased information sharing with law enforcement.

    The lawmakers are urging Biden and Harris to “make changes to [their] policies and procedures” in order to “end this public safety crisis.” They are specifically calling on the Biden-Harris administration to share information with law enforcement and Congress, fully cooperate with DHS’s child exploitation investigation and thoroughly respond to all congressional oversight requests, which they have so far refused to do.

    “[The Biden-Harris HHS] must stop its cover-up and cooperate with law enforcement and Congress to end this crisis and protect unaccompanied children and the American people,” the lawmakers concluded.

    Read the full letter HERE.

    Joining Sens. Sullivan and Grassley on the letter are Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), along with Sens. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.),  John Thune (R-S.D.), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Tim Scott (R-S.C.), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), John Kennedy (R-La.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Roger Marshall (R-Kans.), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), Katie Britt (R-Ala.) and Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.).

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Cornyn, Grassley Lead Bicameral Colleagues in Calling Out Abuses in the Biden-Harris Unaccompanied Migrant Children Program

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Texas John Cornyn

    WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators John Cornyn (R-TX) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) yesterday led 42 bicameral Republican colleagues in a letter urging President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to work with Congress to root out abuses in their administration’s unaccompanied migrant children program and stop the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)’s attempted cover-up of the crisis. More than 500,000 unaccompanied migrant children have crossed the southwest border under the Biden-Harris administration, while cartel trafficking activity surged an estimated 2,500 percent.

    “As a result of your open-borders policies, overseen by Vice President Harris, who was tasked with ‘stemming the migration’ at our border with Mexico, more than 500,000 unaccompanied alien children (UACs) have crossed the southwest border without a parent or guardian to provide care since you took office, a massive increase when compared to previous administrations,” reads the letter.

    “We request that you immediately instruct HHS Secretary Becerra to take urgent steps to this end: HHS must provide access to the UAC Portal, HHS’s system of record for UACs, to federal law enforcement, HHS’s Inspector General, and Congress, allowing them to quickly conduct investigations and oversee the UAC placement program, and to analyze data regarding suspicious UAC placements; it must fully cooperate with DHS’s HSI and other federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies seeking to locate children and investigate trafficking, smuggling, and other forms of child exploitation; and it must thoroughly respond to congressional oversight requests and instruct HHS’s contractors and grantees to do the same,” the lawmakers said.

    “[The Biden-Harris HHS] must stop its cover-up and cooperate with law enforcement and Congress to end this crisis and protect unaccompanied children and the American people,”the lawmakers concluded.

    Full text of the letter is here and below.

    Joining Senator Cornyn and Grassley on the letter are Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Ron Johnson (R-WI) and House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH), along with Sens. Mike Crapo (R-ID), Lindsey Graham (R-SC),  John Thune (R-SD), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Jim Risch (R-ID), John Hoeven (R-ND), Mike Lee (R-UT), Tim Scott (R-SC), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), James Lankford (R-OK), Steve Daines (R-MT), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), John Kennedy (R-LA), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Mike Braun (R-IN), Josh Hawley (R-MO), Rick Scott (R-FL), Roger Marshall (R-KS), Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), Katie Britt (R-AL) and Pete Ricketts (R-NE). Additional co-signers in the House include Reps. Tom McClintock (R-CA), Matt Gaetz (R-FL), Andy Biggs (R-AZ), Chip Roy (R-TX), Dan Bishop (R-NC), Scott Fitzgerald (R-WI), Cliff Bentz (R-OR.), Ben Cline (R-VA), Barry Moore (R-AL), Russell Fry (R-SC), Harriet Hageman (R-WY), Wesley Hunt (R-TX), Laurel Lee (R-FL) and Michael Rulli (R-OH).

    September 23, 2024

    The Honorable Joseph R. Biden, Jr.

    President of the United States

    The White House Washington, D.C.

    The Honorable Kamala D. Harris

    Vice President of the United States

    The White House Washington, D.C.

    President Biden and Vice President Harris:

    As a result of your open-borders policies, overseen by Vice President Harris, who was tasked with “stemming the migration” at our border with Mexico, more than 500,000 unaccompanied alien children (UACs) have crossed the southwest border without a parent or guardian to provide care since you took office, a massive increase when compared to previous administrations. These UACs often experience horrible sexual, physical, and emotional abuse on the journey and are victims of cartel trafficking and exploitation, a business that surged an estimated 2,500 percent from the Trump Administration to the middle of your term in 2022. Sadly, the suffering these children endure does not end at the border. Your Administration also fails them when they arrive in the United States by rushing them out of the custody of your Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) into the hands of unvetted sponsors who often continue to exploit and abuse them.

    Even as the trafficking business and the number of children entering the U.S. surged, HHS ORR cut back significantly on background checks and vetting procedures to speed up the process, despite knowing children were being trafficked through HHS ORR’s UAC program. Your Administration likewise continued Vice President Harris’s longtime priority of cutting back on information sharing between HHS ORR and law enforcement related to unaccompanied children and sponsors. When the Trump Administration implemented a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) to provide for robust information sharing between the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and HHS ORR, then-Senator Harris called this attempt to protect children and communities “outrageous.” She also introduced legislation in response to the Trump MOA that slashed funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement by $220 million. Her bill was so extreme it failed to allow HHS information to be used by DHS for immigration enforcement even for potential sponsors and household members with convictions or pending charges of child abuse, sexual assault, child pornography, or any other crime. Even House Democrats considered Harris’s approach too radical and added these exceptions to counteract the extreme nature of her legislative proposal. Their approach, unlike Harris’s, allowed HHS information to be used to deport child predators and those convicted of serious felonies. Given her stated policy priorities, it is no wonder your Administration later revoked the Trump Administration’s MOA, seriously hampering the work of law enforcement, and promulgated a final rule enshrining the bar on sharing such information with law enforcement officials.

    Your Administration further stripped Customs and Border Protection officials of their ability to conduct familial DNA testing, as was implemented by the Trump Administration to verify adults’ claims that they are related to children they bring across the border. This made the smuggling and trafficking of these kids that much easier. Early into your term, your Administration also canceled protections the Trump Administration proposed to provide post-release services for all children placed with sponsors, including in-person visits and extended follow-up after placement. These protections would have helped ensure children were safe. Instead, the actions of your Administration have been disastrous and now, HHS ORR is actively attempting to cover up the results of its egregious decisions. We call upon you to put an end to that cover-up.

    When Senator Grassley and Senator Cassidy, ranking members of the Senate Budget Committee and Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, asked HHS ORR contractors and grantees whether they took necessary steps to protect children, HHS obstructed those inquiries, directing the entities not to respond. This included Southwest Key, which Senator Grassley asked, among other things, about its vetting of staff before they have access to minors. The Department of Justice has since sued Southwest Key for turning a blind eye to nearly a decade of child rape and sexual abuse by its staff. During this same time, HHS ORR provided Southwest Key with more than $3 billion to house UACs. These contractors and grantees receive large sums of taxpayer dollars, a lucrative business that has boomed during your Administration. Yet HHS ORR told them not to answer Congress when it asked whether basic protections were afforded to these kids. This is completely unacceptable.

    At the same time, since early 2023, the House Judiciary Committee has sought information on the total number of UACs HHS ORR has lost contact with after placement during your Administration. According to the New York Times, as of February 2023, ORR had been unable to contact at least 85,000 UACs after placement with sponsors, or roughly 34 percent of total UACs released up to that point in your term.  Applying the 34 percent figure to the most up-to-date number of 432,938 UACs the Administration has released to sponsors, we estimate ORR has been unable to contact nearly 150,000 UACs through Safety and Well-being calls after their release. When confronted by the House Judiciary Committee with an estimate based on the Times’s findings, ORR did not dispute it. Although the House Judiciary Committee twice subpoenaed HHS for internal agency data relating to the total number of UACs with whom it has lost contact after placement, HHS has refused to provide the subpoenaed data.

    Unfortunately, the cover-up does not end there. Recently, DHS informed Senator Grassley’s office that HHS ORR has not sufficiently complied with two out of every three subpoenas and other information requests that resulted from his referral of possible child trafficking rings across the U.S. to DHS in January. By not supplying the information law enforcement requested, ORR denied Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents critical information, including the last known addresses of children and sponsors and the identity of other household members. In part because of HHS ORR’s lack of cooperation, DHS has so far only been able to locate less than four percent of sponsors identified as investigative targets, and a similarly small number of UACs.

    At a recent Senate roundtable forum, “The Exploitation Crisis: How the U.S. Government is Failing to Protect Migrant Children from Trafficking and Abuse,” senators and members of the public heard from a panel with direct knowledge of this crisis. What the witnesses told the oversight panel was shocking. For example, HHS retaliated against one of the witnesses, Ms. Tara Lee Rodas, after she blew the whistle and tried to stop the placement of young children with a household in Ohio connected to the violent MS-13 gang. In addition, witnesses described how HHS and its contractors prioritized UAC placement speed over UAC safety by failing to verify the legitimacy of identity documents, failing to obtain criminal history from the countries of origin of UACs and sponsors, and failing to conduct legally required home studies for UACs who had endured sexual or other abuse. Other whistleblowers continue to come forward with similar information. Congress has the right to obtain information necessary to conduct oversight of these widespread failures to protect the lives of children without HHS standing in the way.

    HHS’s failure to ensure UACs are in appropriate placements and to adequately vet sponsors is harmful not only to the UACs, but also to American citizens. As the Attorney General under the Trump Administration recognized, the UAC program has for years suffered from exploitation by criminals, including “gang members who come to this country as wolves in sheep[’s] clothing” and “use th[e UAC] program as a means by which to recruit new members.” As the House Judiciary Committee’s oversight has shown, under Secretary Becerra’s leadership, HHS has ignored the potential criminality and gang affiliation of UACs.

    Indeed, as revealed in the House Judiciary Committee’s May 2023 interim report, in May 2022, HHS ORR released to a sponsor a UAC with a previous arrest record for “illicit association with MS13.” That UAC, released by your Administration, went on to brutally assault and murder 20-year-old American citizen Kayla Hamilton. Incredibly, HHS noted on several occasions to the House Judiciary Committee its focus on protecting the privacy of Kayla’s murderer. Although local police quickly identified Walter Javier Martinez as the primary suspect in the murder and expressed their concern about the threat he posed to society, according to new investigative reporting, Martinez was placed in a Maryland foster home with other children and enrolled in high school. Later, while in custody for murdering Kayla, the alien authored a letter in which he “admitted to committing [four] murders, [two] rapes, and additional other crimes.” Martinez has since been sentenced to more than 70 years in prison.

    Despite having released to a sponsor a UAC with gang tattoos and a history of “illicit association” with MS-13, HHS told the House Judiciary Committee that it does not have a policy to refer known or suspected gang members to the Justice Department for investigation or, where appropriate, prosecution. At the same time, ORR Director Robin Dunn Marcos, the HHS official in charge of the UAC program, admitted that, while HHS sometimes contacts the consulate or embassy of a UAC’s country of origin or last habitual residence to verify some documents or claimed familial relationships, HHS does not even request UACs’ criminal records. Troublingly, HHS has also admitted that it does not currently have any secure facilities “in-network”—that is, facilities designed for the secure placement of UACs who pose a danger to themselves or others or who have been determined to have a criminal record.

    An August 2024 House Judiciary Committee report highlighted yet another case of UAC criminality, detailing how Juan Carlos Garcia Rodriguez, a UAC from Guatemala released by your Administration, horrifically assaulted and murdered 11-year-old Maria Gonzalez. Maria’s father found “his daughter’s body wrapped in a trash bag and stuffed in a laundry basket that was put beneath her bed.” Garcia Rodriguez was encountered by Border Patrol after entering the U.S. illegally in El Paso in January 2023, smuggled to the U.S. border by a “guide” paid for by his parents. Despite being overheard commenting about his desire to run away while in HHS custody, HHS placed Garcia Rodriguez with an unrelated adult sponsor who had twice previously sponsored unrelated UACs. Unsurprisingly, shortly after the Biden-Harris Administration’s release of Garcia Rodriguez, he became one of the estimated 150,000 UACs with whom HHS has lost contact. Just months after HHS lost contact with Garcia Rodriguez, he ran away from his sponsor. Not long after his 18th birthday, and mere months after his release from HHS custody, Garcia Rodriguez, brutally assaulted and murdered Maria.

    This is not a partisan issue. It can and should bring us together, as we try to protect Americans and UACs placed in HHS ORR custody alike. Your Administration must make changes to its policies and procedures for UACs to end this public safety crisis. It must also take urgent steps to provide information to law enforcement and Congress, to reveal the crisis’s full scope. We request that you immediately instruct HHS Secretary Becerra to take urgent steps to this end: HHS must provide access to the UAC Portal, HHS’s system of record for UACs, to federal law enforcement, HHS’s Inspector General, and Congress, allowing them to quickly conduct investigations and oversee the UAC placement program, and to analyze data regarding suspicious UAC placements; it must fully cooperate with DHS’s HSI and other federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies seeking to locate children and investigate trafficking, smuggling, and other forms of child exploitation; and it must thoroughly respond to congressional oversight requests and instruct HHS’s contractors and grantees to do the same.

    HHS must stop its cover-up and cooperate with law enforcement and Congress to end this crisis and protect unaccompanied children and the American people. Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.

    Sincerely,

    /s/

    MIL OSI USA News –