Feature Channels: Government/Law

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The Endocrine Society commends Representative Jim Moran (D-VA) and Senator John Kerry (D-MA) for introducing the Endocrine Disruption Prevention Act of 2009 (H.R. 4190; S. 2828). The bill, endorsed by the Society, amends the Public Health Service Act by authorizing the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to conduct a research program on endocrine disruption aimed at preventing and reducing the production of and the public’s exposure to harmful chemicals.

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On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in Free Enterprise Fund v. PCAOB. Indiana U. legal expert Donna Nagy has been researching and writing about the constitutional status of the PCAOB for years and can comment on the case.

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President Obama launched the “Educate to Innovate” campaign, a nationwide effort to motivate U.S. kids to excel in math and science. Jeffrey Choppin, Ph.D., believes that this initiative is a great way to engage students in mathematics outside the classroom. He suggests that the initiative should help students grapple with problems that are authentic and mathematically intriguing, with an underlying goal of connecting the ways students experience the world with formal mathematical concepts.

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Lee Goldman, M.D., executive vice president for health and biomedical sciences and dean of the faculties of medicine and health sciences at Columbia University testified today on medical malpractice reform before the New York State Senate Committees on Codes, Health and Insurance in Albany, New York.

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The growth of global space capabilities and the importance of emerging space Sates is addressed by Dr. Ray Williamson, Executive Director of Secure World Foundation, before a U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics.

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The U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources today approved legislation expanding key watershed and environmental education programs at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

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Nationwide, 14 percent of open homicide cases and 18 percent of open rape cases contain forensic evidence that has not been sent to a crime lab for analysis, according to a new study conducted by RTI International for the Office of Justice Programs' National Institute of Justice.

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Harvard University event targets social, legal history of crack cocaine.

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On Nov. 21, 2009, Americans with a genetic medical condition will no longer live in fear of discrimination from their employers because of their unique genetic code. On that date, The Genetic Information Nondiscrimation Act (GINA) goes into effect, prohibiting employers from discriminating in terms of hiring, promotion, firing or any other terms and conditions of employment based on an individual’s genetic code.

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The new study calls for Congressional action to cap payday lender interest rates at 36 percent.

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Law enforcement officers who are exposed to child pornography as part of their investigative work report experiencing mental health problems that impact both their work and home lives, according to new research from the University of New Hampshire Crimes against Children Research Center.

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Latin American expert discusses Honduran coup and upcoming election.

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For questions about what a modern “smart” grid would look like or how it would function, please consider the research expertise of Alan Mantooth, professor of electrical engineering and executive director of the National Center for Reliable Electric Power Transmission (NCREPT) at the University of Arkansas.

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A Complaint filed October 22, 2009 in Federal District Court in Tampa, Florida alleges that Bank of America was at the center of yet another Ponzi scheme. The operator of this scheme, 27 year-old Beau Diamond, defrauded hundreds of investors from Florida and around the country of at least $37 million. He claimed to be an experienced trader in off exchange foreign currencies. In truth, he had no such experience and was not registered to sell securities or trade foreign currencies for others.

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The United States should create a high-level independent council to analyze and communicate critical issues to energy policymakers and the public, a group of 27 leaders in academia, government, and the private sector recommends in a new report.

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Samuel Totten, an internationally known genocide scholar and author and editor of numerous books about genocide, is available to comment on the new Obama administration's policy in Sudan.

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Yeonhwa Park, the only food scientist on the national committee reviewing school lunch and breakfast nutrition standards, brought special expertise in reducing sodium and increasing whole grains in school meals at an affordable price. Reducing sodium over 10 years is worth a try, she says.

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Washington and Lee University's School of Law has partnered with the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development to explore the prevention and efficient management of investment treaty disputes.

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The federal government’s role in health care has served as a contentious topic for at least 150 years.

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Jails could be a point of strategic intervention in helping homeless people access treatment for substance abuse and mental health problems, according to a study at the University of Arkansas.

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Hand-held phone use was an estimated 65 percent lower in Connecticut, 24 percent lower in New York, and 43 percent lower in the District of Columbia than would have been expected without the laws.

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University of Arkansas psychology professor Jeffrey Lohr and colleague David Tolin have documented the history and criticisms of the ethics policy of the American Psychological Association and recommended remedies to restore ethical standards to the profession.

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A new study by researchers at the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services, Estimating the Economic Gains for States as a Result of Medicaid Coverage Expansions for Adults, finds that the Medicaid expansions under consideration in Congress not only will improve the health and well-being of previously uninsured individuals and families but also will generate significant economic returns in new business activities, jobs, salaries, and wages. The report concludes that the rate of return is between two and six dollars for every dollar invested.

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The issues affecting people with arthritis and other rheumatic diseases—and those who treat them—were represented yesterday at a White House event hosted by President Barack Obama.

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Atlanta is poised to become the nation’s poster child for how to kill off a burgeoning industry. A new study by professors at Georgia Tech reveals that the city’s reputation as a high technology center masks a decade of erosion.

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Congresswoman Lois Capps (D-CA) this week introduced H.R. 3644, a bill to bolster the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) environmental and conservation education programs.

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Two political scientists, Dr. Douglas Gibler and Dr Karl DeRouen, have received a grant of $205,000 from the National Science Foundation to analyze the effectiveness of political settlements in ending international conflict.

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The California Innocence Project at California Western School of Law is celebrating a ten-year milestone. The project, which often represents the only hope for the wrongfully imprisoned, has secured the exoneration of eight incarcerated individuals to date.

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The Endocrine Society announced today its support for Representative Carolyn McCarthy’s (D-NY) Food Marketing in Schools Assessment Act (H.R 3625). The bill, which was first introduced in July 2007, calls for an in-depth study of the nutritional value of foods and drinks marketed in middle and high schools, as well as the vehicles advertisers use to reach young consumers in our nation’s schools.

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The American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) found that Strategic Vision LLC, an Atlanta-based company, repeatedly refused to release essential facts about polls it published prior to the 2008 presidential primaries in New Hampshire and Wisconsin. The AAPOR Executive Council announced today that this nondisclosure by Strategic Vision LLC was a violation of the association’s Code of Professional Ethics and Practices and contrary to basic principles of scientific research.

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Today Howard County, Md., Executive Kenneth Ulman and Health Officer Peter Beilenson, MD, MPH, announced they are introducing a regulation to the Howard County Board of Health that would prohibit the use of indoor tanning devices for all residents under the age of 18. If passed, this regulation would be the most restrictive of its kind in the nation.

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A steep decline in California housing prices is undermining the effectiveness of the state’s property tax system that was created through Proposition 13 three decades ago, according to a study by University of Southern California professor Dowell Myers.

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Health Care Report bill seeks to reduce hospital readmission rates using Care Transitions Intervention Model that was developed with $3.2 million in funding from Hartford Foundation.

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A Hispanic community that lived in fear after a spike in arrests now has evidence it was unjustly targeted to enforce immigration laws. When local police had constant access to immigration agents, Hispanic arrests for minor crimes rose nearly 150 percent. Berkeley Law report.

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A new study by University of Maryland researchers finds a growing use of Twitter among members of Congress - but found they are using the social media platform mostly to promote themselves, rather than engage in dialogue with constituents and the public at large.

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Researchers at Mississippi State University released a report showing a federal mandate in Mississippi requiring a similar insurance plan to the Massachusetts Health Care model will likely require an increase of 56 t o464 additional primary care physicians in the state.

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Cash for Clunkers may have run out of money, but certainly not gas.

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Despite President Obama’s congressional address on health care, many Americans still lack a true understanding of the proposed changes and what a final bill might look like. According to Jack Newhouse, Ph.D., assistant professor of health services at Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, it seems that Congress wants the impossible.

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The struggle over the 'public option' remains an unhelpful ‘ideological litmus test’ running health reform aground, argues University of Maryland Public Policy Dean Don Kettl. “What ultimately will decide success or failure of health reform isn’t who owns the insurance program, but how well we write and run the ground rules under which they’ll operate.”

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Lost in the debate over a public option health insurance plan, says University of Iowa insurance researcher Ty Leverty, is the fact that health insurance differs in many ways from other types of insurance.

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The official poverty rate has never fallen below its 1973 level, but a University of Michigan researcher says this could change after the economy recovers from this recession if anti-poverty policies put in place by this year's stimulus package are made permanent.

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As the debate over healthcare insurance reform continues--and President Obama prepares to address the nation on Wed, Sept. 9, please remember that faculty members of The George Washington University (GW) Medical Center are available to comment on topics regarding health insurance reform, including: general policy/political analysis, Medicare, Medicaid, compliance, community health centers, state health reform, affordability, finance, health technology information.

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A new and comprehensive analysis of the America’s Affordable Health Choices Act (HR 3200) provides a detailed examination of the major changes in existing laws made by the measure. The analysis is part of an ongoing project of The George Washington University Hirsh Health Law and Policy Program, within the School of Public Health and Health Services (SPHHS), to advance public understanding of the legal dimensions of national health reform.

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In 2009, Medicare Advantage (MA) plans - private health insurance plans that enroll Medicare beneficiaries – will be paid $11 billion, or $1,140 more per enrollee, than it would cost to care for the same number of beneficiaries under traditional fee-for-service (FFS) Medicare.

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Expanding health centers to reach an additional 20 million patients as part of national health reform would result in overall health care savings of $212 billion over the ten-year period 2010 to 2019, including federal Medicaid savings of $59 billion. The dollar value of these expected savings far exceeds the cost of the health center investment of $38.8 billion called for in the July 14 version of the House health reform bill.

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Expanding health centers to reach an additional 20 million patients as part of national health reform would result in overall health care savings of over $212 billion over the ten-year period, including federal Medicaid savings of $59 billion. The dollar value of these expected savings far exceeds the cost of the health center investment of $38.8 billion called for in the July 14 version of the House health reform bill.

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Finance professor and senior citizen Dr. Robert Pritchard looks at health care reform.

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UT Southwestern has issued the following statement in regard to today’s news release by the Veterans Administration.

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University of Iowa law professor Randall Bezanson thinks artists should be given greater legal leeway in the use of public and private space. He has developed a legal theory called "trespassory art" that urges courts to interpret the law in such a way that protects artists from trespassing, nuisance and other laws and ordinances.

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Stacy VanDeveer, associate professor of political science at the University of New Hampshire, is available to discuss the complexities and contradictions regarding climate policy in North America, and the politics of U.S.-EU energy and environmental policymaking.