Charity Health Care Declines
The decade-long decline in the proportion of physicians providing charity care continued in 2004–2005, according to a study by the Center for Studying Health System Change. The percentage of physicians providing any free or reduced-fee care decreased to 68% in 2004–2005, down from 72% in 2000–2001. “Declines in charity care were observed across most major specialties, practice types, practice income levels, and geographic regions,” study authors Peter J. Cunningham, Ph.D., and Jessica H. May wrote. “Increasing financial pressures and changes in practice arrangements may account in part for the continuing decrease in physician charity care.” More than 70% of physicians providing charity care reported that they typically did so in their own practice, while 14% provided it while on call in a hospital emergency department and 6% in another practice or clinic. The researchers noted that surgical specialists were the most likely among specialty physicians to provide charity care, probably because many are required to be on call at hospitals and therefore have less choice about whether to treat uninsured patients. Pediatricians were the least likely to provide charity care, which perhaps reflects the fact that more children than adults have public health coverage, they said.
Cigarette Smoking Rate Stubbed
The number of cigarettes sold in the United States in 2005 dropped just over 4% from 2004, the largest 1-year percentage decrease in sales since 1999, according to figures compiled by the Treasury Department. “We are pleased to see that the long decline of cigarette consumption is continuing,” Cheryl Healton, Dr. P.H., president of the American Legacy Foundation, said in statement. “We also know that for the first time in the United States, there are more former smokers than current smokers.” The National Association of Attorneys General also applauded the numbers, noting that the drop continues “the unprecedented long-term decline in cigarette smoking that began with the settlement of lawsuits” brought by state attorneys general against the major tobacco companies.
Paxil Class-Action Suit Hits GSK
Families of adolescents who took paroxetine (Paxil) and attempted suicide have filed suit against GlaxoSmithKline in federal court, claiming that the drugmaker “defrauded the medical profession, the Paxil patient population, and the general public.” The suit alleges, among other things that GlaxoSmithKline “hired doctors to present 'posters' around the world at medical conferences which claimed, falsely, that Paxil was effective and safe for the treatment of depression with children and adolescents.” In one case that spurred the suit, a pediatrician prescribed Paxil for an 11-year-old boy to treat separation anxiety disorder, according to plaintiffs' attorneys. The boy “immediately began having difficulty sleeping and had angry outbursts while on Paxil, but his family did not make the connection between his deteriorating behavior and the drug,” according to the suit. One month later, he hanged himself with the dog's leash in the family laundry room. The boy's mother filed the class-action suit in March in Philadelphia. The complaint notes that although the drug has never been approved for use in pediatric patients, GlaxoSmithKline “has conducted a number of clinical trials involving the use of Paxil with pediatric patients… GSK's own documents admit that the results of these clinical trials did not show a statistically significant benefit over placebo,” the plaintiffs claimed.
Bush Whacked in Health Care Poll
Americans have a low level of trust and confidence in President Bush when it comes to improving the U.S. health care system, a Wall Street Journal Online/Harris Interactive poll found. Only 25% of adults are “confident or very confident” that the president can reduce the percentage of Americans without health insurance, according to the online survey of more than 2,400 adults. About half (49%) of Republicans expressed this level of confidence, compared with 7% of Democrats and 19% of Independents. Respondents expressed somewhat more trust in the Democrats (45%) and potential 2008 Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) (41%) to improve the health care system than in the Republicans (31%) and President Bush (30%).
Cancer Site Targets Asian Speakers
A searchable online database of cancer material in 12 Asian languages is now available. The Asian American Network for Cancer Awareness, Research, and Training Web tool (