Mike Allen of Politico is "astonished" to learn the Washington Post plans to offer top lobbyists and the corporations they represent exclusive access to top government officials and Post reporters in off-the-record salons. Pricetag: $25,000 to $250,000. Conferences, Allen reports, are a "trend" in the news industry as it scrambles to bolster its collapsing revenue stream. The Post newsroom has responded with an internal memo that says its reporters will only attend "where appropriate."
This news isn't astonishing. It's a long standing practice by one of the few sections of the news business that remains profitable -- the newsletter and trade journal business. There's also a vibrant conference sponsorship industry that sells exclusive access to top government officials.
For instance, a Texas-based outfit called Pharma Education Concepts, Ltd. is running one of its trademarked "Pharma Conferences" in Cambridge, Maryland in late-August. Dubbed "GMP By The Sea," the meeting brings top drug industry executives together with Food and Drug Administration officials to hear the latest thinking on globalization and the regulation of drug and biologic manufacturing processes. Featured speaker this year is Murray Lumpkin, deputy FDA commissioner for international and special programs. Pricetag: $1,495 a ticket.
In mid-June, a scrappy industry newsletter called FDAWebview filed a citizens petition with the FDA demanding journalistic access to this and any private meetings where FDA officials appear. Its editor couldn't afford the $1,495 needed to send a reporter to cover the GMP By The Sea meeting where Lumpkin, a public official, might say something newsworthy.
The real issue is what will be the ground rules for these Post-sponsored conferences. The public has the right to know what gets said in these meetings with its elected representatives and civil servants. I stand with FDAWebview. Any session where a top government official appears should be open to the news media, right on down to the lowliest blogger.
This was first reported by the Associated Press last night (see this link).
A report from researchers at the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States examines how $577 million in PEPFAR funding between 2004 and 2008 was used in Zambia, PlusNews/IRIN reports.
The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control "has prioritized testing" for HIV and offered free or low-cost testing at events in conjunction with National HIV Testing Day last week, an Orangeburg Times and Democrat editorial states, adding, "The importance of testing is not to be forgotten the other 364 days of the year.
In the news:
A new study in the New England Journal of Medicine shows that the prescription drug benefit passed in 2003 (Medicare Part D) resulted in higher overall health care costs for most enrollees. However, it did lower costs for those who previously had limited coverage.
The study compared those who previously had no prescription drug coverage and those that had $150 and $350 quarterly caps on their private plans to those who had no cap on coverage, both before and after passage of the new benefit. From the study:
After 2 years of Part D, enrollees in the no-coverage group had increased their monthly drug spending by $41, as compared with that in the no-cap group, but that was roughly offset by a decrease of $33 in their monthly medical spending, perhaps because increased use of medication led to improved control of chronic illnesses. Similarly, the group with a previous $150 quarterly cap on drug spending increased their drug spending by $27, which was offset by a decrease of $46 in their medical spending. The group with a previous $350 quarterly cap spent $13 more on drugs and $30 more on other medical services.
President Obama's willingness to entertain an individual mandate and tax health benefits represents a shift from stances taken during the campaign, a Wall Street Journal story points out . . . . Pfizer's anti-smoking drug Chantix will get a black box warning after the Food and Drug Administration warned smokers of mental illness and suicidality side effects. GlaxoSmithKline's Zyban, which is also sold as Wellbutrin for depression, will get a similar warning, the New York Times reports . . . . Roche announces it will sell its anti-flu drug Tamiflu at about a one-third discount in the developing world. About 70 countries are eligible, excluding India which makes a generic version of the drug. . . .
New York Times op-ed writer Rosanne Leipzig of the Mt. Sinai School of Medicine in New York offers a heartfelt plea for better geriatric medicine . . . .
Do Third World countries have something to teach us about health care? This story in the Wall Street Journal looks at how an AIDS clinic in Alabama adopted lessons learned at one in Zambia to improve patient outcomes. It also features a low-cost technology for giving blood tests that is slightly less accurate than the standard test used in the U.S., which raises the important question of cost-effectiveness. Would the U.S. ever accept technologies that help more people at lower cost if the side effect is some people getting less than optimal care? "In the developing world, people are willing to make the tradeoff in accuracy for simplicity and low cost," the technology's developer tells the paper. "In the U.S., that kind of trade-off is a hard sell."
An Associated Press story in the Washington Post's online edition reports on a new study from the Trust for America's Health that shows obesity rates rose in 23 states last year and fell in none. . . .
More than fifty institutions from eighteen African countries - from Senegal to Sudan to South Africa - are to participate in international consortia under a £30 million initiative from the Wellcome Trust to strengthen research capacity on the continent. Africa is affected by some of the world's deadliest diseases, including HIV, malaria and tuberculosis.
http://www.shawnandgwenn.com/feeling-better-finall...Feeling Better, Finally! : HIV Education: Speakers, Author, and Humorist Shared via AddThis Like the Undertaker, you can't keep me down for long.
By Miguel Gomez
National HIV Testing Day was last Saturday. All month we've encouraged people to listen to real stories from real people about what taking an HIV test means to them. We used a widget to show short videos of both HIV+ and HIV- people sharing their stories about getting tested. And as we moved towards the end of this 4-week National HIV Testing Day blog series, we also listened to the President of the United States talking about his experience taking an HIV test.
I wanted to add to this conversation and share my experience as a gay man getting an HIV test last week.
I went to the Whitman Walker Clinic 
in Washington, DC and—with their permission—filmed my HIV test (I'll be posting the video later this week). The test was a quick, painless finger stick and 20 minutes of waiting for my test result. But even as someone who was already confident about knowing my HIV status and gets tested as part of my routine health check-ups, I felt anxious going into the test. While the waiting period was brief, each minute was heightened as I eagerly waited to get my results. But hearing the results meant to me that I can take control of my health. And it reinforced for me that what I am doing to protect myself is working.
I know that stigma is still an issue—even for those of us who address HIV and AIDS every day. In fact, when I told other people that I would be getting an HIV test and filming it, a long pause in the conversation almost always followed.
The videos, this blog, and our HIV story initiative, "I Know. I Took the Test." is an attempt to address that stigma – to provide stories of real people like you and me. Peer-to-peer sharing is a cornerstone of new media. Through this blog, we can continue to share our experiences and respond to HIV through new media channels.
I hope that our widgets, videos and blog this past National HIV Testing Day have inspired you to take an HIV test-- not just on this past Saturday, but year-round.
Looking for your local HIV testing center? Send a text message with your ZIP code to “KNOWIT” (566948) or visit www.hivtest.org
The next meeting of The DC Center HIV Prevention Working Group will take place Wednesday July 22nd at 7:00 PM at The DC Center, 1111 14th St. NW Suite 350.
We will continue the discussion on HIV Prevention and HIV Positive Guys.
The HIV Working group safer-sex kit campaign is operating with three distribution points: The DC Center, Town Dance Boutique, and Ziegfelds/Secrets.
The group also finished up working on a coordinated National HIV Testing Day Event.
by Miguel Gomez
Throughout the month of June, we've been asking people to share their HIV testing stories.
Today, in recognition of National HIV Testing Day, President Obama released a special video message about the importance of HIV testing and his own experiences getting an HIV test in Kenya.
The White House has used Twitter , YouTube and other new media tools to get the word out about this video and to spread the word about the importance of knowing your HIV status. We encourage you to watch the video and share it with your friends, co-workers and family.
To find a local HIV testing site, send a text message with your ZIP code to KNOWIT (566948) or visit www.HIVtest.org.
http://www.shawnandgwenn.com/a-weekend-of-redempsh...A Weekend of âRedempShawnâ : HIV Education: Speakers, Author, and Humorist Shared via AddThis When I named Mike the Miz my 2008 Person of the...
http://www.shawnandgwenn.com/michael-jacksons-hist...Michael Jacksonâs History with AIDS : HIV Education: Speakers, Author, and Humorist Shared via AddThis His connection to the cause.
Interview of Tony Miles by Jennie Anderson
Back in March, we shared videos from The Positive Project in honor of National Native HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. Watching those videos reinforced the power of sharing personal stories about HIV through new media -- and helped inspire our “I Know. I Took the Test” initiative for National HIV Testing Day. Today I'm pleased to share some insights from The Positive Project's Tony Miles as part of our month-long series about HIV testing story initiatives:
The Positive Project's videos demonstrated one of the most important reasons to get tested: If you test HIV positive, you can live a longer and healthier life with treatment. Thank you to Tony and The Positive Project contributors for sharing these powerful stories.
Check out our NHTD story widget to see story videos and to add the widget to your site! Looking for your local HIV testing center? Send a text message with your ZIP code to “KNOWIT” (566948) or visit www.hivtest.org .
Have a comment about The Positive Project? Have you been tested for HIV and want to share what it meant to you? We welcome your comments in the comments section below.
On Friday, June 26, five-to-ten local HIV prevention organizations that provide mobile and remote HIV counseling, testing and referral services (CTRS) will come together to offer free testing at locations throughout the city on Friday and Saturday.
MISSION STATEMENT:DC Fights Back (DCFB) is an all-volunteer network of people living with HIV/AIDS and their allies working to engage ourselves and our communities in every aspect of HIV advocacy for District residents and to end stigma to ensure the best possible treatment and care for those living with HIV/AIDS and implement the best possible science-based HIV prevention for everybody.
DC HIV/AIDS Epidemic at a Glance |
