- Patients and Politics: Interpreting the Footprints of Donkeys and Elephants for Patients
- Headlines From Washington
Patients and Politics: Interpreting the Footprints of Donkeys and Elephants for Patients
By Margaret Ragni, MD, MPH
Dr. Ragni is Professor of Medicine in the Division of Hematology/Oncology at the University of Pittsburgh and Director of the Hemophilia Center of Western Pennsylvania. She is also a member of the medical/scientific advisory committee at the National Hemophilia Foundation.
Editor's Note: This is the second in a series of articles illustrating how hematologists can become involved with the presidential election. ASH members are encouraged to take advantage of and create new opportunities to become involved in the election and particularly to share their views about health-related issues with the candidates. The first article, "Grassroots Advocacy Visible From 30,000 Feet," appeared in the March/April edition of The Hematologist.
Do election politics leave you cold? Have political pundits got you down? Have you grown tired of the political bickering? One possible solution has been offered by Vice President for Public Policy Glenn Mones at the National Hemophilia Foundation (NHF). Mr. Mones is developing something refreshing and relevant. He is creating a patient-focused guide about the upcoming presidential election and its potential impact on health care in general and on individuals with bleeding or clotting disorders in particular. Dr. Craig Kessler, of Georgetown University, and chair of NHF's Medical and Scientific Advisory Committee (MASAC), asked Mr. Mones to give a short presentation on the subject at their recent meeting in Chicago. Dr. Kessler mentioned that he had received a lot of positive feedback on the presentation; thus, the idea of the patient guide came about. Mr. Mones' analysis is not intended to be an endorsement of any candidate, but rather a look at where the candidates stand on key health-care issues and how their proposals might affect individuals with bleeding and clotting disorders.
As Mr. Mones describes, "This is a campaign: We are hearing what the candidates are saying but not necessarily whether they will carry through on their promises, nor whether their policies will work. None of the plans are detailed enough to determine how well they would meet the particular needs of the bleeding and clotting disorders community."
While Mr. Mones' guide does not attempt to solve your patients' health-care issues, his effort highlights how one can make this presidential campaign more relevant to the hematology community. Interested readers can obtain the guide by contacting the National Hemophilia Foundation at 800-42-HANDI. The chart to the right displays a few examples from the guide. ASH has also prepared a side-by-side comparison of the presidential candidates' positions on health care.
Headlines From Washington
President Bush Signs Genetic Nondiscrimination Legislation into Law
On May 22, President Bush signed into law the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA), which prohibits discrimination based on the results of genetic tests. Under the bill, employers cannot make decisions about whether to hire potential employees or fire or promote employees based on the results of genetic tests. In addition, health insurers cannot deny coverage to potential members or charge higher premiums to members because of genetic test results. The House voted 414-1 to approve the bill, while the Senate approved the legislation 95-0. ASH has supported this legislation for several years and thanks all members who joined the Society's advocacy campaigns.
ASH Committee on Practice Meets With Congress to Urge Support of Physician Payment Fix
The ASH Committee on Practice met with nearly 30 Congressional offices during its spring meeting to urge Congress to prevent the scheduled 10.6 percent cut in Medicare physician payments scheduled to go into effect July 1, 2008, and replace the cut with a positive update for 18 months. In addition, the ASH members asked for support of a permanent replacement of the formula currently used to calculate physician payment rates. As this issue of The Hematologist was going to press, Congress had not yet taken action on this important legislation. To receive the most up-to-date information about this issue, please visit the ASH Web site.
NIDDK Announces September Workshop on Erythropoietin Expression and Function in Non-Hematopoietic Tissues
The Hematology Program at NIDDK is planning a two-day workshop on erythropoietin receptor (EpoR) expression and function in non-hematopoietic tissues. This workshop will take place on September 8-9, 2008, at the Doubletree Bethesda Hotel Meeting Center, Bethesda, MD, and will address evolving insights into the distribution and function of EpoR in non-hematopoietic tissues. The workshop will summarize clinical observations of non-hematopoietic erythropoietin (Epo) effects in patients with renal failure and solid tumors, and it will review experimental and clinical findings of Epo effects on the development, growth, and function of vascular endothelial cells, neoplasias, and cardiovascular and neural tissues. This workshop is designed to promote interactions and discussion among workshop participants and to define key unanswered questions and highlight priorities and directions for future research. The program will include presentations by both invited speakers and speakers selected from submitted abstracts, together with poster presentations.
A limited number of travel grants will be made available to registrants whose abstracts are selected for oral presentations at the workshop. Registrants who submit abstracts for presentation at the workshop will be given preference if the number of registrants exceeds available space. Registration information is available online. Individuals who wish to attend this workshop are also invited to contact Amy Amerson of The Scientific Consulting Group at 301-670-4990.
CDC Appoints New Director for the Division of Blood Disorders
Dr. Hani Atrash, an obstetrician/gynecologist with training in epidemiology and preventive medicine, has been appointed Director of the Division of Blood Disorders (DBD) in the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD). Dr. Atrash has worked at the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) since 1979. In 2001, he joined NCBDDD as an Associate Director for Program Development, where he managed activities related to global health, workforce development, women's health, relationships with national organizations and state and local health departments, and minority health. Dr. Atrash is also an accomplished scientist and prolific writer. He serves on a variety of key national advisory committees. Dr. Atrash has received numerous honors and awards within CDC and at the national level for his work in improving the health of mothers and children. He replaces Dr. Roshni Kulkarni, who is returning to Michigan State University.