Trans Adults Deserve a Right to Sue for Gender-Affirming Care Denied at Youth

This comment advocates that the statute of limitations be extended to permit adult transgender plaintiffs to bring civil claims against medical care providers in response to being denied gender-affirming care when they were children. The justifications surrounding the passage of the Child Victims Act of 2019 serve as a parallel to this issue. Like adult victims of child sex abuse, potential plaintiffs in this class are often emotionally unready to bring timely claims due to the traumas of being closeted and of being forced to endure an undesired puberty. The tort of negligent malpractice is a potential cause of action that this class might pursue

Challenging Payday Lenders by Opening up the Market for Small-Dollar Loans

“Why hasn’t someone else stepped in to lend at lower interest rates?” is the question frequently asked in discussions of payday loans. The average payday loan carries an Annual Percentage Rate (APR) of over 300%. Given the strength of th e payday lenders lobby at the federal and state level, one way to help low- and moderate-income households escape the financial harms of pa yday loans is to encourage other lenders to enter the small-dollar loan market and offer more affordable products. Over the past ten years, an array of affordable small-dollar loan programs offered by banks, credit unions, non-profit organizations, and for-profit fintech compan ies have entered the market to provide borrowers with alternatives to payday loans. These lenders are offering small-dollar loans at rates and on terms that are more manageable for low- and moderate-income consumers than payday loans, while maintaining the features of payday loans that consumers like—namely quick and easy access to credit. This paper w ill desc ribe these affordable small-dollar loan programs and explain what is needed from regulators, financial institutions and foundations, and consumer advocates for the programs to serve more borrowers and take over more of the market space curren tly occupied by payday lenders. Banks, with support from t he ir regulators, can offer affordable small-dollar loans to their customers and should continue to provide low-in terest loan capital to non-profit small-dollar lenders. Credit unions can continue to offer small-dollar loan programs like the Payday Alte rnative Loan product and the Employer Sponsored Small-Dollar Loan product and should be encouraged to do so by their regulators. Non-profit organizations can continue to offer affordable loans in partnership with employers or other lenders and should be provided with grants and low-interest loan capital and pro-bono support from la wyers and marketing companies. For-profit, fintech lenders can continue to enter this space and should be supported by consumer advocates and regulators as long as their products meet certain guidelines: compliance with all federal and state laws, affordable payments, and features such as credit bureau reporting, transparent fees, and flexible repayment terms. Finally, recent efforts in Congress to encourage the U. S. Postal Service to offer affordable small-dollar loans should also be supported. The short-term small-dollar credit needs of low- and moderateincome households should not be met primarily by payday lenders whose high fees and short repayment terms too often trap borrowers in a cycle of debt. Low-and moderate-income consumers deserve better options. With support, the affordable small-dollar loan programs described in this paper can be expanded to make the market for smalldollar credit more competitive, helping borrowers across the country

Use of dietary supplements by breast cancer patients undergoing conventional cancer treatment

<b>Background</b> Many breast cancer patients use some form of dietary supplement (DS) to complement their conventional cancer treatment, in the hope that they might lessen the side effects of treatment, improve quality of life, give a greater sense of control, and reduce stress. This pilot study assessed the level of DS usage by breast cancer patients undergoing conventional cancer treatment, and their concerns about the use of DS. <p></p> <b>Method</b> A cross-sectional descriptive survey in three breast cancer centers in Hong Kong using face-to-face interviewing was performed. <p></p> <b>Results</b> Of 82 female Chinese breast cancer patients who completed the survey, 99% reported that they had been using DS since their cancer was diagnosed. The most frequently used DS were Chinese herbal medicines, and patients spent about US$258 on DS every month. The reason given for using DS was to enhance their recovery from cancer, but at the same time the patients had safety concerns. However, most patients did not feel able to discuss these concerns with health professionals. <p></p> <b>Conclusion</b> The majority of the patients had some safety concerns, and said that they would welcome detailed and reliable information on DS. The lack of reliable information on the potential risks and benefits of using such supplements as an adjuvant to conventional treatment and the reluctance of patients to discuss their use of DS with health professionals is a major area of concern that warrants further attention

Shareholder Litigation Rights and Corporate Acquisitions

We examine the effect of shareholder litigation rights on managers’ acquisition decisions. Our experimental design exploits a U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling on July 2, 1999 that resulted in a reduction in shareholder class actions. We find that, since the ruling, firms in Ninth Circuit states acquire larger targets. Furthermore, acquirers’ returns are lower in these states, especially for those with weaker corporate governance. Further analysis shows that value destruction is the result of managers’ freedom to conduct empire-building acquisitions using overvalued equity. Overall, our findings indicate the importance of shareholder litigation as an external governance mechanism

Improving SAR image classification in tropical region through fusion with SPOT data

This paper investigates various SAR digital filtering techniques to remove speckles for image classification using fused SAR and SPOT XS image. The fused image classification is then compared with the classified SPOT XS image. The result has shown that the use of the Enhanced Frost digital filtering technique for SAR image and the fusion with SPOT XS gives a very similar classification with comparison to the SPOT XS image classification.</p

Gene Expression Changes Reflect Clinical Response in a Placebo-Controlled Randomized Trial of Abatacept in Patients with Diffuse Cutaneous Systemic Sclerosis

Systemic sclerosis is an autoimmune disease characterized by inflammation and fibrosis of the skin and internal organs. We sought to assess the clinical and molecular effects associated with response to intravenous abatacept in patients with diffuse cutaneous systemic

Retrospective Determination of Prognostic Factors in BRAF-V600E Melanoma Brain Metastases​

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