41 research outputs found
Examining the Evidentiary Basis of Congress's Commerce Clause Power to Address Individuals' Health Insurance Status
Outlines the issues involved in whether the 2010 Affordable Care Act's individual mandate is constitutional under the commerce clause, presents research literature on the effect of uninsurance on the broader economy, and reviews the lower courts' rulings
Options for CDC\u27s Cancer Screening Programs: Implications of the Affordable Care Act
Screening to promote early detection of cancer is a fundamental tool in preventive medicine and public health that facilitates earlier treatment and reductions in cancer mortality. Systematic reviews of the research demonstrate that early detection and treatment for breast and cervical cancers can reduce cancer-related mortality. One of the most important barriers to women being screened is the lack of health insurance coverage. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) administers two programs designed to increase screening, particularly among low-income and vulnerable populations: the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program (NBCCEDP) and the Colorectal Cancer Control Program (CRCCP). NBCCEDP operates through a series of grants provided to state, territorial, and tribal agencies that help fund screening and related promotion/prevention interventions, particularly aimed at low-income uninsured and underinsured women who would otherwise be unable to afford the costs of clinical breast exams, mammograms, Pap smears, cervical exams, and related screening and diagnostic tests. CRCCP operates on a similar basis and serves low-income uninsured and underinsured men and women who cannot afford fecal occult blood testing (FOBT), sigmoidoscopy, colonoscopy and related tests
Examining the evidentiary basis of Congress\u27s commerce clause power to address individuals\u27 health insurance status
Chief among the issues that the United States Supreme Court considers in United States Department of Health and Human Services et al. v Florida et al. is the questionof whether Congress has the constitutional power to apply a âminimum essential coverage requirementâ on most nonelderly Americans. Opponents of the provision (referred to under the Act as the âIndividual Responsibilityâ requirement) argue that compelling individuals to buy affordable health insurance coverage exceeds Congressional powers. By contrast, the United States Department of Justice and supporters of the law assert that the minimum coverage requirement is consistent with a long line of Supreme Court decisions regarding the power of Congress to regulate individual conduct. The Administration, in a brief filed on January 9, 2012, argues that Congressional authority to act can be found under both its taxing powers as well as its power under the Commerce Clause and Necessary and Proper Clause to regulate interstate commerce. The Commerce Clause arguments are of special interest, because it is this basis of power that has received so much attention in the lower court decisions to date
Examining the evidentiary basis of Congress\u27s commerce clause power to address individuals\u27 health insurance status
Chief among the issues that the United States Supreme Court considers in United States Department of Health and Human Services et al. v Florida et al. is the questionof whether Congress has the constitutional power to apply a âminimum essential coverage requirementâ on most nonelderly Americans. Opponents of the provision (referred to under the Act as the âIndividual Responsibilityâ requirement) argue that compelling individuals to buy affordable health insurance coverage exceeds Congressional powers. By contrast, the United States Department of Justice and supporters of the law assert that the minimum coverage requirement is consistent with a long line of Supreme Court decisions regarding the power of Congress to regulate individual conduct. The Administration, in a brief filed on January 9, 2012, argues that Congressional authority to act can be found under both its taxing powers as well as its power under the Commerce Clause and Necessary and Proper Clause to regulate interstate commerce. The Commerce Clause arguments are of special interest, because it is this basis of power that has received so much attention in the lower court decisions to date
Secondary messenger signalling influences Pseudomonas aeruginosa adaptation to sinus and lung environments
Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a cause of chronic respiratory tract infections in people with cystic fibrosis (CF), non-CF bronchiectasis, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Prolonged infection allows the accumulation of mutations and horizontal gene transfer, increasing the likelihood of adaptive phenotypic traits. Adaptation is proposed to arise first in bacterial populations colonizing upper airway environments. Here, we model this process using an experimental evolution approach. Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1, which is not airway adapted, was serially passaged, separately, in media chemically reflective of upper or lower airway environments. To explore whether the CF environment selects for unique traits, we separately passaged PAO1 in airway-mimicking media with or without CF-specific factors. Our findings demonstrated that all airway environments-sinus and lungs, under CF and non-CF conditions-selected for loss of twitching motility, increased resistance to multiple antibiotic classes, and a hyper-biofilm phenotype. These traits conferred increased airway colonization potential in an in vivo model. CF-like conditions exerted stronger selective pressures, leading to emergence of more pronounced phenotypes. Loss of twitching was associated with mutations in type IV pili genes. Type IV pili mediate surface attachment, twitching, and induction of cAMP signalling. We additionally identified multiple evolutionary routes to increased biofilm formation involving regulation of cyclic-di-GMP signalling. These included the loss of function mutations in bifA and dipA phosphodiesterase genes and activating mutations in the siaA phosphatase. These data highlight that airway environments select for traits associated with sessile lifestyles and suggest upper airway niches support emergence of phenotypes that promote establishment of lung infection.</p
SafeSpot:An innovative app and mental health support package for Scottish schools - a qualitative analysis as part of a mixed methods study
Aims:
The aim of the study was to investigate teachersâ and pupilsâ perceptions about the effect of the SafeSpot mental health curriculum on the wellâbeing of young people and on their knowledge of mental health conditions. This trial intends to determine the acceptability and benefits of web and mobile technology in delivering emotional wellâbeing in schools, through use of the SafeSpot programme.
Background:
With 10% of young people aged 5 to 16 diagnosed with a mental disorder, there is pressure for schools to address their pupilsâ emotional wellâbeing. However, many educators report that their schools have insufficient provisions and feel inadequately equipped to support pupilsâ mental health.
Methods:
This qualitative analysis was embedded within a randomly allocated steppedâwedge design, conducted in six West of Scotland secondary schools. A total of 2320 pupils (aged 11 to 14 years) and 90 teachers were included. Young peopleâs understanding of healthâseeking, and teacherâs confidence in delivering and accessing wellâbeing information was assessed qualitatively.
Results:
Qualitative analysis revealed themes highlighting the beneficial nature of SafeSpot, including pupil engagement, content of tutorials, perceived impact of SafeSpot and level of training provided for teachers.
Conclusions:
Web technology could potentially offer a more structured way for staff to support their pupilsâ mental health, whilst reducing stigma. SafeSpot was perceived, by pupils and teachers, to be engaging
âPay for Successâ Financing and HomeâBased Multicomponent Childhood Asthma Interventions: Modeling Results From the Detroit Medicaid Population
Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/144303/1/milq12325_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/144303/2/milq12325.pd
Secondary messenger signalling influences Pseudomonas aeruginosa adaptation to sinus and lung environments.
Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a cause of chronic respiratory tract infections in people with cystic fibrosis (CF), non-CF bronchiectasis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Prolonged infection allows accumulation of mutations and horizontal gene transfer, increasing the likelihood of adaptive phenotypic traits. Adaptation is proposed to arise first in bacterial populations colonising upper airway environments. Here, we model this process using an experimental evolution approach. P. aeruginosa PAO1, which is not airway adapted, was serially passaged, separately, in media chemically reflective of upper or lower airway environments. To explore whether the CF environment selects for unique traits, we separately passaged PAO1 in airway-mimicking media with or without CF-specific factors. Our findings demonstrated that all airway environments - sinus and lungs, under CF and non-CF conditions - selected for loss of twitching motility, increased resistance to multiple antibiotic classes and a hyper-biofilm phenotype. These traits conferred increased airway colonisation potential in an in vivo model. CF-like conditions exerted stronger selective pressures, leading to emergence of more pronounced phenotypes. Loss of twitching was associated with mutations in type IV pili genes. Type IV pili mediate surface attachment, twitching and induction of cAMP signalling. We additionally identified multiple evolutionary routes to increased biofilm formation involving regulation of cyclic-di-GMP signalling. These included loss of function mutations in bifA and dipA phosphodiesterase genes and activating mutations in the siaA phosphatase. These data highlight that airway environments select for traits associated with sessile lifestyles and suggest upper airway niches support emergence of phenotypes that promote establishment of lung infection
Plxdc2 Is a Mitogen for Neural Progenitors
The development of different brain regions involves the coordinated control of proliferation and cell fate specification along and across the neuraxis. Here, we identify Plxdc2 as a novel regulator of these processes, using in ovo electroporation and in vitro cultures of mammalian cells. Plxdc2 is a type I transmembrane protein with some homology to nidogen and to plexins. It is expressed in a highly discrete and dynamic pattern in the developing nervous system, with prominent expression in various patterning centres. In the chick neural tube, where Plxdc2 expression parallels that seen in the mouse, misexpression of Plxdc2 increases proliferation and alters patterns of neurogenesis, resulting in neural tube thickening at early stages. Expression of the Plxdc2 extracellular domain alone, which can be cleaved and shed in vivo, is sufficient for this activity, demonstrating a cell non-autonomous function. Induction of proliferation is also observed in cultured embryonic neuroepithelial cells (ENCs) derived from E9.5 mouse neural tube, which express a Plxdc2-binding activity. These experiments uncover a direct molecular activity of Plxdc2 in the control of proliferation, of relevance in understanding the role of this protein in various cancers, where its expression has been shown to be altered. They also implicate Plxdc2 as a novel component of the network of signalling molecules known to coordinate proliferation and differentiation in the developing nervous system
The Woody Guthrie Centennial Bibliography
This bibliography updates two extensive works designed to include comprehensively all significant works by and about Woody Guthrie. Richard A. Reuss published A Woody Guthrie Bibliography, 1912â1967 in 1968 and Jeffrey N. Gatten\u27s article âWoody Guthrie: A Bibliographic Update, 1968â1986â appeared in 1988. With this current article, researchers need only utilize these three bibliographies to identify all English-language items of relevance related to, or written by, Guthrie