Pain, Pain, Go Away: Chronic Pain Costs U.S. $635 Billion A Year

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Published on
June 29, 2011

Image removed.Chronic Pain:  An estimated 116 million adult Americans experience chronic pain that costs the nation up to $635 billion annually, according to a report released today by the Institute of Medicine, Susan Donaldson James reports for ABC News.

Health Reform: The federal mandate to buy health insurance under the new health reform law is constitutional, an Ohio federal appeals court ruled today, as two other constitutional challenges to the law await rulings in other states, Peter Landers reports for The Wall St. Journal.

Ethnic Remedies: Rachel Nuwer reports on "the dark side" of traditional Chinese medicine for Scienceline, a New York University journalism student publication.

Health Access: Amid criticism, the Obama administration has scrapped a plan to send "mystery shoppers" to American doctors to see if they'll accept Medicare and Medicaid patients, Julian Pecquet reports for The Hill's Healthwatch blog. The administration had hoped to assess Medicare and Medicaid patients' actual access to primary care.

Breast Cancer: An advisory committee today recommended revoking the FDA's approval of the blockbuster breast cancer drug Avastin, even as women plead for it to remain on the market.

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