Another Legal Victory for Health Reform

Health Reform: A federal appellate court smacked down two Virginia lawsuits challenging the constitutionality of health reform on the narrow grounds that the plaintiffs lacked standing. But two of the three judges said they would have ruled the reform law constitutional on its merits, Kevin Sack reports for the New York Times.

Environmental Health: Evaluating whether the trace amounts of prescription drugs sometimes found in the nation's water supply are dangerous to health has stymied federal regulators, according to a new GAO report, Justin Pritchard reports for the Associated Press.

Health Costs: One way to save on federal health spending: get older people to lose weight, potentially staving off diabetes and other expensive chronic conditions, before they go on Medicare. A new study estimates billions could be saved by a nationwide rollout of a successful weight loss program for 60-somethings run by the YMCA, Jeannine Stein reports for the Los Angeles Times.

Drug Use: Marijuana smoking is on the rise, while methamphetamine use is declining, according to a new study of Americans' use of illegal drugs (at least what they admit to in a survey), reports Donna Leinwand Leger for USA Today.

Weight Loss Surgery: Lap-Band maker Allergan has discontinued one of its weight loss surgery/gastric banding products, the Easy Band, and may consider dropping its heavily marketed Lap-Band, too, amid a number of patient deaths and injuries, Jim Edwards reports for BNET. To read Antidote blogger William Heisel's coverage of the Lap-Band and weight loss surgery marketing, click here.

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