A Renewed Focus on Alzheimer's Dementia
Alzheimer's: Today the Obama Administration released a national strategy to find a treatment for Alzheimer's by 2025. Alzheimer's is the sixth most common cause of death for Americans, reports the AP.
Fracking: More people living near fracking operations are complaining of symptoms that they think may be related to the drilling. Gas companies say there is no evidence, and though scientists agree that's true, they say that's only because no one has studied the matter, reports Rob Stein for NPR.
Politics: The Obama and Romney campaigns have laid out starkly different positions on Medicare. Each says the other's policy would end the program. Obama says Romney's plan would make Medicare a voucher program and turn seniors over to private insurers. Romney says that Obama's plan would not do enough to keep Medicare solvent, reports Robert Pear for the New York Times.
Antibiotics: Farm animals are receiving an extra dose of antibiotics when they are fed distiller's grains and waste product from ethanol production. The industry claims that the levels of antibiotics in these grains are so low as to be insignificant, reports Monica Eng for the Chicago Tribune.
Pricey Pills: The cost of pills can be more than the cost of getting the same drug through an IV for certain chemotherapy medicines. This can raise costs for Medicare beneficiaries, reports Michelle Andrews for Kaiser Health News.
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