April 13, 2009

Family Planning Services Exemplify Prevention-Based Health Reform Principles, Guttmacher Policy Review Says

Public Release Date: 26-March-2009

Summary of "Family Planning and Health Care Reform: The Benefits and Challenges of Prioritizing Prevention," Gold, Guttmacher Policy Review, Winter 2009.

President Obama's administration and Congress have indicated an interest in pursuing health care reform that prioritizes prevention, and "family planning exemplifies both the benefits of prevention and the issues inherent in trying to remake the current health financing system to work for prevention," Rachel Benson Gold of the Guttmacher Institute writes in a Guttmacher Policy Review article.

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April 13, 2009 in Health Care , Medical Access , Public Policy , Women’s Health | Permalink | TrackBack (0)

May 22, 2008

For Clinicians: Updated Sexually Transmitted Infection Screening and Treatment

Public Release Date: 14-May-2008

Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) have been in the news recently as new epidemiologic trends emerge:

• Certain strains of gonorrhea are showing resistance to traditional antibiotics.
• Syphilis rates are increasing and disproportionately affect African Americans and men who have sex with men.
• At least one in four teens have an STI.

CFHC has collaborated with staff at the California STD Branch at the California Department of Public Health to highlight important strategies for preventing and treating STIs as recommended by the CDC in their STD Treatment Guidelines.

Recommendations for HPV vaccination and changes in the management of abnormal Pap tests are also noted. Providers are invited to download the 2-page California STD Treatment Summary Table (PDF) and refer to the California STD Clinical Guidelines for further information on the latest recommendations for screening, testing, treatment, and partner management for STIs in California.

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Written by: Ina Park M.D., M.S., Clinical STD Fellow, California Department of Public Health-STD Control Branch

Posted thanks to News & Views, a quarterly publication of the California Family Health Council, Inc.

May 22, 2008 in Health Care , Public Policy , STD , Women’s Health | Permalink | TrackBack (0)

June 19, 2007

FDA To Conduct Surveys About STI, Pregnancy Prevention Language on Condom Packaging

Public Release Date: 18-June-2007

FDA plans to survey 1,200 people in shopping malls nationwide on their understanding of a condom's efficacy in preventing sexually transmitted infections, including HIV, and unplanned pregnancies based on current labeling, the agency said on Thursday in a notice on its Web site, Bloomberg/Arizona Republic reports. According to the notice, survey responses will be "considered in FDA's condom labeling recommendations to provide important risk/benefit and use information associated with condoms in easily understood language."

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June 19, 2007 in Condoms , Educational , News , Public Policy , STD , Teen Pregnancy | Permalink | TrackBack (0)

May 10, 2007

ACOG: Plan B Availability Varies from State to State

Public Release Date: 9-May-2007

SAN DIEGO -- Those who battled the FDA for non-prescription status of Plan B (levonorgestrel) apparently won only half the struggle. Prescription or not, Plan B can be hard to get.

A survey of Plan B availability in three major cities found that state laws can override the ease of access to the emergency contraception agent, whether by prescription or "under-the-counter" sales.

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May 10, 2007 in Contraception , Contraceptives , Health Care , Medical Access , News , Oral Contraceptives , Pharmaceuticals , Public Policy , Women’s Health | Permalink | TrackBack (0)