WASHINGTON - Tuesday, October 26, 2010 - Sen. Chuck Grassley is expressing concern over whether the National Cancer Institute unfairly disciplined its ethics director for trying to make sure agency travel complies with federal law and procedures, including those set by the institute's parent agency, the National Institutes of Health.  The travel at issue is sponsored by non-government sources, such as corporations and other private entities.

"Some government agencies have more travel than others.  They should be used to transparency and scrutiny to make sure they follow the rules," Grassley said.  "National Cancer Institute executives appear to have taken issue with the scrutiny to sponsored travel given by their then-chief ethics officer.  It's important to get to the bottom of whether the ethics officer was retaliated against just for doing her job."

 Grassley wrote to the director of the National Institutes of Health and the director of the National Cancer Institute, seeking details of National Cancer Institute employees' sponsored travel.  He asked the National Cancer Institute to conduct an internal review of whether it has furnished all required information to the Office of Government Ethics and copied the Office of Government Ethics.  Grassley also reminded the National Cancer Institute that interfering with federal employees' rights to furnish information to Congress is a violation of federal law.

 Grassley's letter is available here.

New Advisory Panel will Address Disparities in Breast Cancer Rates

CHICAGO - October 18, 2010. Governor Pat Quinn today announced a new initiative to fight breast cancer that will improve access to mammograms and treatment. The effort will be overseen by a new advisory panel charged with raising the quality of care for all women, focusing specifically on strategies to reduce the racial disparity in breast cancer mortality.

"Breast cancer is a deadly disease that affects women across Illinois," said Governor Quinn. "We are doing everything we can to make sure more women have access to lifesaving screenings and treatments. The Breast Cancer Quality Screening and Treatment Board consists of highly-qualified medical experts and health care advocates who will work hard to fight this disease."

The members of the newly formed Breast Cancer Quality Screening and Treatment Board include :

• Dr. David Ansell, Vice President for Clinical Affairs and Chief Medical Officer for Rush University Medical Center and Associate Provost for Medical Affairs, Rush University.
• Dr. Bechara Choucair, Commissioner, Chicago Department of Public Health
• Sister Sheila Lyne, CEO and President, Mercy Hospital
• Eileen Knightly, Director, Mercy Hospital Breast Care Center
• Anne Marie Murphy, Executive Director, Metropolitan Chicago Breast Cancer Task Force
• Dr. Pamela Ganschow, Director, John H. Stroger Hospital of Cook County Breast & Cervical Cancer Screening Program
• Dr. Elizabeth Marcus, Chair, John H. Stroger Hospital of Cook County Division of Breast Oncology
• Stephani Huston Cox, Director of Patient Services, Planned Parenthood Springfield Area
• Linda Maricle, Executive Director, Susan G. Komen for the Cure Peoria
• Donna Thompson, Chief Executive Officer, Access Community Health Network
• Elizabeth S.A. Patton, Administrator, East Side Health District
• Salim Al Nurridin, Chief Executive Officer, Healthcare Consortium of Illinois
• Vicki Vaughn, Director, St. Mary's Hospital

The mission of the Breast Cancer Quality Screening and Treatment Board is to work with the Medicaid Program and IBCCP to identify gaps in screening and diagnostic mammogram services throughout the state; expand the use of digital mammography; recommend common quality standards; identify best practices for effective outreach to reduce racial disparities; and monitor the pilot projects.

The new initiative is a joint project by the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) and the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH). It will include an increase in the Medicaid reimbursement rate beginning in 2011 for screening providers who commit to high-quality service and data sharing on detection rates with the Chicago Breast Cancer Quality Consortium. Medicaid spending for the program will qualify for federal matching funds.

"I am very glad to be working with Governor Quinn, our partners at IDPH and our board of experts to improve access to-and the quality of-breast cancer screening and treatment for women throughout our state," said HFS Director Julie Hamos.

The initiative will include three new pilot projects to assist women who have breast cancer and are being treated through either the Medicaid Program for low-income women or the Illinois Breast and Cervical Cancer Program (IBCCP), which provides free breast and cervical cancer screenings and services to uninsured eligible women in Illinois. The pilot projects will test different approaches to best assist these women in navigating the complex system of breast cancer health care and treatment.

"Early detection can help save lives, and mammography remains the most effective means available to detect cancer in its earliest stages," said IDPH Director Dr. Damon T. Arnold. "We look forward to working with the new board to help ensure all women have access to quality mammography and other breast cancer services."

As part of the initiative, the state will ramp up its educational outreach programs about early detection and treatment of breast cancer. Women over the age of 40 will be informed of access to free annual mammograms - whether they are enrolled in Medicaid or Medicare, have private insurance coverage or are uninsured. Under the new federal Affordable Care Act all new and renewed private health insurance policies will offer free annual mammograms.

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WASHINGTON - Senator Chuck Grassley, along with Senator Kit Bond of Missouri, Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas and Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont, has sent a letter to defense Secretary  Robert Gates questioning whether a new loophole has been created in the administrative discharge system which results in erroneous discharges of members of the Armed Forces who are experiencing symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) or Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), instead of making sure they receive medical care worthy of their service and sacrifice.

"The men and women in America's armed services put their lives on the line day in and day out for our freedom," Grassley said.  "We worked to close a loophole where many of these honorable service members were being discharged without medical and disability benefits for supposedly pre-existing personality disorders that may in fact have been undiagnosed PTSD or TBI due to service in combat. Now it appears that a new loophole may have taken its place and we need to get to the bottom of this situation so our service members are treated fairly."

Click here to view Grassley's letter to Secretary Gates.

Click here to read the October 20th, 2009 press release regarding a letter Grassley, along with Senators Kit Bond, Blanche Lincoln and Sam Brownback, sent to President Barack Obama to renew his commitment to ensure that returning service members are provided medical care from the Department of Veterans Affairs for what may have previously been diagnosed as a pre-existing personality disorder instead of combat-related post traumatic stress disorder.

Click here to read the August 5th, 2009 press release regarding Grassley's letter to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Armed Services Committee advocating for legislation that guarantees that PTSD and TBI are diagnosed and those diagnoses are considered in any future discharge proceeding.

Click here to read the June 22nd, 2007 press release regarding a letter to Secretary Gates sent by Grassley and a group of bipartisan senators, including Senator Obama, calling for an independent review of the personality disorder discharge process in the Armed Forces.

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BOSTON?American homes are increasingly besieged by menacing zombies, invading aliens, and threatening criminals. The fact that these beings exist only on-screen?as characters in popular video games?may be small comfort to parents concerned about limiting their children's exposure to violence. The October issue of the Harvard Mental Health Letter reports that worries about video game violence are probably overblown, but also offers advice on how parents can minimize any potential harm.

As a first step, check a video game's Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) rating to better understand what type of content the game has. It may also help to place video consoles and computers in common areas of the home, such as the kitchen or living room, rather than in children's bedrooms. Finally, set limits on the amount of time youths play these games. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends two hours or less of total screen time per day?a limit that includes television and computers as well as video games.

Dr. Michael Miller, editor in chief of the Harvard Mental Health Letter, points out that video games share much in common with other pursuits that are enjoyable and rewarding, but that can become hazardous in certain contexts. Parents can best protect their children by remaining engaged with them and providing limits and guidance as necessary.

Read the full-length article: "Violent video games and young people"

Also in this issue:

• Cognitive enhancement therapy for schizophrenia
• Managing dental phobia
• Treatment for adolescent depression
• Living with bipolar disorder
• Why eating slowly makes people feel full
• Antidepressants and cataracts

The Harvard Mental Health Letter is available from Harvard Health Publications (www.health.harvard.edu), the publishing division of Harvard Medical School, for $59 per year. Subscribe at www.health.harvard.edu/mental or by calling 877-649-9457 (toll-free).

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