Legislation to overhaul the American health system lacks an overarching plan to curb the rising costs of medicine, according to Atul Gawande, the influential surgeon and writer, in an essay for the Dec.

Advocates and experts examine progress made since the Institute of Medicine released its landmark report that called for the elimination of medical errors, or “never events,” ten years ago. Modern HealthCare interviews Helen Haskell, who founded the advocacy organization Mothers Against Medical Error, and examines progress and shortcomings: “Families are still losing loved ones to errors, Haskell explained during a recent conference hosted by Consumers Union. But the biggest difference in the past 10 years is, ‘where once there was denial, we now have tireless leaders…

Health Ministers from around the world met today to discuss the ongoing threat to public health from the current H1N1 pandemic, maintaining effective responses globally, and looking ahead to how the pandemic could develop. The 10th ministerial meeting of the Global Health Security Initiative (GHSI), hosted in London by the Department of Health, was attended by representatives from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Mexico, UK, the US, the European Commission, and the World Health Organization…

As little as 15 minutes of exercise a day can reduce overall mortality rates in patients with prostate cancer, according to findings presented at the American Association for Cancer Research Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research Conference, held here, Dec. 6-9, 2009.

Rapid influenza diagnostic tests used in doctors’ offices, hospitals and medical laboratories to detect H1N1 are virtually useless and could pose a significant danger to public health, according to a Loyola University Medical Center researcher.