The U.S. Food and Drug Administration Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee (TPSAC) recently concluded that the “removal of menthol cigarettes from the marketplace would benefit public health in the United States.” This recommendation to the FDA is based on prevailing science surrounding menthol cigarettes. Although menthol cigarettes do not contain more toxins, they increase the number of young people who try cigarettes and the number of children who become regular smokers, increasing overall youth smoking. Menthol cigarettes have also been found to be more appealing to African-Americans and therefore contribute to higher smoking rates and decreased cessation among this population.
The TPSAC final report is set to go through a systematic review by experts from the FDA Center for Tobacco Products. They are to take into account menthol cigarettes’ risks and benefits to the population, effects on overall smoking initiation and cessation rates, achievability, and consequential effects that may arise, such as demand for contraband. The FDA intends to provide its first progress report on the review in about 90 days.
Partnership for Prevention supports the TPSAC’s recommendations and urges the FDA to take action to ban menthol to curb the uptake of smoking by youth and promote cessation among other high-risk groups. The tobacco industry’s incessant marketing of menthol cigarettes to youth, African Americans and other communities are threats to the public’s health. We are hopeful that the FDA will recognize the harmful impact of menthol cigarettes on the health of the nation and employ the committee’s advice.
Harmeet Singh
Tobacco Control Team
Showing posts with label adolescents. Show all posts
Showing posts with label adolescents. Show all posts
Monday, 21 March 2011
Monday, 10 January 2011
KC Health Dept Hands Out Flu Shot Vouchers, Youths With STDs May Not Admit They Had Sex named “Best/Worst News for Prevention"
"Best and Worst News for Prevention” is based on a purposive sample consisting of expert staff members who each week choose to share their opinions on the best and worst news for prevention.
BEST
KC Health Department hands out vouchers for flu shots
If you are uninsured in the metropolitan area and still need a flu shot, the Kansas City Health Department has a deal for you: It is handing out 25,000 vouchers for free vaccinations at Walgreens pharmacies. Walgreens donated 350,000 of the vouchers to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The department is distributing them to Kansas City and more than a dozen other areas nationwide where there are disparities in vaccination rates and opportunities to address them.
“They’re targeting people who wouldn’t usually get a flu shot; they don’t have insurance or their insurance doesn’t cover it,” said the Health Department’s Jeff Hershberger. The department last week began handing out thousands of vouchers to community organizations.
WORST
Youths With STDs May Not Admit They Had Sex: Young People Not Always Truthful About Sexual Activity, So Routine STD Screenings Are Needed
Young people who say they’ve abstained from sexual intercourse may not be telling the whole truth, an important finding in the ongoing battle against the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. Researchers at Emory University in Atlanta examined data on 14,012 young adults in their early 20s, who completed a computer-assisted interviewing survey and provided a urine specimen aimed at detecting three common STDs: chlamydia, gonorrhea, and trichomoniasis.
More than 10% of the young people found to have at least one of the STDs had reported not having penile/vaginal sexual intercourse in the past 12 months. This suggests that routine screening of STDs may be a better way to reduce transmission of diseases.
The “Best and Worst” awards are announced each week in “Prevention Matters,” the blog of Partnership for Prevention. "Best and Worst News for Prevention” is based on a purposive sample of expert staff members who each week choose to share their opinions on the best and worst news for prevention. More information is available at http://www.prevent.org/.
BEST
KC Health Department hands out vouchers for flu shots
If you are uninsured in the metropolitan area and still need a flu shot, the Kansas City Health Department has a deal for you: It is handing out 25,000 vouchers for free vaccinations at Walgreens pharmacies. Walgreens donated 350,000 of the vouchers to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The department is distributing them to Kansas City and more than a dozen other areas nationwide where there are disparities in vaccination rates and opportunities to address them.
“They’re targeting people who wouldn’t usually get a flu shot; they don’t have insurance or their insurance doesn’t cover it,” said the Health Department’s Jeff Hershberger. The department last week began handing out thousands of vouchers to community organizations.
WORST
Youths With STDs May Not Admit They Had Sex: Young People Not Always Truthful About Sexual Activity, So Routine STD Screenings Are Needed
Young people who say they’ve abstained from sexual intercourse may not be telling the whole truth, an important finding in the ongoing battle against the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. Researchers at Emory University in Atlanta examined data on 14,012 young adults in their early 20s, who completed a computer-assisted interviewing survey and provided a urine specimen aimed at detecting three common STDs: chlamydia, gonorrhea, and trichomoniasis.
More than 10% of the young people found to have at least one of the STDs had reported not having penile/vaginal sexual intercourse in the past 12 months. This suggests that routine screening of STDs may be a better way to reduce transmission of diseases.
The “Best and Worst” awards are announced each week in “Prevention Matters,” the blog of Partnership for Prevention. "Best and Worst News for Prevention” is based on a purposive sample of expert staff members who each week choose to share their opinions on the best and worst news for prevention. More information is available at http://www.prevent.org/.
Tuesday, 31 August 2010
Tobacco Use among School Students Declines Over Past 10 Years, but Current Rates of Decline are Slow
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, during 2000-2009, the prevalence of current tobacco use among middle school students declined (15.1% to 8.2%), as did current cigarette use (11.0% to 5.2%) and cigarette smoking experimentation (29.8% to 15.0%). The August 27, 2010 report also showed similar trends for high school students, with current tobacco use declining from 34.5% to 23.9%; current cigarette use from 28.0% to 17.2%; and cigarette smoking experimentation from 39.4% to 30.1%.
These trends in tobacco use among youth were analyzed from data from the 2000-2009 National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS) which collects information on tobacco use and related behaviors and attitudes from middle school and high school students. The NYTS includes measures on prevalence of youth tobacco use, smoking cessation, tobacco-related knowledge and attitudes, access to tobacco, media and advertising, and secondhand smoke exposure and has been conducted approximately every 2 years since 2000.
Although tobacco use decreased over the past ten years for these groups, progress was stalled between 2006 and 2009, with no change in prevalence. This indicates that the current rate of decline in tobacco use is relatively slow and more needs to be done to combat youth smoking. The new restrictions on tobacco product sales and marketing under the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act are certainly great strides for tobacco control, but it is clear that we have a ways to go to substantially reduce youth smoking rates.
Partnership for Prevention recommends that youth tobacco prevention and control programs be fully funded to see a major reduction in the prevalence of youth smoking. Specifically, we should focus our efforts on 1) a nationwide public education campaign modeled on the highly successful Truth® campaign that dissuades thousands of young people from initiating tobacco use and encourages smoking cessation and 2) support for existing state and community-based tobacco control programs that reach people where they live, work, play and worship.
Brandi Robinson
Tobacco Control Program Associate
These trends in tobacco use among youth were analyzed from data from the 2000-2009 National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS) which collects information on tobacco use and related behaviors and attitudes from middle school and high school students. The NYTS includes measures on prevalence of youth tobacco use, smoking cessation, tobacco-related knowledge and attitudes, access to tobacco, media and advertising, and secondhand smoke exposure and has been conducted approximately every 2 years since 2000.
Although tobacco use decreased over the past ten years for these groups, progress was stalled between 2006 and 2009, with no change in prevalence. This indicates that the current rate of decline in tobacco use is relatively slow and more needs to be done to combat youth smoking. The new restrictions on tobacco product sales and marketing under the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act are certainly great strides for tobacco control, but it is clear that we have a ways to go to substantially reduce youth smoking rates.
Partnership for Prevention recommends that youth tobacco prevention and control programs be fully funded to see a major reduction in the prevalence of youth smoking. Specifically, we should focus our efforts on 1) a nationwide public education campaign modeled on the highly successful Truth® campaign that dissuades thousands of young people from initiating tobacco use and encourages smoking cessation and 2) support for existing state and community-based tobacco control programs that reach people where they live, work, play and worship.
Brandi Robinson
Tobacco Control Program Associate
Monday, 12 July 2010
Declines in Youth Smoking Trends are Coming to a Halt
As Rob Gould, President and CEO of Partnership for Prevention, has stated, “the top priority for prevention spending should be tobacco control.” And what is the best way to focus our tobacco control efforts? The answer is youth. By focusing on youth we can prevent this addictive behavior before it starts.
The need to address youth smoking is pressing. CDC published a report in last week’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) titled, “Cigarette Use Among High School Students–United States, 1991-2009,” which brings to light to the slowing progress in youth smoking prevention.
The CDC studied cigarette smoking trends among high school students in the United States by analyzing data from the 1991-2009 Youth Risk Behavior Surveys (YRBS), which are conducted every two years among high school students in grades ninth through twelve. When looking at three different variables: ever smoked cigarettes (whether a student had ever smoked, even just one puff), current cigarette use (whether a student had smoked at least one day in the past thirty days), and current frequent cigarette use (whether a student had smoked at least twenty days or more during the past thirty days), researchers found that high school smoking rates dropped rapidly in the late 1990s. However, the rate of decline substantially slowed down after 2003 and has continued to only decline very gradually since then. When analyzing data from different racial and gender groups for current cigarette use, rates also declined rapidly in the late 1990s and then either continued to decline gradually or leveled off after 2003 for all subgroups except for black female students, for whom current cigarette use continued to decline after 1999 without slowing.
These slowing rates have led to our failure to meet the Healthy People 2010 national health objective to reduce the prevalence of current cigarette use among high school students to 16% or less. It is noteworthy that the 2009 YRBS survey was administered before the federal tax increase for cigarettes and before the Family Smoking Prevention Act went into effect, both of which aim to reduce youth smoking. However, much work needs to be done if we are to address these slowing declines in current cigarette smoking trends among high school students in the United States.
Partnership for Prevention agrees with the CDC’s recommendations for “reductions in advertising, promotions, and commercial availability of tobacco products… combined with expanded counter-advertising mass media campaigns and… other well-documented and effective strategies (e.g., higher prices for tobacco products through increases in excise taxes, tobacco free environments, programs that promote changes in social norms, and comprehensive communitywide and school-based tobacco-use prevention policies).”
Additionally, in a recent column in Kaiser Health News, “The Prevention Dilemma,” Rob Gould states that tobacco control should be the top priority for health reform funding and youth prevention placed at the top of the list. He argues for a “nationwide public education campaign modeled on the highly successful Truth® campaign that dissuades thousands of young people from initiating tobacco use and encourages smoking cessation.”
The MMWR brings disappointing news in terms of tobacco control, yet hopefully can be the driving force to focus our public health and policies and resources on preventing youth smoking and make this a healthier nation.
Katie Burggraf
Partnership for Prevention Intern
The need to address youth smoking is pressing. CDC published a report in last week’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) titled, “Cigarette Use Among High School Students–United States, 1991-2009,” which brings to light to the slowing progress in youth smoking prevention.
The CDC studied cigarette smoking trends among high school students in the United States by analyzing data from the 1991-2009 Youth Risk Behavior Surveys (YRBS), which are conducted every two years among high school students in grades ninth through twelve. When looking at three different variables: ever smoked cigarettes (whether a student had ever smoked, even just one puff), current cigarette use (whether a student had smoked at least one day in the past thirty days), and current frequent cigarette use (whether a student had smoked at least twenty days or more during the past thirty days), researchers found that high school smoking rates dropped rapidly in the late 1990s. However, the rate of decline substantially slowed down after 2003 and has continued to only decline very gradually since then. When analyzing data from different racial and gender groups for current cigarette use, rates also declined rapidly in the late 1990s and then either continued to decline gradually or leveled off after 2003 for all subgroups except for black female students, for whom current cigarette use continued to decline after 1999 without slowing.
These slowing rates have led to our failure to meet the Healthy People 2010 national health objective to reduce the prevalence of current cigarette use among high school students to 16% or less. It is noteworthy that the 2009 YRBS survey was administered before the federal tax increase for cigarettes and before the Family Smoking Prevention Act went into effect, both of which aim to reduce youth smoking. However, much work needs to be done if we are to address these slowing declines in current cigarette smoking trends among high school students in the United States.
Partnership for Prevention agrees with the CDC’s recommendations for “reductions in advertising, promotions, and commercial availability of tobacco products… combined with expanded counter-advertising mass media campaigns and… other well-documented and effective strategies (e.g., higher prices for tobacco products through increases in excise taxes, tobacco free environments, programs that promote changes in social norms, and comprehensive communitywide and school-based tobacco-use prevention policies).”
Additionally, in a recent column in Kaiser Health News, “The Prevention Dilemma,” Rob Gould states that tobacco control should be the top priority for health reform funding and youth prevention placed at the top of the list. He argues for a “nationwide public education campaign modeled on the highly successful Truth® campaign that dissuades thousands of young people from initiating tobacco use and encourages smoking cessation.”
The MMWR brings disappointing news in terms of tobacco control, yet hopefully can be the driving force to focus our public health and policies and resources on preventing youth smoking and make this a healthier nation.
Katie Burggraf
Partnership for Prevention Intern
Friday, 4 June 2010
Use of HPV Vaccine Still Limited
A recent analysis of surveillance data reported in the May issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine found that only about one third of adolescent girls ages 13-17 in a six-state sample have received more than one dose of the HPV vaccine.
Since the vaccine first received FDA approval in 2006, little research has been done to assess its use. For this analysis the researchers used data from the 2008 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System and the 2000 U.S. census on 1,709 girls in Delaware, New York, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, and West Virginia. It is not clear from the study findings why these six states were chosen. 70% of the girls in the study were white and 74% were insured.
The study also found that girls in states with higher poverty levels were less likely to be vaccinated, but those in counties with higher poverty levels were more likely to be vaccianted.
"Although seemingly contradictory, this indicates that while girls in poorer states had overall lower odds, girls living in any state experienced higher odds of vaccination if they lived in counties with higher poverty levels," said Sandi L. Pruitt, PhD, and Mario Schootman, PhD, of Washington University in St. Louis. "This may be partially explained by the limited resources of poor states," Pruitt said.
These findings show the need for interventions to increase vaccination among all eligible girls.
Christianne Johnson
Program Manager
Partnership for Prevention
Since the vaccine first received FDA approval in 2006, little research has been done to assess its use. For this analysis the researchers used data from the 2008 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System and the 2000 U.S. census on 1,709 girls in Delaware, New York, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, and West Virginia. It is not clear from the study findings why these six states were chosen. 70% of the girls in the study were white and 74% were insured.
The study also found that girls in states with higher poverty levels were less likely to be vaccinated, but those in counties with higher poverty levels were more likely to be vaccianted.
"Although seemingly contradictory, this indicates that while girls in poorer states had overall lower odds, girls living in any state experienced higher odds of vaccination if they lived in counties with higher poverty levels," said Sandi L. Pruitt, PhD, and Mario Schootman, PhD, of Washington University in St. Louis. "This may be partially explained by the limited resources of poor states," Pruitt said.
These findings show the need for interventions to increase vaccination among all eligible girls.
Christianne Johnson
Program Manager
Partnership for Prevention
Friday, 21 May 2010
Medicaid Children Are Not Receiving All Required Preventive Screening Services
The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General (IG) has just released a new report (OEI-05-08-00520) concluding that “Most children in nine selected States are not fully benefiting from Medicaid’s Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic, and Treatment (EPSDT) comprehensive screening services.”
For anyone concerned about the importance of expanding coverage for clinical preventive services under health reform, this report is a reminder that coverage alone isn’t enough to assure access.
The EPSDT program provides “a comprehensive and preventive child health program for children under the age of 21. Every State Medicaid program must offer the EPSDT benefit…In 2007, 31.5 million children were eligible for EPSDT…Services provided under the EPSDT benefit are intended to screen, diagnose, and treat children eligible for EPSDT services at early, regular intervals to avoid or minimize childhood illness. The EPSDT services cover four health-related areas: medical, vision, hearing, and dental. This study focused on medical, vision, and hearing screenings. Only medical screenings have components specifically required by the statute. Complete medical screenings under the EPSDT benefit must include the following five age-appropriate components: a comprehensive health and developmental history, a comprehensive unclothed physical examination, appropriate immunizations according to age and health history, appropriate laboratory tests, and health education.
States selected for the review included Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Missouri, North Carolina, Texas, Vermont and West Virginia.
The IG found that two primary factors contributed to children not receiving required screenings.
First, children did not receive the correct number of each type of screening. Second, when children received medical screenings, the screenings were often incomplete. These two factors taken together indicate that very few children received the correct number of complete screenings required by law.
Seventy-six percent of children, or 2.7 million children, in the States selected for the review did not receive all of the required number of medical, vision, and hearing screenings. Forty-one percent of children did not receive any required medical screenings. In addition, more than half of children did not receive any required vision or hearing screenings.
Fifty-five percent of children in the nine States received a medical screening during the study period. Of these children, 59 percent lacked at least one component of a complete medical screening. The component that children were missing most often was appropriate laboratory tests.
Officials from all nine selected States identified strategies to improve participation in the EPSDT and the completeness of medical screenings. The disconnection between States’ efforts to improve the EPSDT program and the low number of children receiving required screenings is difficult to account for, but it indicates that additional efforts are required.
Based on these findings, the IG recommended that CMS: (1) require States to report vision and hearing screenings, (2) collaborate with States and providers to develop effective strategies to encourage beneficiary participation in EPSDT screenings, (3) collaborate with States and providers to develop education and incentives for providers to encourage complete medical screenings, and (4) identify and disseminate promising State practices for increasing children’s participation in EPSDT screenings and providers’ delivery of complete medical screenings.
New requirements under Health Reform will require expanded coverage of clinical prevention services under Medicare and new individual and group private plans. To realize the benefits of these services it is essential the Administration require that new coverage be accompanied by effective strategies and resources to encourage participation.
E Ripley Forbes
Director, Government Affairs
Partnership for Prevention
For anyone concerned about the importance of expanding coverage for clinical preventive services under health reform, this report is a reminder that coverage alone isn’t enough to assure access.
The EPSDT program provides “a comprehensive and preventive child health program for children under the age of 21. Every State Medicaid program must offer the EPSDT benefit…In 2007, 31.5 million children were eligible for EPSDT…Services provided under the EPSDT benefit are intended to screen, diagnose, and treat children eligible for EPSDT services at early, regular intervals to avoid or minimize childhood illness. The EPSDT services cover four health-related areas: medical, vision, hearing, and dental. This study focused on medical, vision, and hearing screenings. Only medical screenings have components specifically required by the statute. Complete medical screenings under the EPSDT benefit must include the following five age-appropriate components: a comprehensive health and developmental history, a comprehensive unclothed physical examination, appropriate immunizations according to age and health history, appropriate laboratory tests, and health education.
States selected for the review included Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Missouri, North Carolina, Texas, Vermont and West Virginia.
The IG found that two primary factors contributed to children not receiving required screenings.
First, children did not receive the correct number of each type of screening. Second, when children received medical screenings, the screenings were often incomplete. These two factors taken together indicate that very few children received the correct number of complete screenings required by law.
Seventy-six percent of children, or 2.7 million children, in the States selected for the review did not receive all of the required number of medical, vision, and hearing screenings. Forty-one percent of children did not receive any required medical screenings. In addition, more than half of children did not receive any required vision or hearing screenings.
Fifty-five percent of children in the nine States received a medical screening during the study period. Of these children, 59 percent lacked at least one component of a complete medical screening. The component that children were missing most often was appropriate laboratory tests.
Officials from all nine selected States identified strategies to improve participation in the EPSDT and the completeness of medical screenings. The disconnection between States’ efforts to improve the EPSDT program and the low number of children receiving required screenings is difficult to account for, but it indicates that additional efforts are required.
Based on these findings, the IG recommended that CMS: (1) require States to report vision and hearing screenings, (2) collaborate with States and providers to develop effective strategies to encourage beneficiary participation in EPSDT screenings, (3) collaborate with States and providers to develop education and incentives for providers to encourage complete medical screenings, and (4) identify and disseminate promising State practices for increasing children’s participation in EPSDT screenings and providers’ delivery of complete medical screenings.
New requirements under Health Reform will require expanded coverage of clinical prevention services under Medicare and new individual and group private plans. To realize the benefits of these services it is essential the Administration require that new coverage be accompanied by effective strategies and resources to encourage participation.
E Ripley Forbes
Director, Government Affairs
Partnership for Prevention
Pediatricians Recommend All Kids be Screened for Alcohol Use
A policy statement released by the Committee on Substance Abuse for the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that doctors screen all of their young patients, beginning in middle school, about their use of alcohol.
"A remarkable amount of brain development is still occurring for young people through their 20s," said report lead author Patricia Kokotailo of the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. "This policy statement provides better evidence about how alcohol affects the brains of young people and why it is important to screen children."
The revised policy states that "pediatricians should be knowledgeable about substance abuse to be able to recognize risk factors for alcohol and other substance abuse among youth, screen for use, provide appropriate brief interventions, and refer to treatment."
Committee chair Janet Williams of the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio said that most doctors don't routinely ask about youth alcohol use, and need to know how to provide prevention guidance and where to refer young drinkers to treatment.
Christianne Johnson
Program Manager
Partnership for Prevention
"A remarkable amount of brain development is still occurring for young people through their 20s," said report lead author Patricia Kokotailo of the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. "This policy statement provides better evidence about how alcohol affects the brains of young people and why it is important to screen children."
The revised policy states that "pediatricians should be knowledgeable about substance abuse to be able to recognize risk factors for alcohol and other substance abuse among youth, screen for use, provide appropriate brief interventions, and refer to treatment."
Committee chair Janet Williams of the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio said that most doctors don't routinely ask about youth alcohol use, and need to know how to provide prevention guidance and where to refer young drinkers to treatment.
Christianne Johnson
Program Manager
Partnership for Prevention
Monday, 26 October 2009
Problems Unique to Adolescents Overlooked in Delivery of Clinical Preventive Services
A new study commissioned by Partnership for Prevention finds that too little attention is paid to improving the delivery of clinical preventive services to adolescents by addressing problems unique to that population. The review article in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine also finds that most of the clinical preventable services that are recommended for adolescents don’t have good evidence to support their effectiveness.
Among the unique problems:
• The time typically allocated for routine adolescent exams is quite short and is unlikely to be extended, given Medicaid’s recent reductions in preventive visit reimbursements relative to other services.
• Many clinicians feel that adolescents are less likely to heed their recommendations because they believe adolescents are less interested in their long-term health than adults and more likely to engage in risk behaviors.
• Delivery of clinical services to adolescents tends to be driven by tradition, expert opinion, and the very limited needs of particular required preventive visits (e.g., school or sports physicals)
“We need to encourage both more clinical effectiveness research on clinical preventive services for adolescents and changes in the ways medical practices serving adolescents approach improving delivery rates,” said Leif I. Solberg, MD, the study’s chief author who is Associate Medical Director for Care Improvement Research, HealthPartners Medical Group. “It’s important that healthcare providers use every medical encounter, not just ‘well-child visits,’ which not all adolescents receive regularly, to address their clinical preventive services needs.”
Among the unique problems:
• The time typically allocated for routine adolescent exams is quite short and is unlikely to be extended, given Medicaid’s recent reductions in preventive visit reimbursements relative to other services.
• Many clinicians feel that adolescents are less likely to heed their recommendations because they believe adolescents are less interested in their long-term health than adults and more likely to engage in risk behaviors.
• Delivery of clinical services to adolescents tends to be driven by tradition, expert opinion, and the very limited needs of particular required preventive visits (e.g., school or sports physicals)
“We need to encourage both more clinical effectiveness research on clinical preventive services for adolescents and changes in the ways medical practices serving adolescents approach improving delivery rates,” said Leif I. Solberg, MD, the study’s chief author who is Associate Medical Director for Care Improvement Research, HealthPartners Medical Group. “It’s important that healthcare providers use every medical encounter, not just ‘well-child visits,’ which not all adolescents receive regularly, to address their clinical preventive services needs.”
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)