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The article presents an obituary for public health doctor J. Donald Millar.

The article reports on a two year project called the Commission to Build a Healthier America which was launched in February of 2008 by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The foundation, which is one of the largest charities in the U.S., launched the program in an effort to improve public health in the U.S. by focusing on nonmedical interventions. The program will examine how policies on education, housing, transportation and other subjects affect health. The program was developed after a study by the foundation found that the U.S. had slipped from 14th to 23rd worldwide in terms of life expectancy.

The article looks at the issue of travel restrictions imposed on HIV positive visitors seeking to visit the United States. The Center for Strategic and International Studies, World Health Organization, and International AIDS Society have each expressed their disapproval of the bias towards HIV positive people. Short term visas and blanket waivers are ways offered for those with HIV to enter the U.S. The current U.S. Department of State policy towards AIDS is criticized as outdated and discriminatory. An example of the public health costs associated with welcoming HIV patients is presented.

The article reports that the U.S. officials have issued a warning to 39 countries about exposure to hantavirus among travellers to Yosemite park. Six people have become infected and three have died in an outbreak of the rare but often lethal hantavirus infection in Yosemite National Park in California. The outbreak has been traced to a group of cabins and tents at the popular tourist destination.

The article discusses a research study on food advertising to children and adolescents in the U.S. It references a 2010 study conducted by the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale University and presented at the 138th annual meeting of the American Public Health Association on November 8 in Denver, Colorado. Study findings showed that 4.2 billion U.S. dollars were spent by the U.S. fast food industry on marketing in 2009. The research authors also criticized the energy, sugar, fat and sodium content in the foods advertised to children.

The article discusses a report published on January 29, 2009 about the need for reform in medical education in the United States. It recommends educating medical students in the community, removing blocks in educational transitions, reducing reliance on hospitals that use high technology, and teaching preventive health. Study chairman John Cohen suggests that medical students can improve their education by identifying educational needs and choosing ways to learn. It also refers to a program at Hofstra University medical school that uses a team approach and integrated training.

The article reports on interest in a daily pre-exposure prophylactic pill against AIDS which was shown by attendees of a 2008 conference on AIDS which was held in Mexico. A discussion of failures which have been seen in clinical trials which tested the effectiveness of AIDS prevention vaccines and microbicides is presented. Research which has examined the effectiveness and safety of pre-exposure prophylaxis, and the impact the development of a successful prophylaxis for AIDS could have on world health are discussed.

The article focuses on guidelines that were issued in 2008 by the World Health Organization in an effort to reduce the burden of tuberculosis among people infected with HIV, and to reduce the estimated 230,000 deaths of people with both medical conditions that occur annually. The guidelines suggested that it is essential to increase the use of isoniazid as a preventive measure for tuberculosis, and that more HIV patients should be screened for tuberculosis if deaths related to it are to be reduced.

The article discusses a report on medical care that was issued by the Commonwealth Fund in 2008. The report indicated that medical care in the United States ranked last in a comparison of 19 industrialized counties, despite the fact that twice as much money is spent per person on health in the U.S. than in any of the other countries that were evaluated. The report also indicated that improvements had been seen in some areas of health care in the U.S. since being evaluated in 2006, but that other countries had also improved, and at a faster rate than the U.S.

The article reports on a call for the creation of a national agency in the United States that was issued by attendees at a conference on integrity in science held in Washington, D.C. on July 11, 2008. The proposed agency would provide data on the effectiveness of medical treatments in the country, would have an annual budget of between four and six billion dollars and would be funded in theory by a 0.5% tax or fee on all healthcare payments, which would generate an estimated five billion dollars annually.

The article reports on a checklist which was included in a campaign launched by the World Health Organization in Washington D.C. on June 25, 2008. The organization feels that the list, which was included in its Safe Surgery Saves Lives campaign, and will be posted in operating rooms worldwide, will prevent millions of injuries associated with surgeries and save an untold number of lives. A discussion of estimates that indicate that seven million patients have substantial complications after surgery and that one million die after surgery, is presented.

The article focuses on an announcement which was given in May of 2008 by Republican Pollster Bill McInturff. In the announcement, which was made during a press briefing in Washington, D.C., McInturff indicated that 36% of American citizens had indicated that they want radical change in their healthcare system. A discussion of the details of the statistics which McInturff discussed, and of a change in public sentiment concerning health care in the U.S. which has been seen in the U.S. since 1995, is presented.

The article focuses on an announcement which was made by Anthony McMichael, director of the National Center of Epidemiology and Population Health at the Australian National University. The announcement was made at the annual interscience conference on antimicrobial agents and chemotherapy, which was held in Chicago, Illinois. In the announcement, McMichael indicated that doctors and health care workers have a duty to draw attention to climate change and try to change people's behavior to avert disaster.

This article reports on a Capitol Hill policy forum in the United States in which the possibility of setting up a centre to evaluate the effectiveness of health care was discussed. The participants noted the escalating costs of health care and a report that said health outcomes in the U.S. are often poorer than those in other industrialised democracies that spend far less. Health economist Gail Wilensky envisions a different kind of model which would focus on medical conditions rather than specific interventions, would look at preventive and treatment options, and would conduct its own research into efficiency.

This article offers a look at studies on circumcision in Uganda and Kenya that were halted after it was discovered that circumcised men have a decreased risk of obtaining HIV. The studies, which were conducted with the support of the U. S. National Institutes of Health. The article discusses the role of the World Health Organization in AIDS prevention through circumcision.