Items 1 through 12 have been deleted, since they are primarily for families
living in Virginia and Maryland, and I did not want to send useless
information to the folks in the rest of the country. However, please let me
know if you live in Virginia, Maryland or DC; so that I can add you to my
private email distribution list for events in those states.


Folks, Apparently, there has been a massive screw-up in my office computer
system that prevented me from sending out these emails to all 24 of my Yahoo
Group accounts since mid-March due to an internal addressing problem, even
though I thought that they were going out to everyone. I think that
everything is fixed now. If you have directly emailed me since about 20
March using a Yahoo Group list serv, and I did not reply; please resend that
email to me again. I did not have the time to go through the accumulated
800 emails again, and I had to delete all of them to free up server space in
the duplicate email account that caused all these problems. Many of these
news items are on the POAC-NoVA website at http://www.poac-nova.org
<http://www.poac-nova.org/> and all of them are archived in another website
at http://www.emilitary.org/forums/index.php?showforum=664
<http://www.emilitary.org/forums/index.php?showforum=664> . I will be
resending all these email blasts that I thought were going to everyone, but
some of the events are now past. I sincerely apologize for any
inconvenience that this has caused you and for any information that may have
missed. Sorry! Scott


13. "A BAKER'S DOZEN OF "EXCUSES" FOR DENYING FUNDING" by Lewis Golinker
at http://www.handinet.org/baker.htm <http://www.handinet.org/baker.htm>
can be a handy resource at some meetings. It is a good compliment to the
excellent IEP Pop-up tool chart for parents from TASH at
<http://www.nclid.unco.edu/HVoriginals/Advocacy/Popup/popup.html.>
http://www.nclid.unco.edu/HVoriginals/Advocacy/Popup/popup.html.

14. The Organization for Autism Research (OAR)'s April OARacle E-Newsletter
is at
<http://researchautism.org/resources/newsletters/2006_apr.asp#ResearchUpdate
>
http://researchautism.org/resources/newsletters/2006_apr.asp#ResearchUpdate.
I would encourage you to look over what that organization is doing in the
field of applied research for autism.

15. "Midwest Mumps Outbreak Continues to Spread" dated 19 April 2006 from
HealthDay News on Forbes.com at
http://www.forbes.com/forbeslife/health/feeds/hscout/2006/04/19/hscout532241
.html
<http://www.forbes.com/forbeslife/health/feeds/hscout/2006/04/19/hscout53224
1.html> .

"The outbreak of mumps striking the Midwest -- the largest number of cases
to hit the United States in two decades -- continues to spread, according to
federal officials. There have been more than 1,000 cases reported so far;
the bulk of them, 815, have been in Iowa. The remaining cases have been
reported in seven other states -- Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri,
Nebraska, Oklahoma and Wisconsin, according to latest information from the
U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The disease has been seen
largely among people in their late teens and early 20s, officials said at a
news conference Wednesday. "This is the largest outbreak of mumps that we
have seen in this country in more than 20 years," said CDC Director Dr.
Julie Gerberding. "There have been more than 1,000 cases reported from more
than eight states. There are ongoing investigations in seven more states,"
she added. So far, 20 people have been hospitalized with mumps, Gerberding
said. A major outbreak of more than 100,000 cases of mumps in England has
led to speculation that the U.S. outbreak had its origins abroad. "It is
possible," Gerberding said, "but we don't have any proof of that at this
time." Gerberding noted that, given the nature of mumps and the continued
progression of the outbreak, officials expect more cases in more states.
There has been a vaccine for mumps since 1967 that has largely eliminated
frequent outbreaks of the disease, she said. "Fortunately, mumps is not
usually a serious disease," Gerberding said. "But in some people it can have
serious complications." Up to 10 percent of people with mumps develop
encephalitis (inflammation of the brain) and others can develop an
inflammation of the testes, which can lead to infertility. Mumps has also
been associated with spontaneous abortion and deafness, Gerberding said. An
acute viral illness caused by the mumps virus, the disease typically causes
fever, headache, muscle aches, tiredness, and loss of appetite, followed by
swelling of the salivary glands, according to the CDC. "The best protection
against mumps is the vaccine," Gerberding said. "There is confusion right
now if whether or not this outbreak is related to some problem with the
vaccine," she said. "I want to emphasize that we have absolutely no
information that there is any problem with the vaccine." Gerberding said
that, despite the availability of the vaccine, people in the age group who
are getting sick may not have had the recommended two doses of inoculation
and are not completely vaccinated, leaving them susceptible to the disease.
"This is a good vaccine, but it's not perfect," Gerberding said. "About 10
percent of people who get both doses of the vaccine still remain susceptible
to mumps." ..."

16. "Safe Vaccines For Tennessee's Children - And Response" dated 22 April
2006 in an oped by Rep. Susan Lynn in the Chattanoogan.com at
http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_84301.asp
<http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_84301.asp> .

""Excuse me, you may not have heard of me but I'm kind of a big deal." I'm
kidding of course, but that's close to the typical attitude displayed by
representatives of the large research hospitals and associations as they
show up in committee to fight a common sense bill to ban mercury from
childhood vaccines. The Safe Vaccines for Tennessee's Children Act states
that no vaccine given to a child eight and under, or to a pregnant woman,
may contain mercury - the second most poisonous element on the planet. Used
for decades as a preservative in vaccine, it is commonly known that mercury
should never be consumed, breathed, applied to the skin or injected into the
human body. Although armed with impressive credentials, their arguments
against the bill are weak. They contend: First, if the Tennessee Legislature
passes this bill, parents won't have a choice. A choice to inject their
child with mercury? What parent would make that choice? Second, if we pass
this bill, parents will be afraid to vaccinate their children. I don't know
if they've read the morning paper but parents are already very concerned.
Many choose not to vaccinate due to the uncertainty over mercury. This bill
will reassure parents and provide public confidence that Tennessee vaccines
ARE mercury free or trace only. Third, if we pass this bill, we risk
vaccine shortages. They make this statement even though the vaccine
manufacturers are voluntarily removing the mercury compound from vaccines
for children. Most vaccines are now considered mercury free or trace only.
This bill recognizes that the industry's mercury removal is only voluntary.
After passage, if the industry decides to produce vaccine with mercury they
can't send any to Tennessee. The federal government should have mandated
this two decades ago. With large states like California and six others
passing similar legislation this bill provides incentive to the industry to
manufacture only mercury-free vaccine to sell nationally. ..."

17. "Innocent parents accused of abuse- MPs say hunt for abusers may be out
of control" dated 23 April 2006 by Daniel Foggo from The Times Online (UK)
at <http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2087-2147749.html>
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2087-2147749.html.

"Innocent parents are being falsely accused of abusing their children and
threatened with having them taken into care, according to a report backed by
MPs. An all-party group of MPs and peers is next month to meet Beverley
Hughes, the minister for children, to discuss concerns that the hunt for
potentially abusive parents might be out of control. The group says large
numbers of parents are being wrongly suspected of Munchausen's syndrome by
proxy (MSBP), a condition where people supposedly fabricate illnesses in
their children to gain attention. It wants a review of government guidelines
issued to social workers, police and teachers. MSBP was first identified by
Professor Sir Roy Meadow, a paediatrician who was struck off the medical
register last year, and later reinstated on appeal, after widespread
criticism of his work. He was a key prosecution witness in the cases of
Sally Clark and Angela Cannings who were both jailed for killing their
children. Their convictions were quashed, however, after Meadow's theory
that some cot deaths were actually murder was discredited. Despite the
government's official view that MSBP, also known as fabricated or induced
illness, occurs in only about one person in a million, up to 12,000 children
a year are being taken into care for MSBP- related reasons, according to the
report. The 104-page report, drawn up by Consensus, a group of parents and
professionals, says Department of Health guidelines on MSBP issued in 2002
are phrased in such a way as to trigger referrals of parents to social
workers even without any evidence. The guidelines state: "When a possible
explanation for signs and symptoms is that they may be fabricated or induced
by a carer, and as a consequence the child's health or development is likely
to be impaired, a referral should be made to social services." ..."

18. "Breakthrough in blood test ends risks to foetus" dated 23 April 2006
by Robin McKie from The Observer (UK) at
<http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/story/0,,1759357,00.html>
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/story/0,,1759357,00.html.

" revolutionary system for testing unborn babies for life-threatening
diseases has been launched by British scientists. The technique - which is
far safer than present methods for detecting conditions such as Down's
Syndrome - reveals the health of foetuses from tiny fragments of their DNA
that have leaked into their mothers' bloodstream. As a result, doctors will
no longer have to take samples directly from the womb for tests. The
breakthrough should prevent thousands of miscarriages when the screening
system is introduced across the country in a few years, say scientists. 'At
present, if doctors want to test a foetus to find out if it has Down's
syndrome, or the blood disease thalassaemia, they have to stick a needle
into the womb and remove tissue that surrounds the foetus,' said one of the
project leaders, Professor Stan Urbaniak of Aberdeen University.
'Unfortunately that carries a small but significant risk of triggering a
miscarriage and, given that these tests - such as amniocentesis - are given
to tens of thousands of women every year, this causes hundreds of
spontaneous abortions.' Non-invasive pre-natal diagnosis (NIPD) is being
used in trials in Aberdeen and Bristol to test for the potentially fatal
haemolytic disease of the newborn (HDN), which occurs when a baby with
rhesus-positive blood is born to a mother who is rhesus-negative. During
birth, a baby's blood often spills into its mother's bloodstream. This can
trigger a reaction in her body that immunises her against rhesus-positive
blood. Then, when she becomes pregnant again, if her new baby again turns
out to be rhesus-positive, her immune defences attack the foetus. Hundreds
of babies are affected every year, and until recently many died. 'We can do
a great deal to help them now, but haemolytic disease can still kill,' said
Urbaniak. ..."

19. "Researchers study autism cures, cause" dated 24 April 2006 by Kristie
L. Kaufman, MD. in the Centre Daily Times at
<http://www.centredaily.com/mld/centredaily/living/14407832.htm>
http://www.centredaily.com/mld/centredaily/living/14407832.htm.

"Ongoing studies continue to look into the causes of autism spectrum
disorders. These disorders generally become evident within a child's first
three years of life and range from mild to severe developmental and
socialization delays. With various degrees of severity, the disorders have
a core set of symptoms that include difficulty forming relationships,
difficulty understanding or responding to emotional signals from others,
difficulty using language creatively and receptively, self-absorption and
repetitive behaviors such as staring, hand flapping and repeating words over
and over again. Although no cause has been discovered for autism spectrum
disorders, researchers think that there is some genetic component because
autism runs in families. Studies are also under way to find a possible link
between brain abnormalities and autism. Thimerosal, a preservative that was
commonly used in vaccinations to prevent bacterial contamination, has been a
hot topic when searching for the cause of autism. The scare began in 1999
when the Food and Drug Administration issued a warning that
thimerosal-containing vaccinations could potentially cause blood-mercury
levels that could exceed the Environmental Protection Agency guidelines.
Unfortunately, what is not understood is that the mercury in thimerosal is
different from the mercury ingested from food. Ingested mercury can enter
the nervous system and the brain, whereas the size of the mercury particles
in thimerosal makes this unlikely. Fighting Autism, an advocacy group,
reports that the incidence of autism continues to rise, even though
non-thimerosal containing vaccines have been available since 2001. ..."

20. "Measles warning after MMR decline" dated 24 April 2006 from the BBC
News at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/4938148.stm
<http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/4938148.stm> .

"Nursery school children's vulnerability to measles has risen sharply in
Scotland since MMR vaccination scares in the late 1990s, a study has warned.
Health Protection Scotland looked at figures for more than one million
children born between 1987 and 2004. The research found 25 postcode
districts where more than one in five nursery children was potentially at
risk, compared with just three in 1998. Parents who have delayed
vaccination were urged to take up the MMR jab. MMR was introduced across
the UK in 1988 but claims in 1998 that the vaccine might be linked to autism
provoked widespread alarm. Researchers looked at the vaccination records
for Scotland for all children born between 1987 and 2004 and the impact of
adverse publicity surrounding the injections. The authors found that the
sharpest decline began for children born from 1999 onwards, suggesting that
the negative publicity had a "gradual but cumulative" effect. More affluent
sectors of the population tended to have their children vaccinated early or
not at all, while parents in the most deprived areas of Scotland tended to
delay vaccinating their children. There was evidence of a slight rise in
late uptake, but not enough to compensate for underlying late declines.
Rates of MMR vaccine uptake have begun to improve, but have not yet reached
the levels before 1998, and are not expected to reach the levels required
for population protection among young schoolchildren. ..."

21. "Heart vs head- The issue of MMR rather than single vaccines is not
going to go away anytime soon" dated 24 April 2006 in an oped by Dr. Richard
Horton in The Guardian (UK) at
<http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/richard_horton/2006/04/the_sadness_of_m
mr.html>
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/richard_horton/2006/04/the_sadness_of_mm
r.html.

"It's hard to imagine that anything useful could still be written about the
MMR vaccine. Too much has probably been said already, most of it either
wilful nonsense or wild speculation. So I hesitate. And especially because
it was I who was responsible for
<http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140673697110960/abstr
act> publishing - to the eternal damnation of many of my medical and
public-health colleagues - Andrew Wakefield's 1998 paper that fuelled a
smouldering underground movement against the vaccine. A campaign that we now
know was partly linked to efforts to win a legal claim against vaccine
manufacturers. But this week I have been thinking about the words of a
mother who wrote an incredibly moving piece in
<http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,6-2144197.html> The Times in which
she described how she "felt like a criminal" and under suspicion. Why?
Simply because she was trying to do what she thought best for her daughter
and son. Sarah Ebner described how she knew that Wakefield's work had been
discredited. She knew that she needed to get her children vaccinated against
measles. She was not stupid. And yet she felt condemned for her wish to seek
single vaccines for her daughter. She was made to feel uncaring and
irresponsible - a bad or even mad parent. But she had to balance her head
with her heart, and her heart won. She urged the government to show
humility. To give parents the choice between MMR and single vaccines. We
have been having this debate for eight years now. It all seems so futile.
But it has come into focus once again because the population's immunity
against measles has fallen to such a degree that outbreaks are occurring in
unvaccinated communities, putting the children in those communities at great
risk of complications of measles infection. So what should parents and the
government do? ..."

22. "Vaccinating all schoolkids could prevent flu pandemic" dated 24 April
2006 by Warren King from the Seattle Times at
<http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002949744_fluscientists24m
.html>
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002949744_fluscientists24m.
html.

"The key to stopping a flu pandemic may lie in schoolchildren. At school,
kids are close together, they don't practice the best hygiene, and they help
germs spread like pollen in spring. At home, they do the same with their
families. Giving them the best available vaccine at the earliest sign of a
major epidemic might fend off a deadly pandemic, say two of the nation's
most prominent influenza researchers, newly arrived at the Fred Hutchinson
Cancer Research Center. "A lot of people believe kids are the best
transmitters of the virus, and with a limited supply of vaccine, this might
work," said Elizabeth Halloran, who has studied epidemics for decades.
Halloran and her colleague, Ira Longini, believe using available vaccine
would buy time for manufacturers to create a vaccine that matches the
pandemic flu virus exactly and would protect millions of people worldwide.
Writing in the journal Science, they recently called for a nationwide study
of vaccinating schoolchildren against conventional flu to see if that
controls widespread transmission. (Present guidelines call for immunizing
young children, older adults, pregnant women, chronic-disease patients and
close contacts of these people.) Smaller studies have suggested the
schoolchildren approach might work, and federal officials have expressed
interest in Halloran's and Longini's suggestion. ..."

23. "Teacher accused of attack on autistic student" dated 25 April 2006 by
Kathy Jefcoats from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution at
http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/clayton/stories/0425metteacher.html
<http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/clayton/stories/0425metteacher.html>
.

"A minister and former Henry County special education teacher was arrested
Monday and charged with simple battery in what witnesses said was a violent,
unprovoked attack on an autistic student Jan. 27. Richard David Powell III,
53, of McDonough was allowed to surrender at the Henry County Jail after a
pre-arrest hearing Monday afternoon in State Court. He was expected to make
a $1,000 bond.autistic students at Union Grove High School testified Monday
that Powell "forward tackled" Edward Lee "Eddie" West IV, 17. Powell and
West were sitting quietly together at a round table, they testified, when
Powell attacked the student. "Mr. Powell lunged toward Eddie and Eddie
flipped over in his chair," Clouse testified. "I looked at David Robertson,
just stunned." Clouse said the two wrestled on the floor, with Powell on
top of West, his left forearm across the student's neck. Robertson said he
admonished Powell. "I said, 'Richard, you can't choke him,'" Robertson
testified. "Richard didn't respond so I said it again. The student was
gasping, trying to talk. Richard said, 'I'm not choking him, it just looks
like I am choking him.'" Powell testified that he was trying to restrain
West after the student backhanded him for no reason. West, who is
nonverbal, suffered a nosebleed and neck sprain, and has begun to have
seizures again, his mother, Kecia West, said. Monday was the first time she
and her husband, Edward Lee West III, heard the details of their son's
alleged attack. "It was horrible, listening to the details," she said. "It
was very hard, I had tears in my eyes. His doctor said he is suffering
post-traumatic stress syndrome and he's having nightmares." ..."

24. "'It never got better after MMR jab'" dated 25 April 2006 by
<mailto:martyn.mclaughlin@...?subject=Comment%20on%20your%20arti
cle%20'%91It%20never%20got%20better%20after%20MMR%20jab%92'> MARTYN
McLAUGHLIN and CLAIRE HAMILTON from The Herald (UK) at
<http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/60721.html>
http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/60721.html.

"Geoffrey Fiel was particularly bright as a baby, his father recalls. Not
yet a year old, he was able to feed himself and could say partial words,
such as Da. But within weeks, the infant's life and that of his family was
to change irrevocably. Only hours after his parents, Angus and Lucy, took
Geoffrey to be given the MMR vaccine, he developed an adverse reaction. A
fever and a bad cough soon worsened into an ear infection. He stopped
eating, and lost all interest in playing with Tom, his elder brother. "We
thought it was just because he wasn't feeling well," said Mr Fiel. "But it
never got better." Now aged eight, Geoffrey is diagnosed as autistic. Mr
Fiel, from Oban, gave up his pipe-installation job to become a full-time
carer for his son, along with his wife. The couple are in no doubt - the MMR
vaccine precipitated their second son's condition. In hindsight, they
believe his brother Tom also had an adverse reaction to the triple jab.
Vaccinated soon after his first birthday, he subsequently displayed
challenging behaviour in public. At three-and-a-half, his speech was at the
level of a 13-month-old. Fortunately, before he reached four, Tom's
condition improved markedly. Now 10, he is "absolutely fine" according to
his father, and doing well at school. Nonetheless, the Fiels' experience
has led to their decision not to have their youngest children, Angus Jr,
nearly two, and five-month-old Arabella, given the triple vaccine. Their GP
accepts their stance but will offer them little information on an
alternative, Mr Fiel said. ..."

25. "'Holy grail' for boosting infant immunity" dated 25 April 2006 by
Christine Dell'Amore from United Press International in The Washington Times
at <http://www.washingtontimes.com/upi/20060425-042954-4402r.htm>
http://www.washingtontimes.com/upi/20060425-042954-4402r.htm.

"Researchers have identified a way to stimulate the immune systems of
newborns, possibly boosting the effectiveness of early vaccines against
common, life-threatening infections. Babies are born with weak immune
systems, which puts them at a higher susceptibility to both bacterial and
viral infection that can lead to severe complications, including death. As a
result, vaccines that could prevent against infection tend to be ineffective
in newborns. But by triggering one of the body's proteins -- called a
toll-like receptor, or TLR -- a newborn's immune system could react and
defend the body against foreign invaders. "We've stumbled across a
molecular holy grail in newborn immunology," said lead author Dr. Ofer Levy,
a principal investigator of the Division of Infectious Diseases at
Children's Hospital in Boston. The paper was published April 25 in the
online edition of the journal Blood. One of the authors on the paper was a
3M representative, which sells medical equipment and technology. Levy and
colleagues collected blood from healthy adults, as well as newborn cord
blood, to conduct laboratory tests. The researchers focused their study on
the 10 TLRs that exist in the body. In adults, TLRs work together as the
body's key defense against infection, mobilizing the white blood cells. But
in newborns, TLRs aren't activated. Part of the reason is evolutionary: if
the fetus were to send out inflammatory immune responses, the mother's body
might reject it. Evolution has skewed the newborn's immune system to avoid
these immune responses. But the research team discovered they could
actually spur one of the TLRs to protect against invaders -- TLR8. Using
harmless agents that mimic viral antigens, the researchers were able to
elicit a robust reaction from TLR8's white blood cells. This reaction could
potentially help vaccines work more efficiently in newborns. ..."

26. "Conflicts of interest in FDA committees" dated 25 April 2006 by Steve
Mitchell from United Press International in The Washington Times at
<http://www.washingtontimes.com/upi/20060425-043446-4384r.htm>
http://www.washingtontimes.com/upi/20060425-043446-4384r.htm.

"Members of Food and Drug Administration advisory committees often have
conflicts of interest -- such as contracts or grants of more than $100,000
-- with the companies that produce the drugs under evaluation, according to
a study released Tuesday. "Conflicts are common, conflicts are large,
conflicts rarely lead to recusal and conflicts have a small but important
association with voting behavior," Peter Lurie, the study's lead author and
deputy director of Public Citizen's Health Research Group, told United Press
International. The study, which appears in the April 26 issue of the
Journal of the American Medical Association, found that at least one
committee member disclosed a conflict of interest in 73 percent of the 221
advisory committee meetings held from Jan. 1, 2001, to Dec. 31, 2004.
Approximately 22 percent of the conflicts were with the sponsor company, but
only 1 percent of committee members were recused over that period. For
every member with a conflict with the manufacturer of the drug being
evaluated or with a competitor company, there was a 10 percent greater
likelihood the final vote would be in favor of the product being discussed.
However, excluding the conflicted members would not have altered the
outcomes of any of the meetings included in this study. Lurie acknowledged
that removing the members with conflicts of interest would not have changed
the outcomes of any of the meetings, but he pointed out that it did reduce
the margin of favorable votes for the drug in question, which "could impact
how the FDA responds." Conflicted members could also have a spillover
effect, he said. They "could have an impact on the overall ambiance of the
meeting" and influence members who do not have conflicts of interest, he
said. Lurie's group threatened a lawsuit against the FDA in 2001, claiming
the agency was not disclosing financial conflicts of interest of committee
members as required by law. The agency issued new guidelines in 2002, and
the study indicates that compliance with disclose requirements improved.
..."

27. "School club raising Autism awareness" dated 25 April 2006 by WABC7
News at <http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=local&id=4116324>
http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=local&id=4116324.

"It's the weekly meeting of the "Autism Speaks Club" at Fox Lane Middle
School in Bedford. It's a club started this year by Matthew Harris whose
four-year-old brother has autism. "At the time, I was kind of thinking to
raise awareness and maybe raise $200 and it kind of grew into a life of its
own," Matthew said. The club has already raised over $2,000 and is gearing
up for yet another fundraiser. The students say they are happy to be
involved. Beyond the fundraising, students are learning about autism and
about tolerance. The club comes at an opporutune time. Next year, Foxlane
will have its first ever class made up entirely of autistic students. "I
think when those students are here, we would like to be a welcoming
committee for that group," teacher Peter Faustino said. "It's tough because
not only do you have a brother who can barely speak to you, but he also
stresses out your parents because your parents have to help so much,"
Matthew said. The club is his way of helping his brother, and in the
process, he is helping all who come together each week. The cause of Autism
is unknown. It ocuurs in one out of every 166 births."

28. "Schools to drop appeal- City had been challenging special-education
order" dated 26 April 2006 by Sara Neufeld from the Baltimore Sun at
<http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/education/bal-md.schools26apr26,0,3877206.
story?coll=bal-education-top>
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/education/bal-md.schools26apr26,0,3877206.s
tory?coll=bal-education-top.

"Pledging a new spirit of cooperation, the Baltimore school system has
agreed to drop its challenge of a federal judge's order for state managers
to oversee all departments affecting special education.
System officials said the move represents their renewed commitment to work
with the Maryland State Department of Education to end a lawsuit filed
against both of them 22 years ago by lawyers for children with disabilities.
School board Chairman Brian D. Morris said the action was prompted "not
because we agree with the order, but because we're putting an emphasis on
improving the system." Morris added: "We've always wanted to work more
collaboratively with the state. We've not always had that option, but we're
hopeful." State Superintendent Nancy S. Grasmick said she will be
"delighted" if that's true, but for improved cooperation to happen, the
system has to start giving special-education students the services that they
require in a timely manner. In the past few years, Baltimore and Maryland
officials have fought bitterly over who is to blame for the failures of city
schools and who should control them. And that struggle has only intensified
recently, as the state school board ordered a takeover last month of 11
failing city schools. Rallying around city school officials and Mayor
Martin O'Malley, the General Assembly quickly passed legislation imposing a
one-year moratorium on the takeovers, overriding a veto by Gov. Robert L.
Ehrlich Jr. two weeks ago. In the special-education case, the system has
been spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on legal fees. In December,
the city school board agreed to pay $1 million this school year for
representation by the Washington-based law firm of Hogan & Hartson. In the
first half of this school year, it paid $250,000 to another attorney, Abbey
G. Hairston. "We are pleased that more resources are not going to go to
legal fees and distraction of staff," Grasmick said last night. "We'd rather
both the resources and the staff time be devoted to providing the services
for the students." ..."

29. "Autism Costs $35 Billion Per Year to U.S." dated 26 April 2006 by
Michael Ganz, Assistant Professor of Society, Human Development, and Health
at the Harvard School of Public Health on RXPG News at
http://www.rxpgnews.com/medicalnews/healthcare/usa/article_4171.shtml
<http://www.rxpgnews.com/medicalnews/healthcare/usa/article_4171.shtml> .

"It can cost about $3.2 million to take care of an autistic person over his
or her lifetime. Caring for all people with autism over their lifetimes
costs an estimated $35 billion per year. Those figures are part of the
findings in the first study to comprehensively survey and document the costs
of autism to U.S. society. Michael Ganz, Assistant Professor of Society,
Human Development, and Health at Harvard School of Public Health, authored
the study, which appears in a chapter titled, "The Costs of Autism," in the
newly published book, Understanding Autism: From Basic Neuroscience to
Treatment (CRC Press, 2006). Ganz hopes his research will help policymakers
allocate scarce resources to its treatment and prevention as well as provide
a useful reference for policymakers and advocates to help them more fully
understand the financial impact of autism on U.S. society. Ganz's analysis
of the costs includes direct and indirect medical costs associated with the
disorder. But he believes the $35 billion annual societal cost for caring
for and treating people with autism likely underestimates the true costs
because there are a number of other services that are used to support
individuals with autism, such as alternative therapies and other family
out-of-pocket expenses, that are difficult to measure. In addition, Ganz
believes that the level of cost could be higher if there were more useful
and widespread treatment options available. "Given that the federal autism
research budget has been historically less than $100 million per year and
given that research budgets for other conditions with similar numbers of
affected individuals are sometimes orders of magnitude higher, I hope that
my research can help focus more attention on directing more resources toward
finding prevention and treatment options for autism," Ganz said. (For
comparison purposes, he notes estimated annual costs of other conditions,
including Alzheimer's disease ($91 billion); mental retardation ($51
billion); anxiety ($47 billion); and schizophrenia ($33 billion).) ..."

30. "Financial Conflict of Interest Disclosure and Voting Patterns at Food
and Drug Administration Drug Advisory Committee Meetings" dated 26 April
2006 by Peter Lurie, MD, MPH; Cristina M. Almeida, MD, MPH; Nicholas Stine,
BA; Alexander R. Stine, SM; Sidney M. Wolfe, MD from The Journal of the
American Medical Association at
http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/295/16/1921?eaf
<http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/295/16/1921?eaf> .

"Context In January 2002, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued
a draft guidance requiring more detailed financial conflict of interest
disclosure at advisory committee meetings. Objectives To characterize
financial conflict disclosures at drug-related meetings, and to assess the
relationship between conflicts and voting behavior at meetings that
considered specific products. Design and Setting Cross-sectional study
using agendas and transcripts from all FDA Drug Advisory Committee meetings
(2001-2004) listed on the FDA Web site. Main Outcome Measures Conflict
rates, type, and size. The relationship between having a conflict and voting
in favor of the index drug was described for each voter using
Mantel-Haenszel relative risks and Monte Carlo simulations; Spearman rho was
used for a meeting-level analysis comparing rates of conflict with voting
patterns. The impact of the removal of persons with conflicts of interest on
the vote margins was also evaluated. Results A total of 221 meetings held
by 16 advisory committees were included in the study. In 73% of the
meetings, at least 1 advisory committee member or voting consultant
disclosed a conflict; only 1% of advisory committee members were recused.
For advisory committee members (n = 1957) and voting consultants combined (n
= 990), 28% (n = 825) disclosed a conflict. The most commonly specified
conflicts were consulting arrangements, contracts/grants, and investments.
Nineteen percent of consulting arrangements involved over $10 000, 23% of
contracts/grants exceeded $100 000, and 30% of investments were over $25
000. The meeting-level analysis did not show a statistically significant
relationship between conflict rates ("index conflict," "competitor
conflict," or "any conflict") and voting patterns, but a weak, statistically
significant positive relationship was apparent for competitor conflict and
any conflict in the Mantel-Haenszel analyses. The Monte Carlo analyses
produced similar findings in the competitor conflict analysis only. In all 3
conflict categories, the exclusion of advisory committee members and voting
consultants with conflicts would have produced margins less favorable to the
index drug in the majority of meetings, but this would not have changed
whether the majority favored or opposed the drug. Conclusions Disclosures
of conflicts of interest at drug advisory committee meetings are common,
often of considerable monetary value, and rarely result in recusal of
advisory committee members. A weak relationship between certain types of
conflicts and voting behaviors was detected, but excluding advisory
committee members and voting consultants with conflicts would not have
altered the overall vote outcome at any meeting studied."

31. "Patient a 'bag of bones,' ex-center worker claims" dated 27 April 2006
by Kevin Rothstein from the Boston Herald at
http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=136811
<http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=136811&format=
text> &format=text.

"A 12-year-old autistic girl wasted away to a "bag of bones" under a harsh
dietary regime imposed by the controversial Judge Rotenberg Center for
troubled kids, a former employee charges. "When I would give her a bath, I
would literally see the bones looking like they're coming through the skin,"
said Susan Donovan, who quit her job at the center in January. "She looked
like a bag of bones," the former worker said. Donovan took her concerns to
the state, saying the vegan-like diet she says the girl, Samantha Shears,
was forced to follow amounted to neglect. The Department of Social Services
found no problems, but referred the case to the Department of Early
Education and Care, where it remains under investigation, state officials
said. Center founder Dr. Matthew Israel denied Donovan's claims, saying the
12-year-old girl has actually gained weight since she has been in the
center's care. The child's mother also stands by the treatment. It's
hardly the first time the Canton facility has come under fire. It's one of
the few places in the country to use aversion therapy, which zaps
misbehaving kids with painful jolts of electricity. New York State, where
151 of the center's 255 students come from, is considering a ban on sending
youths there, after a Long Island woman complained about her son's skin
shock therapy. Donovan said the school imposes a mandatory vegan-like diet,
producing food like soy yogurt and whole wheat noodles that the severely
autistic and mute girl found so unpalatable she would spit out nearly every
bite. "She used to hold my hand and she'd walk me to the refrigerator and
there are cameras up everywhere, so even if I wanted to sneak her something
I couldn't do it," she said. Samantha Shear's parents sent her to the
Rotenberg Center in desperation after they couldn't stop her from hurting
herself. She had detached both her retinas by banging her head on her hands
so hard. Her mother, Marcia Shear, credits the school with saving her
daughter's life but admits she also was concerned about her daughter's
weight. ..."

32. "Critics slam center, but some parents grateful" dated 27 April 2006 by
Jessica Fargen from the Boston Herald at
http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=136837
<http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=136837> .

"What goes on behind the walls of Canton's Judge Rotenberg Center has been
blasted by critics as barbaric, but embraced by parents of some of the
region's most troubled kids. The center - ripped in the past for shock
therapy - has again come under fire, this time for accusations brought by a
former worker that a 12-year-old autistic girl wasted away becauseof the
facility's nearly vegan diet. "It's appalling," said Polyxane Cobb, a
parent activist from Cambridge. "Pain and humiliation are not successful
therapeutic interventions. They never have been." Cobb said denial of food
is common at the Rotenberg Center. In 1990, an 18-year-old named Linda
Cornelison died at the centerafter refusing to eat and then being forced to
inhale ammonia vapors. She was 5 feet, 5 inches tall and just 90 pounds when
she died. But Dr. Matthew Israel, the center's director, said some kids'
troubles run so deep that "aversive therapy" is the only thing that works.
The center is a last resort for parents of kids with myriad behavioral
problems, including self-mutilation and autism. "We'd like to believe you
never have to use discomfort or pain . . . , but the truth is, for a small
group of students, positive procedures by themselves are just not
sufficiently effective," he said. Kevin Hall, New England director of the
Citizens Commission on Human Rights, called the tactics "barbaric" and
ineffective. "You can change behavior by giving someone extreme pain, which
is what they do, but . . . when the threat is moved away, the behaviors come
back," Hall said. ..."

33. "In 'aversion' treatment fix, punishment key" dated 27 April 2006 by
Jessica Fargen from the Boston Herald at
http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=136836
<http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=136836> .

"Food deprivation, "painful but temporary" daily electric shocks, and
rewards make up the unorthodox and highly controversial treatment for
children's behavior problems at the one-of-a-kind Judge Rotenberg Center in
Canton. The centerpiece of the center's curriculum is aversion therapy, a
series of punishments designed to change behavior through pain and penalty,
so children learn to fix their bad behavior. Good behavior is rewarded with
prizes and perks such as movie privileges and video games. During the
electric shock therapy, students wear a fanny pack, secured with a device
that administers a graduated, "painful, but temporary," shock, the center's
director, Dr. Matthew Israel, has said. The average student receives one
two-second jolt per week, but some receive as many as 50 shocks a day.
Aversion therapy was first introduced in the 1930s as a way to "rid"people
of homosexuality and to treat alcohol addiction, but has recently been used
to treat behaviors such as nail biting and drug addiction. The Rotenberg
Center's aversion therapy has been the subject of several lawsuits, but the
state Supreme Judicial Court has upheld the treatment. "One of the
mechanisms they use to punish children is they tie them onto a board with
their arms and legs spread-eagle. . . . They shock them for 10 seconds,"
said Ken Mollins, a New York lawyer representing families of children who
went to the center. ..."

34. "Magic Johnson to tell autistic basketball star's tale in film" dated
27 April 2006 by Ben Dobbin from the Associated Press at
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0427hoops-magic0427.html
<http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0427hoops-magic0427.html> .

"Jason McElwain came close to blurting out who he wanted to play the
starring role in an inspirational Hollywood movie about him being
co-produced by basketball great Magic Johnson. "If I could release a name
..." the autistic teen said Wednesday as he stood next to Johnson in the gym
where he made six 3-pointers in his first and only appearance for Greece
Athena High School's varsity team. Catching his mother's eye, McElwain
hesitated. Then, in a firm voice that drew a burst of laughter, he said, "I
don't care who plays who - as long as it's a great movie." Asked how
difficult McElwain's feat was, Johnson said, "Oh man, I know I couldn't have
done it." "Yeah, you could have! Yeah, you could have!" an incredulous
McElwain interjected. "No, no," Johnson insisted, laughing. "I'm not a
shooter. I could run the show and get it to guys like you 'cause you can
shoot it. That was my job." Johnson, who has become a business
entrepreneur, political activist and part-owner of the Los Angeles Lakers
since retiring from basketball more than a decade ago, stopped off in this
Rochester suburb to make it official that he's bringing McElwain's "amazing
story" to the big screen. In February, the 17-year-old basketball manager
known to all as "J-Mac" suited up for Greece Athena's final home game of the
season. Put in with 4 minutes to go after his team opened a large lead, he
scored 20 points and was carried off the court on his teammates' shoulders.
His jaw-dropping feat, captured on a student video, drew international
attention and a flood of calls from Hollywood. Sony Corp.'s Columbia
Pictures recently acquired the life rights to McElwain and his parents,
Debbie and David. ..."

35. "FDA approves new ADHD treatment" dated 27 April 2006 by Chauntelle
Folds from Ohio State University's The Lantern at
<http://www.thelantern.com/media/storage/paper333/news/2006/04/27/Campus/Fda
-Approves.New.Adhd.Treatment-1880225.shtml?norewrite200604280949&sourcedomai
n=www.thelantern.com>
http://www.thelantern.com/media/storage/paper333/news/2006/04/27/Campus/Fda-
Approves.New.Adhd.Treatment-1880225.shtml?norewrite200604280949&sourcedomain
=www.thelantern.com.

"As technology advances, researchers are coming up with increasingly
innovative solutions for widespread disorders. A new nine-hour patch,
approved by the Food and Drug Administration, is now being used to treat
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. The Ohio State University
Research Unit on Pediatric Psychopharmacology is devoted to research on
treatments for ADHD, Attention Deficit Disorder and autism, and participated
in trials for the patch. "We participated (in the study) because it is a
new treatment option that's especially useful for children with difficulty
swallowing pills and for whom oral medication has unpredictable duration,"
said Nan Bozzolo, research coordinator at RUPP. With the popularity, ease
and effectiveness of patches for motion sickness, to quit smoking, and even
birth control, researchers sought to bring the tried-and-true method to the
mental health arena. "It provides another strategy for medicating kids with
ADHD," said L. Eugene Arnold, emeritus professor of psychiatry and
coordinating investigator for the patch trials. ADHD is a psychological
disorder affecting children, adolescents and adults and is marked by
inattention, hyperactivity and lacking impulse control. It can be present
with different levels of severity, and diagnosis can begin as early as
preschool. The patch is approved for children, ages 6-12, who have
difficulty with the pill. Psychostimulants are the most commonly prescribed
for treatment of ADHD and methylphenidate, the drug in Ritalin, is the most
widely used form. The patch uses methylphenidate in a dot matrix format,
which passes through the skin and absorbs directly into the bloodstream.
"It gives complete control over duration of effect in a way oral medication
doesn't," Arnold said. Lacramioara Spetie, assistant professor of
psychiatry, said the patch is able to give a continuous dosage and can be
simpler than remembering to take pills at an exact time each day. The patch
can also be removed at any time because of unwanted reactions. ..."

36. "Bright, but Falls Asleep in Class" dated 28 April 2006 by Jay Mathews
from The Washington Post at
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/28/AR200603280
0353.html>
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/28/AR2006032800
353.html.

"Parents of children with learning disabilities all have complicated stories
to tell, but Paula Lazor may have set some kind of record for twists and
turns, victories and defeats. Her most frustrating moment came two years ago
when she found the perfect program for her son John, a special education
student, only to be told by her school district that he could not enroll
because he was a special education student. From time to time, I use this
column to tell stories of individual special education families because that
is the best way to cut through the confusion and bewilderment associated
with learning disabilities. Just reciting all the inexplicable legalities is
not enough. The rules are too hard to comprehend and a huge bore. But a
single family's story can shed light on what actually goes on, and why. In
my Feb. 14
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/14/AR200602140
0793.html> column I told the depressing tale of the Henck family. Their son
has a disability that made him a bully magnet, but his school did not do
much about it. A legal battle ensued that did not accomplish much, other
than get the school's principal briefly indicted for perjury. This time, as
sort of an antidote, I have a hopeful special education story, what happened
to Lazor when she hit the wall that such parents often encounter. She and
her husband and son had to go through the usual torture of regulations not
well understood, but in this case the public school system they dealt with,
Arlington County, Va., proved not to be the villain, the usual role for
school districts in these dramas, but one of the heroes. The way Arlington
reacted to Lazor's distress, and to its own clumsy rules, should be a model
for other school districts. ..."

37. "Easter Seals announces pioneering autism effort" dated 28 April 2006
by Peter Gorner from the Chicago Tribune at
<http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/health/chi-0604280141apr28,1,1219783
.story?ctrack=1&cset=true>
http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/health/chi-0604280141apr28,1,1219783.
story?ctrack=1&cset=true.

"With the stated dream of someday curing autism--a disease being diagnosed
in rapidly increasing numbers--Easter Seals Metropolitan Chicago on Thursday
announced plans to build a $24 million school and research center on 3.4
acres of land donated by the city. Organizers say the 86,000-square-foot
facility at Damen Avenue and 13th Street will be the first of its kind in
the U.S. to integrate education, academic research, early intervention
programs and training to prepare patients for work and independent living.
fficials see the Therapeutic School and Center for Autism Research as a way
to foster interaction between scientists who work on autism and service
providers who can apply their findings to clinical practice and education.
The facility will be run in collaboration with researchers at the College of
Medicine at the University of Illinois at Chicago and Rush University
Medical Center. No one has attempted to do something of this scale before.
But it's timely, it's needed, and it's altogether unique," said Stephen W.
Porges, director of the Brain-Body Center at UIC and a leading researcher
into the causes and treatment of autism. ..."

38. "Feds Could 'Gut' Social Security Disability Rolls" dated 28 April 2006
by Catherine Komp from The NewStandard at
http://newstandardnews.net/content/?action=show_item
<http://newstandardnews.net/content/?action=show_item&itemid=3106>
&itemid=3106.

"Advocates for low-income Americans and people with disabilities are calling
on the federal government to drop a proposed change to Social Security that
would force some people now qualifying for benefits to wait two more years
before receiving aid. They say the change is nothing more than an attempt
to "slash the disability rolls" while increasing hardship for some of
America's most vulnerable. Critics also say the proposal would
disproportionately affect people of color, especially blacks who experience
higher rates of disability and have a harder time finding employment. The
Social Security Administration (SSA) rule-change proposal, published in the
Federal Register last November, would make several different categories of
people qualifying for disability benefits wait two more years for payments
to start. Because Medicare and Medicaid eligibility are based on Social
Security qualifications, individuals would have to postpone receipt of those
healthcare benefits too. Bryan Blackwell, a lawyer who represents Social
Security claimants in Dothan, Alabama, said the wide variety of health
problems that his clients have would make it difficult for them to continue
working. "You have people who have been injured on the job and who may have
received a little money from workers' [compensation], but that's either run
out or fixing to run out," Blackwell explained to The NewStandard. "Maybe
they get a small check, but it doesn't come out to what they were earning
previously. And you know people like that sometimes have to file for
disability." ..."

39. "Illinois' Kids Insurance Program Would Be Nation's First" by Michelle
Diament from the Gannett News Service at <http://tinyurl.com/rzm4b>
http://tinyurl.com/rzm4b.

"When Bianca Sanchez moved from the reception desk to handling insurance
claims at a Chicago health care center three years ago, it seemed like a
good thing all around. But her salary increase - from $15,000 to $35,000
annually - also had a downside: It disqualified Sanchez's 8-year-old
daughter, Soledad, from receiving state-sponsored health coverage. Sanchez
could add Soledad to her employer's health plan, but that would cost $400 a
month in premiums plus $480 for her daughter's asthma prescriptions, which
the plan doesn't cover. Sanchez couldn't afford that option, so Soledad has
been uninsured for three years. Every time she gets the sniffles, Sanchez
worries. She's still paying off an emergency room visit from an asthma
attack in September. But starting in July, Sanchez won't have to worry
about the cost of a doctor if Soledad gets a cold or skins her knee.
Illinois is poised to become the first state to guarantee access to
affordable health care coverage for all children. Sanchez already has
enrolled Soledad in the program, which will cost $40 a month. "It's really
going to change things a lot," Sanchez said, fighting back tears. Currently,
she has trouble paying her bills due to the cost of
her daughter's medication. "If I don't have to worry about her going out and
playing, I'll finally be able to sleep easily." Kids in other states soon
may have access to similar coverage. From Tennessee to Hawaii, state leaders
are touting plans that would make routine visits to the dentist or
pediatrician a reality for all children, regardless of their family income.
Driving the trend is a push by state governments to do something about the
46 million people across the country who lack health insurance. While most
states don't have the money to insure everyone at once, covering children is
a logical first step. ..."

40. "The Contribution of Diagnostic Substitution to the Growing
Administrative Prevalence of Autism in US Special Education" by Paul T.
Shattuck, PhD from the University of Wisconsin (NOT the Paul Shattock, a
frequent speaker at many DAN! conferences) in edition of Pediatrics at
<http://tinyurl.com/jjuyd> http://tinyurl.com/jjuyd.

"OBJECTIVE. Growing administrative prevalence of autism has stirred public
controversy and concern. The extent to which increases in the administrative
prevalence of autism have been associated with corresponding decreases in
the use of other diagnostic categories is unknown. The main objective of
this study was to examine the relationship between the rising administrative
prevalence of autism in US special education and changes in the use of other
classification categories. METHODS. The main outcome measure was the
administrative prevalence of autism among children ages 6 to 11 in US
special education. Analysis nvolved estimating multilevel regression models
of time-series data on the revalence of disabilities among children in US
special education from 1984 to 2003. RESULTS. The average administrative
prevalence of autism among children increased from 0.6 to 3.1 per 1000 from
1994 to 2003. By 2003, only 17 states had a special education prevalence of
autism that was within the
range of recent epidemiological estimates. During the same period, the
prevalence of mental retardation and learning disabilities declined by 2.8
and 8.3 per 1000, respectively. Higher autism prevalence was significantly
associated with corresponding declines in the prevalence of mental
retardation and learning disabilities. The declining prevalence of mental
retardation and learning disabilities from 1994 to 2003 represented a
significant downward deflection in their preexisting trajectories of
prevalence from 1984 to 1993. California was one of a handful of states that
did not clearly follow this pattern. CONCLUSIONS. Prevalence findings
from special education data do not support the claim of an autism epidemic
because the administrative prevalence figures for most states are well below
epidemiological estimates. The growing administrative prevalence of autism
from 1994 to 2003 was associated with corresponding declines in the usage of
other diagnostic categories."

41. "The Age of Autism: Hot Potato on the Hill" by Dan Olmsted from United
Press International at <http://tinyurl.com/jwpsc> http://tinyurl.com/jwpsc.

"The newly proposed legislation to study the autism rate in never-vaccinated
American kids could settle the debate over vaccines and autism once and for
all. Does that mean it will never happen? This week U.S. Rep. Carolyn
Maloney, D-N.Y., stepped out front on the issue. She announced at a briefing
at the National Press Club that she is drafting legislation to mandate that
the federal government find the answer to that question. Notice the word
"mandate" -- as in "direct," which is the language the bill uses. As in,
quit making excuses and just do it. Bureaucrats and lobbyists and "experts"
sometimes forget that the power in this country resides with the people, who
express their will through their elected representatives. This may sound
rather grand, but the point is that legislators are not some "special
interest" who must be humored while the permanent ruling class goes on its
merry way. That's why putting a bill before the Congress -- which Maloney
says she will do by the end of April after getting as much public comment as
possible -- could be a bigger threat than people realize. After all, as
Maloney said this week, "Maybe someone in the medical establishment will
show me why this study is a bad idea, but they haven't done it yet."
Maloney, who credits this column with the idea to look at the
never-vaccinated, also critiqued the studies that supposedly have ruled out
any link between vaccines -- particularly the mercury-based preservative
Thimerosal -- and autism. "The one major government study to date, the
Institute of Medicine's 2004 review, has been met with skepticism from a lot
of people," she said. "There are serious questions about the data set and
methodology. "Meanwhile, there is new biological evidence published in top
journals, and from major U.S. universities, to support the mercury-autism
hypothesis. Just last week we saw the study out of UC Davis, which found
that Thimerosal disrupts normal biological signals within cells, causes
inflammation and even cell death. "In short," the congresswoman concluded,
"I believe that there are still more questions than answers. But answers are
what we desperately need." ..."

42. "Kansas Boy Suspended for Not Being Immunized" at
<http://tinyurl.com/nrn54> http://tinyurl.com/nrn54.

"A high school student in Franklin County has been suspended from school for
12 days because he has not been immunized for mumps, the boy's parent said.
John Brockway told school officials at a board meeting Monday that he's not
happy his son will be barred from school and miss his prom and a music trip,
just because another child at Ottawa High School has mumps. Brockway
criticized a state form that requires parents of students who are not
immunized to agree that their children will be excluded from school in the
case of a vaccine-preventable disease outbreak. Brockway acknowledged he
signed the form, claiming a religious exemption from immunizations for his
children. "If the immunization works, my child is not a threat to anyone,"
he said. The board went into executive session during the meeting, and upon
returning, President Marge Stevens said the board found the school followed
district policy. However, the board asked Superintendent Jan Collins to
investigate further. Collins said Tuesday that school officials are
examining what other districts have done in similar situations. Six cases
of mumps have been reported in Franklin County as of Tuesday, county Health
Department Director Barbara Conus said, and one case involves an Ottawa High
School student. She said all six people either had the vaccination or had
the disease before."

43. "Safety and Immunogenicity of a Measles, Mumps, Rubella and Varicella
Vaccine Given With Combined Haemophilus influenzae Type b
Conjugate/Hepatitis B Vaccines and Combined Diphtheria-Tetanus-Acellular
Pertussis Vaccines" by Henry Shinefield, MD; Steve Black, MD; Marci Thear,
MPH; Daniel Coury, MD; Keith Reisinger, MD; Edward Rothstein, MD; Jin Xu,
MS; Jonathan Hartzel,
PhD; Barbara Evans, BS; Laura Digilio, MD; Florian Schödel, MD; Michelle L.
Hoffman Brown, BS; Barbara Kuter, MPH, PhDfrom The Pediatric Infectious
Disease Journal at <http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/529279>
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/529279.

"The 013 Study Group for ProQuad Abstract and Introduction Abstract:

Background: A study was conducted to assess administration of a combination
measles, mumps, rubella and varicella vaccine (MMRV) with other childhood
vaccines.
Methods: In this open, multicenter trial, 1915 healthy children ages 12-15
months were randomized into 3 groups: group 1, MMRV, combined Haemophilus
influenzae type b conjugate-hepatitis B vaccines (Hib/HepB) and ombined
diphtheria-tetanus-acellular pertussis vaccines (DTaP) concomitantly; group
2, MMRV followed by Hib/HepB and DTaP 42 days later; group 3, MMR and
varicella vaccine followed by Hib/HepB and DTaP 42 days later.
Results: Antibody responses to measles, mumps, rubella, varicella, Hib,
HepB, diphtheria and tetanus were similar between groups 1 and 2 (all >95%,
except varicella, 89.7% in group 1 and 90.9% in group 2). Pertussis toxin
and filamentous hemagglutinin responses were significantly lower in group 1
than in group 2 (group 1, 74.1 and 67.1%; group 2, 90.4 and 86.8%,
respectively). An exploratory analysis suggested that the difference in and
pertussis toxin and filamentous hemagglutinin responses was likely the
result of study design rather than interference among vaccine components
because the groups differed in age of receipt of DTaP (group 1, ~12 months;
group 2, ~13.5 months). When the groups were matched for age, sample size
was sufficient for comparison only in children &#8805;13.5 months old.
Pertussis toxin and filamentous hemagglutinin responses were similar in
these children. The safety profiles for each vaccination regimen were
comparable.
Conclusions: The immunogenicity data support concomitant administration of
MMRV with Hib/HepB. Limited data from an exploratory analysis indicate that
MMRV can be administered concomitantly with DTaP. Concomitant administration
of MMRV, Hib/HepB and DTaP is well-tolerated.


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