The holiday season provides the perfect opportunity to give thanks and to give back to youth who are facing challenges within our communities. In days of uncertainty, there are still people who are providing direction and mentoring to high-risk youth to help them succeed in spite of the unfortunate circumstances they may have encountered. Many studies indicate that a young person’s success can be greatly enhanced by an advocate or mentor — an adult who consistently helps a young person stay on track to graduate and make better life choices. Goodwill’s GoodGuides program is the source of many modern-day mentoring success stories.
The GoodGuides program provides mentoring to youth, ages 12–17, who are at risk of dropping out of school and/or falling into delinquency. The program helps them finish school, transition into the world of work and prepare for success by pairing them with trusted adult volunteer mentors. Mentors help youth overcome disadvantages such as failure in school due to poor grades or low attendance, or avoid delinquency due to issues such as abuse, disability, drug or alcohol dependence, family violence or gang membership.
To view the multimedia release go to:
http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7057252-goodwill-givegoodwill-campaign/
The egg has been regarded as a symbol of new life and has been associated with springtime celebrations, such as Easter and Passover, for many centuries. But, even during festive occasions, eggs can cause food poisoning (also called foodborne illness). That’s why the U.S. Food and Drug Administration reminds consumers to follow safe food handling practices when buying, storing, preparing, and serving eggs or foods that contain them during their springtime celebrations and throughout the year.
To view the multimedia release go to:
http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7790251-fda-egg-safety/
Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for the SYNERGY™ Bioabsorbable Polymer Drug-Eluting Stent System (BP-DES) for the treatment of coronary artery disease.
With this FDA approval, Boston Scientific will commence commercialization of the first and only BP-DES in the U.S. Notably, both the drug coating and the polymer – which modulates drug release – are fully absorbed shortly after drug elution is complete at three months.
The SYNERGY Stent provides synchronized drug and polymer absorption. It is designed to enable more rapid and complete arterial healing, and to thereby reduce the risk of complications associated with long-term polymer exposure compared to currently-used drug-eluting stents (DES) with permanent polymers.
To view the multimedia release go to:
http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7223456-boston-scientific-fda-approval-synergy/
Express Scripts clinical innovations saved its clients $45 billion in 2018 and delivered a 25-year record low drug trend of just 0.4 percent across employer-sponsored plans, according to data released today in its annual Drug Trend Report, an authoritative analysis of drug spending in the U.S.
Express Scripts’ solutions for driving lower drug prices and fostering the use of lower-net-cost treatments are making medication more accessible for beneficiaries. Unit drug costs decreased in 2018 for employer-sponsored and Medicare plans, while utilization of medications rose.
To view the multimedia release go to:
https://www.multivu.com/players/English/8478051-express-scripts-2018-drug-trend-report/
Partnership for Drug-Free Kids, the nation’s leading nonprofit committed to helping families struggling with their son’s or daughter’s substance use, today announced that it has extended the hours of its free Parent Helpline.
The bilingual Helpline is staffed by Parent Support Specialists, trained and caring Master’s-level counselors, who are ready to listen, help parents find answers and make an action plan for their child. Parent Support Specialists offer parents and caregivers the support and resources needed to care for a loved one who is struggling with substances. Families can connect with the Helpline via the website, drugfree.org, by phone at 855-DRUGFREE, through text messaging and Facebook Messenger. Help is available in English and Spanish.
To view the multimedia release go to:
https://www.multivu.com/players/English/8253451-partnership-for-drug-free-kids-extends-parent-helpline-hours/
West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE: WST) and HealthPrize Technologies, LLC, today announced the completion of the first two phases of their four-phase strategic collaboration. The companies are working to integrate HealthPrize’s Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) medication adherence and patient-engagement platform with West’s injectable drug delivery systems to provide an end-to-end connected health solution for pharmaceutical companies and the patients they serve. The combined offering will provide voluntary, electronically connected drug delivery systems that track when patients take their medication. The HealthPrize system engages and educates patients to increase adherence and medical literacy, rewarding interaction and compliance with prescribed treatment plans, and contributing to better health outcomes.
To view the Multimedia News Release, go to http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7625851-west-pharma-healthprize-tech-collaboration/
In an effort to improve outcomes for patients with some of the deadliest childhood cancers, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital scientists have created the world’s largest collection of pediatric solid tumor samples, drug-sensitivity data and related information and have made the resource available at no charge to the global scientific community.
St. Jude and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute collaborated to create the resource, known as the Childhood Solid Tumor Network. The work is reported today as an advance online publication in the scientific journal Nature.
“Survival rates for children with recurrent solid tumors have not improved significantly in more than 20 years and remain below 30 percent,” said corresponding author Michael Dyer, Ph.D., chair of the St. Jude Department of Developmental Neurobiology and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator. “This research will change that by promoting scientific collaboration to leverage the efforts of researchers worldwide to advance understanding and ultimately treatment of pediatric solid tumors.”
To view the multimedia release go to:
https://www.multivu.com/players/English/8121952-st-jude-childrens-childhood-solid-tumor-network/
EnteroMedics Inc. (NASDAQ: ETRM) today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved VBLOC® vagal blocking therapy, delivered via the Maestro® System, for the treatment of adult patients with obesity who have a Body Mass Index (BMI) of at least 40 to 45 kg/m2, or a BMI of at least 35 to 39.9 kg/m2 with a related health condition such as high blood pressure or high cholesterol levels, and who have tried to lose weight in a supervised weight management program within the past five years. The Maestro System is the first new medical device to be approved by the FDA for obesity in over ten years. EnteroMedics anticipates that the device will be available, on a limited basis, at select Bariatric Centers of Excellence in the U.S. this year. The Maestro System has received CE Mark and is listed on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods.
To view the Multimedia News Release, go to http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7269351-enteromedics-fda-approval-vbloc-maestro-system-weight-loss-device/
The winter of 2016-2017 is in its early stages, and yet many parts of the country are already experiencing extreme weather conditions and power outages. In fact, a power outage can happen at any time, and it can affect the safety of your food. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration reminds you that the best way to ensure that food stays safe is to have a plan in place, and to know what food safety precautions to take if a power outage does occur.
To view the multimedia release go to:
http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7876851-fda-power-outage-food-safety-2016/
BioPharmX Corporation (OTCQB: BPMX) today announced the availability of Violet™ iodine, a new, once-daily pill for relief of premenstrual breast discomfort. The first-of-its-kind product is based on the latest molecular iodine technology designed to help free women from the burden of breast discomfort by addressing the underlying causes of a condition known as fibrocystic breast condition (FBC), with the added benefit of promoting breast health for women of reproductive age.*
*These statements have not been evaluated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.
To view the Multimedia News Release, go to http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7378951-biopharmx-introducing-violet-iodine-premenstrual-breast-discomfort/
HealthCare Partners, a division of DaVita Inc. (NYSE: DVA), a leading independent medical group in the United States, is encouraging Medicare beneficiaries to review their health care coverage during Medicare’s Open Enrollment Period.
From October 15 through December 7, Medicare holds its annual Open Enrollment Period. During this seven-week window, Medicare beneficiaries can make changes to their health and prescription drug plans for the following year.
If you are satisfied with your Medicare coverage, you may wonder how open enrollment applies to you. As the old adage goes, “if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it,” right?
While this may certainly be the case for many things in life, it may not be true about your Medicare coverage. Choosing a Medicare plan is similar to shopping for other insurance; by comparing different plans and rates, you choose the coverage that’s best for you.
To view the multimedia release go to:
http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7920151-healthcare-partners-medicare-open-enrollment/
Blink Health, America’s leading prescription drug savings platform, today launched a program to help #TreatType2 diabetes by committing to give away $10 million worth of medication to patients with type-2 diabetes. People living with diabetes who create an account on Blink Health’s website or free mobile app, starting today, will receive a free, one-year supply of the three most commonly prescribed generic medications for type-2 diabetes: metformin, glipizide and pioglitazone. The program will also cover these three medications for existing Blink Health patients who use them.
To view the multimedia release go to:
https://www.multivu.com/players/English/8117451-blink-health-type-2-diabetes-medications/