Governor appoints 27 to boards and commissions

Arkansas News Bureau

LITTLE ROCK — Gov. Mike Beebe today announced 27 appointments to state boards and commissions.

The appointments included:
—Lawrence Berkley of Little Rock replaces Paul Dickson on the Medical Ionizing Radiation Licensure Committee. His appointment expires July 14, 2012.
—Marion Burton of Little Rock was reappointed to the Arkansas Department of Aeronautics Commission. His appointment expires Nov. 9, 2014.
—John Cain of Little Rock was reappointed to the Mosaic Templers of America Center for African-American Culture and Business Enterprise Advisory Board. His appointment expires Oct. 31, 2013.
—Thomas Flowers of Center Ridge replaces Kathryn Scarsdale on the State Board of Career Education. His appointment expires June 30, 2016.
—Dr. Scott Harter of Little Rock replaces Rudy Van Hemert on the Medical Ionizing Radiation Licensure Committee. His appointment expires July 14, 2012.
—Dr. Alice Hines of Conway replaces Freeman McKindra on the Board of Directors of the Arkansas Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Account Foundation. Her appointment expires Sept. 30, 2014.
—Judge Cindy Thyer of Jonesboro replaces Gary Isbell on the Arkansas Pygmalion Commission on Nontraditional Education. Her appointment expires June 30, 2011.
—Dr. Maurice Traylor of Marion replaces Dr. Guy Tucker on the Medical Ionizing Radiation Licensure Committee. His appointment expires July 14, 2012.

Appointed to the Arkansas Fire Protection Services Board:
—Chief Chad Mosby of El Dorado replaces Roger Edwards.
—Jim Tolewitzke of Brookland.
—Bobby Davis of Batesville.
—Chris Jones of Imboden.
—Chief Stacey Caplener of Pleasant Plains.
These are reappointments and will expire October 14, 2012.

Appointed to the Task Force of Racial Profiling:
—Rev. Eddie Cantu of Springdale.
—John Colbert of Fayetteville.
—Chief Carlos Corbin of Little Rock.
—William Dawson of Greenwood.
—Maricella Garcia of Little Rock.
—John Wesley Hall of Little Rock.
—Larry Jegley of Roland.
—Jack Lassiter of Little Rock.
—Leo Monterrey of Little Rock.
—Dorothy Oliver of Pine Bluff.
—Didi Sallings of Mablevale.
—Marcus Vaden of Conway.
—Gary ‘Stoney’ Walker of DeQueen.
Appointments to this new board expire June 30, 2012.

And as previously reported, Tonya Alexander of Marion was appointed special associate associate justice of the Arkansas Supreme Court to hear a Judicial Discipline and Disability Commission case against Pulaski County Circuit Judge Willard Proctor.

Alexander will replace Justice Annebelle Clinton Imber, who retired earlier this year.

Imber’s replacement, William Bowen of Little Rock, is to take her seat on the bench in January.



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New numbers show spike in H1N1 cases

Maricopa County and Arizona State University officials are working to vaccinate high-risk people against the H1N1 virus, as recently released numbers show a spike of confirmed cases in the region.

Are you ready? Tribune H1N1-HQ

According to the state Department of Health Services, out of 429 confirmed cases of influenza reported in the past week, 256 of those were laboratory-confirmed H1N1. Six of those cases resulted in deaths last week. Since April 2009, 131 deaths have been confirmed.

While the number of cases is less than several months ago, state health officials have confirmed that recently they are witnessing a spike in the number of reported and confirmed cases of H1N1 in Maricopa County, according to numbers released Thursday.

Maricopa County to date has had 3,847 H1N1 cases reported for the current flu season. That shows a drop compared with last year's flu season, which saw 5,324 cases of laboratory-confirmed H1N1.

But late November into early December showed a spike in the number of lab-confirmed influenza cases reported, according to regional health officials. They reported that those recent numbers show an increase over this time last year.

"To prepare for a potential third wave of illness, it is important that we continue our efforts to vaccinate high-risk people for H1N1," said Dr. Bob England, director of Maricopa County's Public Health Department. "As soon as we give our high-risk residents the ability to access vaccine, we are planning on opening up these sites for everyone in our community who wants vaccine."

Starting Saturday, and for the first time in Maricopa County, officials are making the H1N1 vaccine available to people who are considered "high risk," according to criteria established by the Centers for Disease Control.

ASU spokeswoman Julie Newberg said the public university has already opened vaccinations to its many students, a program that started in November. Now the university has also opened vaccinations for people in high-risk groups designated by the CDC.

Newberg said just a sampling of those high-risk groups include everyone under 24 years of age, obese people, and those who have asthma, heart conditions, and lung conditions, among other things.

According to the CDC, high-risk groups also include pregnant women, people who live with or care for children younger than 6 months of age, health care and emergency medical personnel, people between the ages of 6 months and 24 years old, and people between the ages of 25 and 64 who are considered high risk because of chronic health disorders or compromised immune systems.

Newberg said many of the university's more than 60,000 students have been vaccinated as long as they are younger than 24, and that it would be difficult to predict the total number of those treated because the process is ongoing. "The numbers change from day to day," she said.

Newberg added that patients did not necessarily have to be affiliated with the university. She said the school recently extended its services to anyone identified as high risk.

To address concerns regarding this and other flu outbreaks, Newberg said the school started a Web site back when H5, or the avian influenza, had a lot of students and workers concerned. The Web site, www.asu.edu/pandemic, also has information about the more recent H1N1, which is also known as swine flu.

"This is a pandemic," Newberg said, acknowledging that the recent public sentiment has been to dismiss the flu virus. Newberg said a pandemic is not dictated by frequency, but by how widespread it is. "H1N1 has spread all over the world," she said.

H1N1 Vaccine clinics

For more information about H1N1, call the bilingual flu hotline at (877) 764-2670. To find locations of Saturday’s vaccine clinics for high risk people, visit www.StopTheSpreadAZ.org.



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TRAX turns 10: UTA move to rail line seems to have grown on residents

Barbara Toomer never dodges a fight with the Utah Transit Authority when fares and access to the disabled are at stake.

In 2001, the West Valley City woman and her friends exited their wheelchairs during an afternoon rush hour and sat on light rail tracks in downtown Salt Lake City, stopping TRAX for about 20 minutes. The sit-down was a protest of a paratransit fare proposal.

As much as Toomer has clashed with UTA management over the years, its services have grown on her — especially light rail, which is 10 years old today.

"I have never ever had any trouble at all with TRAX and I really like TRAX," she said. "I use it every time I go downtown."

A new transportation era rolled in with TRAX a decade ago. Steel wheels became an alternative to rubber tires. And TRAX was the bellwether to more trains: Since the original Salt Lake City-to-Sandy TRAX line opened, it has been expanded three times. Higher speed FrontRunner CommuterRail from Salt Lake City to Ogden opened.

By 2015, UTA plans to add 70 additional miles of railroad to the system: light rail extensions to Salt Lake City International Airport, West Valley City, Draper and the West Jordan area, and commuter rail to Provo.

The introduction of trains to public transit hasn't been without criticism. Bus routes were changed to drop people off at train stations. But some passengers prefer to ride buses since train fares traditionally have been more expensive.

"It's been a real problem for a lot of people," said Toomer, who works for the Disability Rights Action Committee. "They did cut a lot of routes out and one of the reasons is they wanted to get people onto TRAX."

Wheels of light rail were spinning in the heads of UTA's executives 15 years before it became a reality, UTA spokesman Gerry Carpenter said.

UTA brought the issue before Salt Lake County voters in 1992 in the form of a sales tax increase for a handful of transit projects. Voters said no.

"Nevertheless, in 1993 UTA purchased the Union Pacific right-of-way in Salt Lake County, as a 'protective buy' for approximately $18 million," Carpenter said, explaining that even though UTA didn't have money to build the track, they thought buying the property would keep and protect the right-of-way for future use. "This is the railway corridor between 900 South in Salt Lake City and the Salt Lake-Utah county line that eventually became the Sandy to Salt Lake TRAX line."

In 1995, UTA scored a Federal Transit Administration grant that covered 80 percent of the estimated $312 million to build the Salt Lake City-Sandy line.


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State Stem Cell Funding Possibly In Jeopardy

State money has helped Connecticut carve a niche in stem cell research, luring top scientists to the state and funding more than 200 researchers at the University of Connecticut, Yale and Wesleyan as they pursue treatments for cancer, Parkinson's and other diseases using promising new methods.

But with a looming budget deficit, state stem cell funding could be in jeopardy, at least temporarily.

In her proposal to address the deficit, Gov. M. Jodi Rell called for redirecting to the general fund the $10 million that would have gone to stem cell research in 2010, putting off the next installment of research money for a year.

Jeffrey Beckham, a spokesman for Rell's budget office, said that although stem cell research is a good thing to fund, "We have to prioritize, and some things have to be deferred."

Democrats, who control the legislature, have not yet released a proposal to address the deficit, but legislative leaders said they were mindful that stem cell research creates jobs and that cutting it could hurt the state's economy.

Scientists say that taking away the research funding, even for a year, could hurt the state's standing in stem cell research.

"To take the money off the table, it just would send the message that Connecticut is delaying its program, and I think it'll affect our ability to work with people outside the state and with private concerns," said Marc Lalande, director of UConn's Stem Cell Institute.

Although stem cell research in Connecticut is on the upswing — attracting federal funding and private start-up companies — Lalande said the situation is still fragile enough that a loss of even a year of funding could be a difficult blow. A delay in the funding would make it harder to keep top scientists in Connecticut, especially as other states, including Massachusetts, put money into stem cell research.

Federal funding is now available for stem cell work, but research dollars are tight and it is unclear how much federal money will be devoted to stem cell work, Lalande said. The competition for any federal money that is available will be keen, because the funds will be open to researchers throughout the country, he said.

By contrast, the $100 million that Connecticut lawmakers committed in 2005 for stem cell research over 10 years is meant for research in Connecticut. If the program continues as planned, the state would award another $60.6 million in grants by 2015.

Connecticut's stem cell funding did what it was meant to: Put the state on the map as a stem cell center, said Paul Pescatello, president and CEO of CURE, which advocates for the pharmaceutical and biotech industries in the state.

Cutting the money now, even if it's just a one-year delay, could give the impression that the state is reneging on its promise, Pescatello said. "Once that credibility is gone," he said, "it's hard for people to believe that they can count on it and make hiring decisions."

Haifan Lin, director of the Yale Stem Cell Center, likened the potential cut to killing a chicken to get its eggs, a short-term saving that will foreclose the state's ability to realize lasting gains.

Yale University has received $17.3 million in stem cell funding from the state, which created 128 full- and part-time jobs, Lin said. The state money prompted Yale to invest more than $40 million in stem cell research.

That helped Yale recruit 33 researchers and 11 faculty members from out of state, including Lin, who brought with them $7.65 million in grant funding. Other Yale faculty members have also attracted federal funding.

"This is a shining example in Connecticut," he said. "If we destroy this example, it's such a pity."

Although the proposed cut of next year's stem cell money won't take back money from previously awarded grants, it could pose a problem for researchers who used up their funding and were planning to seek another grant to continue their work, potentially disrupting their research, Lin said.

Already, about 200 scientists at Yale and UConn have written close to 90 grant applications for the next round of funding.

State Senate President Pro Tem Donald Williams and House Speaker Christopher Donovan, both Democrats, spoke of stem cell research's ability to create jobs and said they wanted to avoid cuts that could hurt the economy. Williams said he wanted to do all he could to maintain the funding, while Donovan said that the proposed cuts could jeopardize good jobs in an area of strength for Connecticut.



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$8M in stimulus funds go to UNL virology center

An $8 million infusion of federal stimulus money will allow the University of Nebraska-Lincoln to expand its Nebraska Center for Virology, university officials announced Monday.

"It's an excellent stimulus project," said UNL Chancellor Harvey Perlman. "In the near term, construction will crete jobs and stimulate the economy. In the longer term, it will enhance our state's research capacity."

The stimulus funds for the virology center -- housed in the Ken Morrison Life Sciences Research Center -- come from the National Institutes of Health.

UNL will use the money to build a 26,000-square-foot laboratory wing on the north side of the Morrison building on UNL's East Campus. The addition will include as many as seven research labs, support facilities and office and seminar space.

Twelve faculty members, students, postdoctoral fellows and staff are housed in Morrison, and two additional faculty members are being recruited. The expansion will accommodate additional faculty, fellows and students.

Preliminary planning is complete, and the design for the addition is being developed. Bids are expected to be let early in 2011, and construction is set to begin that spring, with completion by summer 2012.

Prem Paul, UNL vice chancellor for research and economic development, said the stimulus money will cover the entire cost of the virology center expansion.

"Our research program has grown tremendously and so space has been challenged," Paul said. "This expansion will be further beneficial."

The virology center links scientists at UNL, the University of Nebraska Medical Center and Creighton University who study the leading viral threats to people, animals and plants.

The center seeks new ways to treat or prevent diseases caused by HIV, herpes, hepatitis and other viruses.

Charles Wood, the center's director, said the addition will allow UNL to pursue new research opportunities, recruit new faculty and students and provide more room for ongoing projects.

"Our goal is to be an international leader in virology research that provides basic knowledge about viruses and strategies to treat and prevent major viral infectious diseases," Wood said. "This addition will give us the room we need to grow toward that goal.



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Providence Bishop Tobin says Kennedy ‘erratic’ — but he’s not referring to mental-health issues

PROVIDENCE, R.I. –– Roman Catholic Bishop Thomas J. Tobin on Monday said Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy has shown “increasingly erratic and unpredictable behavior” during their escalating dispute, but said he was “not at all” referring to the congressman’s well-publicized mental-health issues.

The bishop also said he was not suggesting that Kennedy was unfit for office. He said he was “not familiar” or only “generally familiar” with mental-health and drug-addiction problems Kennedy has openly acknowledged and sought treatment for — most recently four weeks of addiction treatment at a medical facility in June.

“His fitness for office is nothing that I would ever comment on,” said Bishop Tobin. “I think that’s up to the voters to make that decision. But I am concerned about his statements and his reactions to some of these recent events. No, I’m concerned about him and I’m praying for him. As I said before, my door is always open, and I hope we can bring a good reconciliation to all this.”

The bishop said the real issue is “the special responsibilities of a Catholic in public life.”

Neither Kennedy nor his spokeswoman, Kerrie Bennett, could be reached for comment Monday. Meanwhile, Bishop Tobin made a round of national TV appearances, including on CNN and MSNBC’s “Hardball with Chris Matthews” (see related story, Page A8), and spoke on local talk-radio programs. More were scheduled today.

The bishop’s comments came amid continuing controversy over whether Kennedy’s support for abortion rights affects his standing in the Catholic Church. It began when Kennedy, a Democratic four-term representative and the only remaining public official in the nation’s most prominent Catholic family, criticized the Catholic stance on abortion clauses in the health-care overhaul legislation pending before Congress.

In a story in The Sunday Journal, Kennedy alleged that Bishop Tobin forbade him from receiving Communion and that the bishop had “instructed the diocesan priests not to give me Communion.” Bishop Tobin said Kennedy’s statement “has no basis in truth,” and that in 2007 he sent a letter to Kennedy that was “a respectful and gentle request,” not an order.

Bishop Tobin commented about Kennedy’s behavior during interviews with the Associated Press and on the John DePetro show on WPRO talk radio on Monday. He was asked about them later Monday, during an unrelated appearance at La Salle Academy.

“This debate with the congressman is very unfortunate,” he said on the DePetro show. “I’m praying for him, I wish him well. I need to say, honestly, I’m very concerned about the congressman’s increasingly erratic and unpredictable behavior. I think a lot of us are concerned about that. It’s very hard to get a handle on that.

“As his bishop and pastor and also, one of his constituents, by the way, I’m really concerned how he’s responding to this situation. I really hope, I really hope and pray that his friends and supporters and his staff are giving him the help and assistance he needs at this time.”

The bishop took questions at La Salle after a bill-signing ceremony authorizing a Rhode Island license plate for the New England Patriots Charitable Foundation, and a kickoff to the 2009-10 “Keep The Heat On” campaign, a five-year-old diocesan program.

He was asked several times to elaborate on his characterization of Kennedy’s behavior as “erratic,” in the context of Kennedy’s long-acknowledged struggles with alcohol and drug addiction and bipolar disorder, or manic depression. Kennedy sought addiction treatment after a 2006 automobile accident. He spent four weeks in addiction treatment this summer, he said, “to ensure I am being as vigilant as possible in my recovery.”

The bishop said he was talking about Kennedy’s “behaviors,” but “not him personally.”

“No, it has no reference at all to his mental-health issue or his drug issue. I’m not even familiar with all that background. I’m talking about his behaviors recently that are very hard to predict and very hard to respond to …”

The bishop said, “For example, two weeks ago here in Providence, he said he wasn’t going to talk any more about his faith or his status in the Church, and then he returns to Washington and gives a major interview about that.”

Bishop Tobin added, “His statement that was released over the weekend — that somehow I’d instructed all the priests to refuse to give him Holy Communion — has no basis in truth. Again, I’m not in a position to analyze him at all. But I am concerned. I hope he’s doing OK. I’m concerned about his personal, and ultimately his spiritual well-being. That’s what this is all about.”

At the heart of this debate, said Bishop Tobin, “is what it means to be a Catholic in public life ... Being a Catholic in public office carries extra responsibilities. It’s public behavior that affects the community — someone who is in a position to pass legislation and so forth. A person in a public position has a special responsibility, when he or she doesn’t act properly, it can cause scandal and confusion in the community …”

The bishop also reiterated his disappointment Monday that Kennedy had decided to go public with what the bishop said he intended as a private pastoral discussion. “I certainly didn’t relish the idea of discussing his faith or his membership in the church in public. That’s something he put on the table, or erroneously put on the table, I think, so I had to respond.”Bishop Tobin said he still hopes for a private discussion with Kennedy, “after the dust settles.”


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Doctors' group blasts Senate healthcare bill in front of Freedom Tower

As U.S. senators prepared for a critical vote on the healthcare bill Saturday morning, dozens of dissenting physicians and nurses protested at the Freedom Tower in one of 24 rallies staged nationwide.

Holding signs and making speeches touting objections to the proposed reforms, the medical professionals warned that the bill coming before the Senate this week would drastically change the relationship doctors have with their patients.

The bill, which seeks to lower healthcare costs and increase access to medical services for the uninsured, came under fire by those at the rally, including Fort Lauderdale rheumatologist Dr. Yvonne Sherrer.

``Our legislators are committing legislative malpractice,'' Sherrer shouted into a microphone, claiming that the changes proposed by the bill would further restrict how doctors can treat patients.

``We want reform that will take away the current problems in our healthcare system and not take away what's good: the relationship between the doctor and the patient,'' she later said.

Although the bill passed in October by the House of Representatives differs from the one currently being reviewed by the senators, both propose squeezing more than $400 billion out of expected increases in Medicare costs.

The Senate bill also proposes the development of ``new patient care models'' -- a strong issue of contention for the largely conservative crowd at Saturday's event, where doctors criticized what they deemed a takeover by the federal government.

Dr. Patrick Abuzeni, one of two physicians who organized the nationwide rallies, fears the bill will not sufficiently address existing problems, such as ballooning healthcare costs. He said it would simply layer government bureaucracy over a healthcare system already ruined by insurance companies and hospital management staff.

Abuzeni, who blames the high costs born by patients on medical malpractice suits and excessive influence of insurance giants, said elected officials should vote down the bill and instead redirect control of the industry to physicians.

That loss of control, he said, led to a restructuring of the healthcare system that allowed insurance companies to rake in massive profits. One example he noted was last year's $3.2 million compensation plan for UnitedHealth Group's CEO, Stephen Hemsley.

``Those millions of dollars were meant for patient care . . . not Gulfstream jets,'' he said.



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Bill would block same-sex benefits

An Alabama legislator is picking up support for his bill to stop the state's public universities from offering employee benefits to same-sex couples.

Rep. DuWayne Bridges, R-Valley, said he has prepared a bill for the legislative session beginning in January. The bill would prohibit public universities from receiving state funds if they offer benefits to same-sex partners.

"I don't think universities should waste money by making a liberal or politically correct statement," Bridges said.

His bill is aimed at two campuses of the University of Alabama System, which Bridges said are ignoring the intent of a 2006 amendment to Alabama's constitution that banned same-sex marriages.

The University of Alabama at Birmingham on Oct. 1 began enrolling eligible adult domestic partners of either sex of faculty and staff in medical, dental and vision plans. The University of Alabama in Huntsville will extend benefits to domestic partners Jan. 1.

At the University of Ala-
bama's Tuscaloosa campus, President Robert Witt recently told the faculty that the policy is under consideration.

Auburn University does not offer domestic partner benefits, a spokesman said.

Dale Turnbough, a UAB spokeswoman, said offering the benefits helps UAB's medical school compete with other top schools that routinely offer the benefits. She said partner benefits "create a positive, supportive and diverse work environment in which faculty and staff can excel."

Republican Gov. Bob Riley "supports Rep. Bridges 100 percent," Riley press secretary Todd Stacy told The Tuscaloosa News.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Tim James has also endorsed Bridges' bill. Bridges said what the UA campuses are doing amounts to "tacit recognition of same-sex marriage and civil unions."

State Rep. Patricia Todd, who described herself as Alabama's "first openly gay legislator," said many companies and universities are offering domestic partner benefits because they are expected by many top wage-earners.

"They're only going to go someplace that has that kind of benefit," Todd, D-Birmingham, told The Birmingham News.

According to the nonprofit organization Human Rights Campaign, 74 of the 130 universities on the U.S. News & World Report list of top schools offer domestic partner benefits.


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Beebe Releases Flood Aid

LITTLE ROCK — Gov. Mike Beebe announced Wednesday he has authorized the release of $2 million from the Governor’s Disaster Fund to provide limited individual assistance for flood and storm victims in 12 Arkansas counties, including four area counties.

Arkansans with uninsured damage to their primary residences may be eligible for state aid in Franklin, Johnson, Logan, Scott, Columbia, Grant, Lincoln, Lonoke, Ouachita, Pulaski, Union and White counties.

“While we will request a presidential disaster declaration for flooding damage to infrastructure in Arkansas, we don’t believe we will meet the federal requirements for individual assistance,” Beebe said in a release issued by his office. “The state can provide limited funds to help uninsured homeowners in the counties hardest hit start toward recovery.”

Eligibility for state assistance will be based on the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s disaster damage guidelines.

Beginning Thursday morning, victims whose residences have been rendered temporarily or permanently uninhabitable due to the flooding and severe storms on Oct. 29 and 30 can contact the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management at (888) 683-2336. Applications for uninsured damage grants and temporary housing assistance will be accepted for two weeks.

A total of 51 Arkansas counties have been granted state disaster status due to severe weather in October.


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Car insurers should not depend on black boxes

Car insurers should not depend on the data collected by event data recorders (EDR) boxes, as the reasons behind a driver's actions will not be recorded, according to the RAC Foundation .

Philip Gomm, a spokesperson for the organisation, also expressed concern about the expense of introducing the boxes being levied against the drivers as "safety should not be an expensive, optional extra". He added that the government should foot part of the bill as society will benefit from a reduced number of accidents .

EDR will store the speed and actions of the driver, such as breaking and indicating, reported The Telegraph, citing research by the European Commission. It would also monitor any changes in acceleration and record the 30 seconds before a crash and 15 seconds after. This information can then be downloaded by the police .

Earlier this year, The Office for National Statistics reported that in 2007 the total number of road fatalities had fallen by seven per cent when compared to the previous year.


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Heating cover will ensure households stay warm this winter

The number of households that are without heating cover has risen to 65 per cent this year, according to research carried out by uSwitch.com.

Consumers could face substantial bills if something goes wrong and they don’t have insurance . If a boiler breaks down, it can cost up to £1,200 to replace four key parts however, there are some suppliers that will provide support for less than £10 a month.

While gas boilers should be serviced every year to check for poisonous carbon monoxide emissions, 42 per cent of households choose to disregard this industry advice. In the last year 14 people have died and 234 suffered illness after being exposed to the gas, reported the Gas Safe Register .

Will Marples, energy expert at uSwitch.com, explained: "Although budgets are stretched this year, in the long term it could cost you dearly not to have a plan from your provider."


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Car insurance should be renewed in good time to avoid penalties

With the strong possibility of more postal strikes to come, specialist insurance broker Footman James is warning customers to renew their car insurance in good time to avoid penalty points, fines or having their vehicle impounded and crushed.

Paul Matthews, Footman James’ managing director, said: "Our records show that 16 per cent of motorists leave renewing their insurance until the actual day it is due for renewal. In fact, 60 per cent renew within only four days of their renewal date and nearly three per cent actually renew after their renewal date. There are no days of grace – you’re either insured or you’re not."

He added that occurrences such as postal strike action mean that people who prefer to renew by post could have their paperwork delayed and therefore not processed in time.

As a large insurance broker, Footman James has the daily duty of updating details on the Motor Insurance Database (MID) which was launched to help combat uninsured driving and contains the details of all insured vehicles on the UK’s roads.


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Car insurer says female driver stereotypes are outdated

Old-fashioned stereotypes corresponding to women and cars are dead and buried and a new generation of female drivers have arrived, according to Admiral .

Research conducted by Admiral's specialist women's car insurance provider Diamond, revealed that 44 per cent of women discuss their motors with their friends and less than three per cent would pick a car because of its colour.

Sian Lewis, managing director of Diamond car insurance, commented that modern women are making informed choices about which car they buy. She also indicated that female drivers are dedicated to looking after their vehicle . Ms Lewis said: "Our research shows many of the stereotypes you hear about women drivers are very much outdated and untrue."

Recently, Admiral reported that many people are putting themselves at risk if they get behind the wheel when they are stressed. It found that 45 per cent of drivers are more likely to lose concentration when they are anxious .


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Schools to get first swine flu vaccines

Delaware's Division of Public Health will begin its school-based swine flu vaccination campaign Monday, starting with public elementary school students, who will receive the nasal-spray vaccine.

Health officials Thursday would not release the names of all schools that will receive vaccines next week, disclosing only that Christina's Smith Elementary, Capital's East Dover Elementary and Cape Henlopen's Milton Elementary will be among them. The full list of schools expected to receive the vaccines will be released today, according to division spokeswoman Heidi Truschel-Light.

Five teams of nurses will conduct inoculation clinics at schools in New Castle County, and five similar teams will visit schools in Kent and Sussex counties. The teams of about 10 to 16 nurses each will focus on children in grades K-5. A contractor that specializes in mass vaccinations will visit children in public middle and high schools starting Nov. 9, said Dr. Karyl Rattay, public health director.

The division provided permission slips to be distributed in Delaware's 19 school districts and 18 charter schools earlier this month. The deadline for returning them was last Friday. Rattay said the number of vaccines sent to schools will depend on the number of signed consent forms, for which she did not have a tally.

Students in grades K-5 will receive a vaccine that is sprayed into both nostrils. Students younger than 10 will need a second dose after four weeks. Consent forms for the second dose will be sent to parents after the first vaccinations.

Students in grades 6-12 will receive a flu shot and will require only one dose.

There are 125,000 public school students in the state. Delaware has been allocated 520,000 doses of the vaccine but received only 46,000 doses so far.

Rattay said 26,314 doses of the injectable H1N1 vaccine and 2,541 doses of the nasal-spray will arrive in Delaware next week. All of the nasal-spray doses and about 8,000 of the injectable doses will go toward the school-based vaccination campaign, she said.

The remaining injectable vaccines will go to pediatricians, oncologists and university health clinics for students with chronic conditions -- such as asthma, diabetes, heart disease, obesity and a suppressed immune system.

The same contractor that will work in the public secondary schools also will administer vaccines for children in grades K-12 in private and parochial schools. That part of the campaign isn't expected to get under way until late November, Rattay said. Consent forms also were sent to private schools earlier this month.

Health officials say children are particularly vulnerable to the swine flu virus. More than 1,000 people in the United States -- including almost 100 children -- have died from the strain of flu known as 2009 H1N1. Delaware has had three deaths believed related to the swine flu virus. All three victims also had other medical conditions. One was a 15-year-old boy.

Health officials Thursday revised the number of confirmed H1N1 cases from 191 to 377 for the week of Oct. 11 to 17. They said the revision was because of the lag time between when doctors take and submit samples to when they can be tested and confirmed.

Last week, there were 265 new cases, bringing the number of confirmed swine flu cases in Delaware since Oct. 4 to 1,011.

According to public health officials, there were 296 reports of people with flu-like symptoms during the week of Oct. 11 to 17. That number jumped to 603 last week.


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Cost of Halloween tricks may be picked up by insurance

Axa has advised its home insurance customers that their policy should cover them if somebody plays a trick on them over the Halloween period and their property is damaged.

Nick Kidd, head of household at Axa, said that the company does not want to spoil anyone's fun, but he advised people to check that their doors and windows are locked during the festivities. His comments were made following research by the organisation which showed that the week between October 30th and November 5th is the worst of the year for malicious damage claims.

Mr Kidd said: "Damage caused to another person's property is not only anti-social but also a criminal offence and while insurance can pick up the cost, it can't deal with the emotional trauma." The firm also reported that over 1,000 people are injured every year as a result of fireworks.

Recently, Axa revealed that a third of businesses are unaware of their legal requirements to insure their employees.


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Planned background checks for in-home healthcare workers are criticized

County social service chiefs in California protest the Schwarzenegger administration's plan for prospective health aides, saying they aren't ready to enact the new application process.

Reporting from Sacramento - A storm of protest has erupted over the Schwarzenegger administration's push to require prospective home health aides for the elderly and disabled to begin undergoing criminal background and fingerprint checks next week.

Social service chiefs in counties throughout the state have warned that they aren't ready to begin the time-consuming new application process -- and the delay could mean some elderly and frail patients would go without care.

Advocates for the elderly and disabled say the administration's rush to begin the checks, part of an anti-fraud effort Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger pushed during last summer's budget negotiations, seems to have an ulterior motive: dissuading new patients and providers from participating in the $5.5-billion government-funded home healthcare program.

"This is just a disaster in the making," said Deborah Doctor, legislative advocate for Disability Rights California. "I don't want to overdramatize this, but it could have the same effect as cutting people off the program."

A legislative oversight hearing is slated for today to address the concerns and potentially make a push to delay the start of the new process, which would apply starting Monday to all new applicants for home health aide jobs. The state's more than 376,000 existing care workers would have to undergo the new background checks by June.

"This has created chaos and uncertainty for frail elderly and disabled people," said Assemblywoman Noreen Evans, who wants a three- to four-month delay.

Administration officials referred queries about the program to the state's Department of Social Services, which has been hustling to start the new application process.

Lizelda Lopez, the department's spokeswoman, said the looming deadline was set by the Legislature during budget negotiations and should come as no surprise.

"Nobody denies these were very aggressive time frames," Lopez said. But she said the department has been working with the counties for months to enact the new procedures. "We didn't start talking to them yesterday."

The In-home Supportive Services program has been caught in a tug-of-war between the Schwarzenegger administration, which contends that it is rife with potential fraud, and Democrats in the Legislature who see it as a humane and cost-effective alternative to nursing homes and other institutionalized care.

Coloring the debate is the fact that the in-home program is a big growth sector for labor unions, which traditionally have supported Democratic candidates and causes while reliably opposing those backed by Schwarzenegger and other Republicans.

Schwarzenegger tried during the summer budget fight to cut aid to 90% of the program's participants, but Democrats kept the program largely funded while going along with the anti-fraud effort.

"My question is whether this is an attempt by the administration to do what the Legislature would not allow it to do," Evans said.

County officials said the new rules have caused confusion and concern for patients and their healthcare providers.

"Our lobbies are flooded, telephones ring continuously, and staff have insufficient information to provide answers," Linda Haugan, assistant administrator for San Bernardino County Human Services, said in a letter to the state. "This has created a major disruption."

County officials say there are several key logistical problems.

The new rules require prospective healthcare workers to undergo an orientation session that will require counties to hire new staff and office space. Meanwhile, some counties say the new enrollment forms haven't been provided yet.

Officials in Los Angeles County, where more than 185,000 people receive in-home care, said they received the latest instructions just a day ago, giving them a week to prepare.

With more than 4,000 new applications each month for in-home care workers, the inability to approve new providers "will create an extreme hardship on aged and disabled individuals," Philip L. Browning, director of the county Department of Public Social Services, said in a letter to the state.


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Forgiving loans could draw med students to primary care and curb a projected shortage

It's one small piece of health care reform, but it's a big deal for medical schools and doctor's offices: forgiving the student loans of doctors who choose primary care.

With fewer medical school students choosing the lower-paying fields of family medicine, internal medicine and pediatrics, lawmakers and others say something has to be done to attract them. Helping students repay their loans could help fill a shortage of general physicians that one report estimates could reach 44,000 by 2025.

"The financial burden drives very responsible people to make decisions that may not be in our state and country's best interest," said Dr. Patricia Simmons, a member of the University of Minnesota's Board of Regents and a professor at the Mayo Clinic.

Primary care physicians now make up 35 percent of today's physician workforce, according to the Council on Graduate Medical Education. Already there are shortages in some parts of the country. But only 20 percent of medical school graduates are choosing those fields. Instead, often loaded with debt, they're picking higher-paying specialties.

If health care reform allows millions of uninsured people to get regular care, more general practitioners will be needed to do their annual checkups and treat their diseases.

They'll need people like Dustin Sperr.

Sperr, 25, plans to be a doctor, and by doctor he means family physician -- the only kind there was growing up in Herman, Minn. He loves the idea of handling everything from ear infections to Alzheimer's.

"There's a lot of ownership in that kind of patient care," said Sperr, a med student at the University of Minnesota.

He'll make less in family medicine than he would with a specialty such as surgery, but that's OK with him.

He also knows that if he moves back to western Minnesota he'll qualify for loan repayment programs. State and federal programs offer providers in areas with under-served populations yearly payments toward their debt.



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Travellers warned about holiday accidents

A comparison website is warning customers not to risk going on holiday without travel insurance as accidents often happen when people are away from home.

Lee Griffin, business development director at Gocompare.com, made his comments following research by the website which found that almost 29 per cent of people taking a holiday in a second home did not get insured for the trip.

Mr Griffin claimed that people are just as susceptible to illnesses and theft when they are at their second home as they are in any other travel accommodation . He explained: "If you have an accident or fall ill and you're not insured, you could end up in the ludicrous position of having to sell your holiday home to settle your medical bill." Such bills can end up costing thousands of pounds in some countries, he added.

Recently, Gocompare.com launched a pet insurance comparison service, which it claimed is the first of its kind in the UK.


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Advocates plan protest over possible cuts in mental health

Advocates for the mentally ill are planning a large protest at the State House tomorrow amid fears of deep state budget cuts to the Department of Mental Health, which could threaten the lifeline of many of the state’s neediest, they said.

Gov. Deval Patrick is expected to announce by the end of the week how he will close an existing $600 million budget gap. Workers in the mental health field say they fear the governor will make cuts to the state’s clubhouse programs, which house job training, housing placement and education services for the mentally ill.


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Top 20 hotspots for car insurance claims revealed

Car insurance claims for theft from their car or theft of their car are most likely to be made by drivers in Chislehurst in Bromley in Kent and Wingate in Cleveland.

Many big cities were also featured in the top 20 for theft claims on car insurance, including Manchester, Sheffield and Bradford . However, Steve Sweeney from moneysupermarket.com, who provided the data, said: "What the research does reveal is a broad mix of places across the country are at risk, highlighting the issue that no matter where you live, there is always a chance you could become a victim of theft and motorists should take this risk seriously."

Car insurance premiums in higher risk areas are likely to cost more. It is therefore essential for motorists to shop around and get the best car insurance deals to meet their needs. While there are ways to save money on car insurance, it is also important to ensure that vehicles are secure. They should be locked and parked in a safe place.


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