WASHINGTON—HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced the availability of nearly $200 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to support student loan repayments for primary care medical, dental, and mental health clinicians who want to work at National Health Service Corps (NHSC) sites.

WASHINGTON—Current patterns of care and treatment for glaucoma are a cost-effective way to slow or prevent vision loss and should be continued, according to a CDC funded study published in the May issue of Ophthalmology, the journal of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

As chief of acute pain medicine and regional anesthesia at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Army Col. Chester “Trip” Buckenmaier’s days are filled with helping others mitigate their pain. Pain, as he explains it, is a subject that touches every aspect of medicine.

WASHINGTON—A national organization comprised of top military and civilian trauma injury experts from around the country is working to draw attention to the need for more trauma injury research. The National Trauma Institute, based in San Antonio, was formalized in 2006. With no single national institute or center devoted exclusively to the funding and development of trauma injury research, the organization has set out to help fill that research and funding gap.

WASHINGTON—The Indian Health Service is making sure that its health facilities are ready to deal with a possible widespread outbreak of H1N1 in the fall. “We are not letting our guard down now. I see a lot of people kind of backing off and it is not in the news as much, but we are staying focused on it…We are focused on the fall to make sure we are prepared,” said Cdr Darrell LaRoche, USPHS, IHS director for Emergency Services.

WASHINGTON—Three out of every 1,000 children between 6 and 17 in the US have been diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome (TS), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found in its first-ever national estimate of the neurological disorder.

WASHINGTON—The Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine (HJF) and the Tug McGraw Foundation are joining forces to host “Country United: Advancing Medicine from the Frontlines to the Homefront.” The two-day event will be held on November 6th and 7th in Washington, DC, and will include a gala as well as a symposium addressing PTSD, TBI, infectious disease, and military/civilian collaborations.

WASHINGTON—Indian Health Service beneficiaries may benefit from expanded health care services if the President’s proposed FY 2010 budget for the agency is passed by Congress.

WASHINGTON—While news of the spread of the H1N1 influenza virus has caused widespread concern around the world, medical leaders in the military health system are confident that years of pandemic planning will help it deal with H1N1 or any other flu virus.

Washington—More support for the family caregivers of those injured in war is needed, a panel of wounded servicemembers and family members told Congress.