News Briefs: Week of Aug. 2-6

This roundup includes the following news briefs:

This summer, the U.S. Government Accountability Office, or GAO, a research arm of Congress, will conduct a national survey of primary and specialty care physicians regarding their participation in Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program. The GAO survey will be mailed to a random sample of physicians, including family physicians. Family physicians who receive the survey in the mail are encouraged to respond. Results of the survey will be included in a report to Congress.

According to an HHS press release, as much as $1 million per state in grant funds are available to help states begin the work of establishing state-based insurance exchanges

The recently enacted health care reform legislation calls for the creation of state-administered insurance marketplaces, or exchanges, in 2014 that will allow small businesses and people without employer-sponsored coverage to purchase insurance. The first round of grant funding will give states the resources to conduct the research and planning needed to build a health insurance marketplace and to determine how their respective exchanges will be operated and governed, according to the HHS press release.

Further information about the grants is available at the Healthcare.gov website.

HHS also issued a request for comment from states, consumer advocates, employers, insurers and other interested stakeholders regarding HHS' rules and standards for the exchanges.

The FDA is warning consumers not to use Miracle Mineral Solution, which also is known as Miracle Mineral Supplement and MMS. When used as directed, the oral liquid produces potent bleach.

The product's label instructs consumers to mix the 28 percent sodium chlorite solution with an acid, such as citrus juice. The mixture produces chlorine dioxide. The FDA said high doses of the bleach, such as those recommended in the labeling, can cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and symptoms of severe dehydration.

The FDA said that MMS is distributed online by multiple distributors who claim the product can treat several unrelated diseases and conditions, including HIV, hepatitis, novel influenza A (H1N1), common colds, acne and cancer.

According to the agency, consumers who have MMS should stop using it and throw it away. The FDA also advised consumers who have experienced side effects from MMS to consult a physician.

Health care professionals and patients should report adverse events or side effects related to the use of the product to the FDA's MedWatch program.

The California Department of Public Health has expanded recommendations for pertussis vaccinations in the wake of the state's growing outbreak.

In addition to the childhood pertussis immunizations recommended (1-page PDF; About PDFs) by the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices and the AAFP, the state health department now recommends a tetanus, diphtheria, acellular pertussis vaccine, or Tdap, booster for the following people:

Jack Chou, M.D., president of the California AFP, said during a July 19 media briefing that he was encouraged by the recommendation to vaccinate seniors because it should encourage grandparents who care for young children to be immunized.

Dean Blumberg, M.D., professor at the University of California-Davis Children's Hospital, said during the briefing that three-fourths of children who are infected with pertussis acquire it from a household source.

The California Department of Public Health said in an Aug. 2 news release that as of July 27, the state had 2,174 reported cases of pertussis, a six-fold increase compared with the number of cases reported by the same time last year. Seven infant deaths have been linked to the outbreak.