* ►July 3, 2009 - '100,000 fresh swine flu cases a day by August,' says Health Secretary - Spread of swine flu can no longer be contained, Government admits - The Independent, UK

* ►July 2, 2009 - Boys should be given cervical cancer vaccine, says BMA - Boys should be given the cervical cancer vaccine as well as girls in order to protect both sexes against sexually transmitted infections, doctors said. - The Telegraph, UK

* ►July 2, 2009 - Even The Shallows Dry Up: The GMC Hearing June 22nd and 23rd. By Martin J. Walker - Age of Autism

* ►July 2, 2009 - Gluten & autism: case study in Journal of Child Neurology - Teresa Binstock, Researcher in Developmental & Behavioral Neuroanatomy via Generation Rescue

* ►July 2, 2009 - Autism and Gene Research. Who Benefits? By Teresa Conrick - Age of Autism

* ►July 2, 2009 - New flu may not spread like regular flu -studies - * New virus has not quite mutated to human form * Additional changes could worsen spread - Reuters - "Genetic analysis and lab experiments with the virus show it lacks a piece of genetic material that makes ordinary flu viruses so transmissible, a team of U.S. researchers found. Researchers in the Netherlands, meanwhile, found it lives very well in the nose and their findings suggest it has the ability to stay around for a long time -- and get worse. Both studies, published in the journal Science, show that H1N1 swine flu needs to be closely watched, said Dr. Terrence Tumpey of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention."

* ►July 1, 2009 - Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 - update 56 - World Health Organization

* ►July 1, 2009 - Monsanto's Roundup Kills Human Cells - Adventures in Autism

* ►June 30, 2009 - Food Hypersensitivity & Bisphenol A - Teresa Binstock, Researcher in Developmental & Behavioral Neuroanatomy via Generation Rescue

* ►August 2009 - Age-appropriate use of human papillomavirus vaccines in the U.S. - journal article (Gynecologic Oncology) - "HPV vaccine introduction should be considered in the context of a very successful cervical cancer screening program that has reduced the rates of cervical cancer by 75% or more. Thus, HPV vaccines will only prevent an incremental number of additional cervical cancers in the U.S."

* ►August 2009 - Use of Revised International Health Regulations during Influenza A (H1N1) Epidemic, 2009 (pdf) - journal article (Emerging Infectious Diseases)

* ►August 2009 - Reproducibility of Serologic Assays for Influenza Virus A (H5N1) (pdf) - journal article (Emerging Infectious Diseases)

* ►August 2009 - Association between human papillomavirus and Epstein-Barr virus infections in human oral carcinogenesis - journal article (Medical Hypotheses)

* ►July 2, 2009 - Solutions for Forced Vaccinations and Flu Pandemics - NaturalNews.com

* ►July 1, 2009 - PCC Orders Sunday Times To Remove Brian Deer/Dr Andrew Wakefield Stories From Website - Thoughtful House via The One Click Group

* ►July 1, 2009 - A "Refrigerator Mother" Adult with Autism Speaks Out By Roger Kulp - Age of Autism

* ►July 1, 2009 - Eric London Resigns from Autism Speaks By Katie Wright - Age of Autism

* ►July 1, 2009 - The Human Condition: Claudia Kalb: Another Resignation At Autism Speaks - Newsweek - "This week, Dr. Eric London, a member of Autism Speaks’s Scientific Affairs Committee, ... In his letter of resignation, London said that Autism Speaks’s argument that 'there might be rare cases of ‘biologically-plausible’ vaccine involvement…are misleading and disingenuous.' He goes on to charge the organization with 'adversely impacting' autism research."

* ►July 1, 2009 - Second Resignation from Autism Speaks Reflects Concerns Over Vaccine-Related Research - Autism Blog via http://autism.about.com

* ►July 1, 2009 - Celiac disease four times more common than in '50s - CTV - "Dr. Joseph Murray, a Mayo Clinic gastroenterologist who led the study, said the researchers do not know why celiac disease has become more prevalent in the last fifty years. '(Celiac disease) now affects about one in a hundred people,' Murray said."

* ►July 1, 2009 - TB vaccine could kill babies with HIV: WHO - AP via CTV - "WHO says a three-year study in South Africa found babies born with HIV had a higher risk of contracting a deadly form of TB if given the widely used BCG vaccine. The study recommends not vaccinating babies with HIV and delaying vaccination for those babies whose HIV status is unknown. The study was published Wednesday in the journal Bulletin of the World Health Organization."

* ►July 1, 2009 - Swine Flu - Lab Accident Caused 'Pandemic' Claims NEJM - The Telegraph via The One Click Group

* ►July 1, 2009 - Findings from H1N1 Countermeasures Strategy and Decision Making Forum to be discussed during teleconference - SmartBrief - "The National Biodefense Science Board will be holding a public teleconference to discuss the findings from the June 18 and 19 H1N1 Countermeasures Strategy and Decision Making Forum. According to a June 30 Federal Register notice, the teleconference, which will be held July 17 from noon to 2 p.m. EDT, will give the public the opportunity to comment on a proposed report of the findings. Read the Federal Register notice."

* ►July 1, 2009 - Vaccine-Induced, Simian Immunodeficiency Virus-Specific CD8+ T Cells Reduce Virus Replication but Do Not Protect from Simian Immunodeficiency Virus Disease Progression - journal article (The Journal of Immunology)

* ►July 1, 2009 - Do not party 'til swine flu comes home - Republican American - "Internet forums have been buzzing with posts encouraging people to host social gatherings with at least one person infected with the virus, technically known as H1N1. The thinking is that if children get the current, mild form of the flu, they will be protected or immune from a possibly more virulent version of the virus in the fall or winter. Dr. Michael Simms, director of infectious diseases at Saint Mary's Hospital in Waterbury, pointed out that, unlike measles, mumps, rubella or chicken pox, there is no such thing as immunity from the flu."

* ►July 1, 2009 - Roche To Offer Developing Countries Discounted Tamiflu - Kaiser Global Health

* ►July 1, 2009 - Novartis Animal Health Expands Staff - Pork Industry News - "Novartis Animal Health has announced the expansion of its U.S. swine sales team – increasing its total number of U.S. swine sales, marketing and technical service professionals to 20. The expansion is a demonstration of Novartis Animal Health’s long term commitment to the U.S. swine industry, according to Steve Boren, vice president of sales and marketing for the Novartis Animal Health U.S. Farm Animal Business."

* ►July 1, 2009 - HPV Vaccination Not Cost Effective In The Netherlands, Study Shows - Even under favorable assumptions, including lifelong protection against 70% of all cervical cancers and no side effects, vaccination against the human papillomavirus (HPV) is not cost-effective in the Netherlands, according to a study published online July 1 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. - ScienceDaily

* ►July 1, 2009 - Gardasil may have cosmetic adverse effect - The HPV vaccine Gardasil may occasionally cause subcutaneous fat loss at the injection site in some women as a rare side effect, according to doctors at Monash University. - 6minutes.com.au - "Writing in the journal Vaccine (online 23 June), researchers at the department of infectious diseases report two cases of involutional lipoatrophy that occurred in women aged 23 and 25, after they received the first dose of the quadrivalent HPV vaccine in the deltoid area. ... Lipoatrophy might be caused by the aluminium component of vaccines inducing an inflammatory reaction via the secretion of cytokines, that induce tissue injury and subsequent fibrosis and sclerosis, they suggest."

* ►July 1, 2009 - Today in Bad Government - Motley Fool - "Today in Bad Government (TBG) starts in America at the normally shill-tastic SmartMoney website, where Brigid McMenamin presents you with 10 Things Your Congressperson Won't Tell You.  Did you know that lobbying is the top career choice for departing Congresspersons. 'According to a 2005 report by Public Citizen, since 1998 more than 43 percent of all eligible departing congresspeople went into lobbying.'"

* ►July 1, 2009 - FDA: Anti-smoking drugs can make you crazy - Booster Shots Blog via Los Angeles Times - "The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday announced it has ordered the makers of the prescription anti-smoking medications Zyban and Chantix (also known by their pharmaceutical names bupropion and varenicline) to warn patients that taking the drugs may cause changes in behavior and mood, including hostility, agitation, depression and suicidal thoughts or behavior."

* ►July 1, 2009 - Hepatitis E Infection More Widespread in the U.S. than Previously Suspected - press release - Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health - "The study found antibodies indicating exposure to HEV in 21 percent of the U.S. population between 1988 and 1994."

* ►July 2009 - Cytokine Imbalance after Measles Virus Infection Has No Correlation with Immune Suppression - journal article (Journal of Virology)

* ►July 2009 - Eczema Herpeticum and Clinical Criteria for Investigating Smallpox - journal article (Emerging Infectious Diseases)

* ►July 2009 - Potential Impact of a 2-Person Security Rule on BioSafety Level 4 Laboratory Workers - journal article (Emerging Infectious Diseases)

* ►July 2009 - Orienting of visual attention among persons with autism spectrum disorders: reading versus responding to symbolic cues - journal article (Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology)

* ►July 2009 - Eye-movement patterns are associated with communicative competence in autistic spectrum disorders - journal article (Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines)

* ►July 2009 - The prevalence of autism spectrum disorders: impact of diagnostic instrument and non-response bias - journal article (Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines)

* ►July 2009 - Self-referenced memory, social cognition, and symptom presentation in autism - journal article (Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines)

* ►July 2009 - Autism and Hypoplastic Corpus Callosum in a Case of Monocentric Marker Chromosome 15 - journal article (Pediatric Neurology)

* ►July 2009 - Antidepressant-Induced Suicidality: Implications for Clinical Practice - journal article (Southern Medical Journal)

* ►July 2009 - Alzheimer's disease and infection: Do infectious agents contribute to progression of Alzheimer's disease? - journal article (Alzheimer's & Dementia) - "Infections with herpes simplex virus type 1, picornavirus, Borna disease virus, Chlamydia pneumoniae, Helicobacter pylori, and spirochete were reported to contribute to the pathophysiology of AD or to cognitive changes. Based on these reports, it may be hypothesized that central nervous system or systemic infections may contribute to the pathogenesis or pathophysiology of AD, and chronic infection with several pathogens should be considered a risk factor for sporadic AD. If this hypothesis holds true, early intervention against infection may delay or even prevent the future development of AD."

* ►June 30, 2009 - Canada-U.S. may go differently on vaccine production - Canadian Press via CTV - "Canada and the United States may go separate ways when deciding whether powerful boosting compounds called adjuvants should be added to swine flu vaccines, experts suggest. Canada will likely use adjuvanted swine flu vaccine, says Dr. David Butler-Jones, head of the Public Health Agency of Canada. But it is not a slam-dunk that regulatory authorities south of the border will clear adjuvanted flu vaccines for a U.S. mass vaccination campaign -- if one takes place -- this fall, some American experts say. 'The risk-benefit of using an adjuvant in a population in which you don't have a lot of data, i.e. younger people . . . has to be balanced against ... what's going on,' says Dr. Anthony Fauci, head of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases."

* ►June 29, 2009 - Celiac Disease Presenting as Autism - journal article (Journal of Child Neurology)

* ►June 29, 2009 - Increasing prevalence and high incidence of celiac disease in elderly people: A population-based study (pdf) - journal article (BMC Gastroenterology) - "The prevalence of celiac disease was high in elderly people, but the symptoms were subtle. Repeated screening detected five biopsy-proven cases in three years, indicating that the disorder may develop even in the elderly. Increased alertness to the disorder is therefore warranted."

* ►June 29, 2009 - C-section Births Cause Genetic Changes That May Increase Odds For Developing Diseases In Later Life - Swedish researchers have discovered that babies born by Caesarean section experience changes to the DNA pool in their white blood cells, which could be connected to altered stress levels during this method of delivery, according to the July issue of Acta Paediatrica. - Wiley - Blackwell, via AlphaGalileo via ScienceDaily

* ►June 28, 2009 - Bioweapons: Biological threats to Canadians and World Citizens - Global Research.ca - "CAP demands criminal investigations and open public inquiries into all eugenics programs of the global elite, the research being done in biological labs within Canada and the immediate investigation of all inoculation programs. We oppose any enforced inoculations and would ban any media propaganda used to influence and/or convince the populace into submitting to inoculations or other preventative methods which are not clearly and unequivocally documented scientifically to be safe and effective."

* ►June 28, 2009 - Lyme Disease: Targeting The Wrong Offender In The Abuse Of Antibiotics - The Day - "An estimated 50-70 percent of antibiotics in the United States are used in animal food, not for disease, but to fatten livestock and poultry, which annually produce 40 times more fecal waste than humans. That manure is the route for infectious microbes escaping into the environment. In June 2009 Johns Hopkins Magazine reported the findings of a Hopkins researcher who estimated 89 percent of bacteria in one manure area sampled were drug resistant. In 2006, the European Union banned antibiotics from animal feed, yet our government continues to sanction healthy animals being fed huge amounts of antibiotics to get fat, while sick Lyme patients are denied antibiotics to get well."

* ►June 25, 2009 - Vaccination for Atherosclerosis - journal article (Clinical Reviews in Allergy and Immunology)

* ►June 25, 2009 - Superior Immune Response to Protein-conjugate vs. Free Pneumococcal Polysaccharide Vaccine in COPD - journal article (Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine)

* ►June 24, 2009 - Maine legislature approves pharmacist immunization - American Parmacists Association

* ►June 24, 2009 - Mapping brain abnormalities in boys with autism - journal article (Human Brain Mapping)

* ►June 22, 2009 - Essential fatty acids and attention-deficit–hyperactivity disorder: a systematic review - journal article (Developmental Medicine & Child Neurology)

* ►June 2009 - Recurrent isolated sixth nerve palsy after consecutive annual influenza vaccinations in a child - journal article (Journal of American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus) - "We report the case of recurrent isolated sixth (abducens) nerve palsy after consecutive annual influenza vaccinations in an otherwise-healthy 2-year-old boy. Investigations including magnetic resonance imaging of the brain and orbits after each episode failed to reveal any abnormality. The temporal relation to the immunizations supports but does not prove that the influenza immunization regimen was responsible."

* ►July 1, 2009 - Vaccine Expert Reveals What You Should Know Before You Roll Up Your Sleeve - NaturalNews.com - "Here are Dr. Tenpenny's well documented findings in the form of questions everyone should be asking."

* ►July 1, 2009 - Halt Japanese encephalitis immunization drive: BJP - Times of India - "The state BJP has raised eyebrows over the Chinese vaccine for Japanese encephalitis being administered to school children by state health department. 'There is a psychological fear among parents about the safety of this vaccine. This is because of the perception that Chinese goods are of low quality. Although we are told that the vaccine has been approved by the World Health Organisation (WHO), it is known that drugs are being tested in third world countries. 'From whatever research we have carried out, it is learnt that mouse brain is a component in this vaccine, and it has a side effect. However, we are still researching about this vaccine,' Parvatkar said. 'Parents have also consulted their family doctors about this vaccine, and the doctors themselves have expressed their ignorance of such a vaccine,' he added."

* ►July 1, 2009 - The Case for Public Ownership of Patient Data - journal article (JAMA)

* ►July 1, 2009 - Ethical Collection, Storage, and Use of Public Health Data - Review of Herpes Zoster - journal article (JAMA)

* ►July 1, 2009 - State Licensure and Professional Monopolies in Medicine - journal article (JAMA)

* ►July 2009 - Using Personal Health Records to Improve the Quality of Health Care for Children (free full text) - journal article (Pediatrics)

* ►July 2009 - The Future of Pediatrics: Mental Health Competencies for Pediatric Primary Care (free full text) - journal article (Pediatrics)

* ►July 2009 - Expert Witness Participation in Civil and Criminal Proceedings (free full text) - journal article (Pediatrics)

* ►June 30, 2009 - Gardasil: the denial continues by Renate Klein - On Line Opinion - "Two weeks after receiving the 'cervical cancer' vaccination Gardasil, 26-year-old Shannon from Melbourne remembers, 'it became so difficult to breathe that I went straight to the emergency room. I was very frightened at this point. Two weeks before I had been fit and healthy, and by this stage I was limping around the house like a stroke victim, wheezing and worried I was suffocating.'  At the hospital Shannon had x-rays, blood tests and an MRI. She was told that the lining of her left lung had become so inflamed that it was rubbing against her chest wall each time she breathed. The Head Consultant looking after her said that she must have gotten some mysterious virus and that Gardasil had been tested and was safe. She was released with no diagnosis other than 'pleurisy' and given painkillers. Five months after receiving the vaccine she saw a neurologist who confirmed that she had damage to her left side and that it was 'an auto-immune reaction, resulting in inflamed lining of the left lung and nerves on the left side, with a temporal connection to Gardasil injection'. Shannon says she’s never been so sick all her life. Fourteen months later she had to quit her job and is now desperately trying to regain her health."

* ►June 30, 2009 - ACIP: No Preference for Separate MMR and Varicella Vaccines - MedPage Today - "Most members supported separate administrations of the MMR and varicella vaccines because of a lower risk for febrile seizures in the first two weeks after receiving the shots. The committee had originally recommended the use of the four-vaccine combination, known as ProQuad, because it reduces the number of shots and presumably increases immunization rates. But, in March 2008, that preference was removed following preliminary data from two studies that detected an increased risk of febrile seizures with the combination."

* ►June 30, 2009 - Appeals Court to Vaccine Court: Don’t be a Putz! By Kent Heckenlively, Esq. - Age of Autism

* ►June 30, 2009 - David Kirby: "Tidal Wave" of Young Adults with Autism about to Flood Cash-Strapped California - The Huffington Post

* ►June 30, 2009 - Harvey Karp: Cracking the Autism Riddle: Toxic Chemicals, A Serious Suspect in the Autism Outbreak - The Huffington Post

* ►June 30, 2009 - Did leak from a laboratory cause swine flu pandemic? - Same strain of influenza was released by accident three decades ago - The Independent, UK

* ►June 30, 2009 - Insect cells deliver potential flu vaccine - The Canberra Times - "A swine flu vaccine made using insect cells is only months away from being available in Australia as researchers seek approvals for human trials. The University of Queensland has produced Australia's first batch of a new candidate vaccine against the A(H1N1) swine flu virus. US firm Protein Sciences developed the vaccine earlier this month and is transferring its technology to other countries. This is part of an agreement with the United Nations and the World Health Organisation to ensure a vaccine is available to all UN member countries."

* ►June 30, 2009 - Vical H1 Influenza Vaccine Delivers Robust Preclinical Results With 100% Response - Vical via Globe Newswire via StreetInsider.com

* ►June 30, 2009 - Dreading flu shot? Get set for triple dose - The Canadian Press via The Chronicle Herald - "Health Canada, which regulates vaccines, has said manufacturers will be required to submit immunogenicity data — results of clinical trials that show whether the vaccine elicits a sufficiently strong immune response. And vaccine manufacturers are being asked to submit plans for how they will conduct surveillance for adverse events once their vaccines are in wide use."

* ►June 30, 2009 - When viruses book a flight - Toronto doctor's system of analyzing air traffic to map potential hotbeds first tested with swine flu - The Toronto Star

* ►June 30, 2009 - China Journal: My 4 Days in Quarantine - CBS News

* ►June 30, 2009 - Novartis receives Complete Response letter from the US Food and Drug Administration for its investigational vaccine Menveo(R) - Hugin via COMTEX via FOX Business

* ►June 30, 2009 - Patients’ safety must not be sacrificed to financial targets, doctors say - journal article (BMJ)

* ►June 30, 2009 - Prioritizing Comparative-Effectiveness Research — IOM Recommendations (free full text) - journal article (NEJM)

* ►June 30, 2009 - Comparative-Effectiveness Research — Implications of the Federal Coordinating Council's Report (free full text) - journal article (NEJM)

* ►June 29, 2009 - H1N1 Flu Formerly Known As Swine - Planet Chiropractic

* ►June 29, 2009 - Drugging Our Children to Death - HealthNewsDigest - "The initiative to drug our children for profit has exceeded all common sense boundaries and is threatening the welfare of every American child. It is up to each and every one of us to stop this madness! We have allowed ourselves to be “sold down the river” by savvy marketing executives who care more about their corporate bottom line than they do about our children or our families. The scope of the collective greed and malice has now reached epidemic proportions and, sadly enough, can be measured in body countsmany of them being our children’s. The numbers don’t lie. The verdict is in. We are drugging our children to DEATH! Gwen Olsen spent more than a decade as a sales rep in the pharmaceutical industry, working for health care giants such as Johnson Johnson, Bristol-Myers Squibb and Abbott Laboratories."

* ►June 29, 2009 - U.S. Attorney News Release: Ringleader Sentenced to Nine Years In Federal Prison For Allergy Testing Health Care Fraud Scheme That Bilked Insurance Companies and Deceived Thousands of Patients (pdf) - United States Department of Justice (USDOJ)

* ►June 29, 2009 - Roche's Tamiflu Works In Swine Flu Despite Denmark Case (requires registration) - Dow Jones Newswires via The Wall Street Journal - "This first surge in demand for Tamiflu came after a new bird flu virus had emerged in Asia, and had been widely expected to be the cause of the first pandemic in more than 40 years. That didn't happen though because the virus never was circulated heavily in humans. Instead the now circulating swine flu virus emerged in Mexico a few months ago, causing the 21st centuries first pandemic. The U.S. alone has a stockpile of 50 million courses of antiviral medicine on a federal level and a further 22 million courses on a state level. Governments are holding the drugs to protect people working on the front line of a pandemic, such as healthcare workers, thereby limiting the spread. At some point, there will certainly be resistance to Tamiflu, said Birgit Kulhoff, pharmaceutical analyst in Zurich with private bank Rahn & Bodmer. "Sooner or later there will be resistance, and I would expect that to happen when the swine flu virus starts mixing with seasonal flu viruses," she said."

* ►June 25, 2009 - Making information about clinical trials publicly available - journal article (BMJ)

* ►June 23, 2009 - Whistleblowing is crucial for a "world class" NHS - journal article (BMJ)

* ►June 23, 2009 - Doctors call for head of World Medical Association to quit as "matter of priority" - journal article (BMJ)

* ►June 18, 2009 - Karen’s Story (USA) - Gardasil: Women Hurt by Medicine - "Our lives have been turned upside down after Gardasil. My daughter had a 3.8 GPA without even trying. She failed all her classes since Gardasil. My daughters health has been in serious decline since she received her Gardasil injections. Within hours she was vomiting, feverish with a terrible headache. She could not get out of bed for almost 3 weeks. I called the doctor regarding her illness she said she must have received a bad flu shot. She was vaccinated with Gardasil at the same time as the flu vaccine."

* ►May 24, 2009 - Raindrop’s Story (USA) - Gardasil: Women Hurt by Medicine - "Why have the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries chosen to experiment with the first ever, large scale application of a new, unproven, genetically modified, inter-species gene mixing vaccine technology on the female youth of an entire generation? Under the ruse of attempting to eradicate cervical cancer, Merck is actually engaged in the first large scale, real world deployment and testing of genetically modified DNA, genetically engineered proteins and genetics produced by the combining of genetic material from more than one origin or species in a vaccine."

* ►June 29, 2009 - Legislation Introduced to Require First Comparative Study of Vaccinated vs. Unvaccinated Populations - press release - Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney via http://maloney.house.gov - "What is ultimately needed to resolve this issue is a comprehensive national study comparing outcomes between vaccinated and unvaccinated children.  As the most scientifically advanced country in the world, we should be jumping at the chance to resolve the questions that have been raised.  Parents deserve answers, and children deserve no less than absolute certainty and safety."

* ►June 29, 2009 - Maloney Vaxxed v. Unvaxxed Study Reintroduced - Call your representative and ask for support for HR 3069. - Adventures in Autism - "Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Christopher Smith (R-NJ) have introduced the 'Comprehensive Comparative Study of Vaccinated and Unvaccinated Populations Act of 2009,' HR 3069, legislation that would require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct a comprehensive, peer-reviewed, comparative study of vaccinated and unvaccinated populations, which has never before been completed."

* ►June 30, 2009 - Bill Gates Foundation’s funding policy criticised - Efficacy of huge grants to vaccination programmes questioned - GAVI received a disproportionately large sum of $1.5 billion for “purchase of new vaccines” - Higher costs would be borne by poor nations when GAVI funding is withdrawn - The Hindu - "By pointing out that the efficacy of this vaccine in preventing childhood pneumonia remains highly questionable, Dabade and Puliyel argue that the policy of funding AMC for this vaccine 'allows GAVI to divert BMGF money to vaccine manufacturers without providing commensurate benefits to the children it is supposed to help.' To point out the vaccine’s low efficacy Dabade and Puliyel cite data from a 2008 paper of S.A. Madhi and associates in the Bulletin of the World Health Organisation (WHO) which show that 1000 children have to be vaccinated to prevent approximately four cases of pneumonia. 'Given that the vaccine costs $250 per child,' Dabade and Puliyel point out, '$250 000 will be spent to prevent these four cases of pneumonia [whereas]…treatment of four children with pneumonia with oral cotrimoxazole, in accordance with the WHO protocol, will cost [only] $1 in India.'"

* ►June 30, 2009 - Vaccination campaign: Govt probes children’s negative reaction - Government is investigating reported cases of negative reaction by some children to the poliomyelitis, measles immunisation, and the Vitamin A supplementation drugs they received a fortnight ago under the national vaccination campaign. - The Herald, Zimbabwe - "Efforts to get a comment from WHO were fruitless as the country representative, Dr Custodia Mandlhate, was said to be out of the country, while other senior officers at the organisation were out of office. The Herald has been receiving calls from the parents whose children had reportedly developed side-effects after receiving the vaccines. Most of the callers complained about high temperatures and vomiting, diarrhoea and nose bleeds affecting their children."

* ►June 30, 2009 - Close observation after Gardasil needed - New Zealand Doctor Online - "The advisory centre’s latest note emphasises the need for close observation and, if needed, recipients lying down after vaccination. Theo Brandt, centre communications manager, says syncope can sometimes cause jerking movements, loss of bladder control and other signs resembling epileptic seizures. Dr Turner says the centre has had calls from parents worrying about fitting. 'Fainting can look like fitting and there has been the misapprehension that HPV is causing epilepsy,' she says. The FDA says it’s evaluating whether syncope warnings are needed for other adolescent and adult vaccines."

* ►June 29, 2009 - The BMJ Vaccines Propaganda, Professor David Salisbury And Trimedia Public Relations - The One Click Group

* ►June 29, 2009 - Rebecca Coombes - BMJ Propaganda For MMR Vaccine - The One Click Group - "Vaccine disputes will continue and escalate while UK regulatory authorities refuse to rid themselves of conflicts of interests, refuse to carry out safety testing for adequate periods, refuse to obey MMR data sheets, refuse to allow recording of vaccine deaths on death certificates, refuse to carry out efficacy tests, refuse to compare vaccines with safer ones and placebos, refuse to remove unsafe additives and contaminant viruses, refuse to check all autism victims for vaccine history compared with those unvaccinated and refuse to administer the safer vaccines left at the best ages. Coombes castigates support groups set up by grieving parents, preferring to allow very many to fall by the wayside dead or maimed with a permanent illness. Coombes is not medically qualified nor produces proper references. I have published 53 references, available on request. The BMJ has sunk to its lowest depths of depravity. See Vaccine disputes, Rebecca Coombes, BMJ 2009;338:b2435"

* ►June 29, 2009 - Omissions Prove What's Really Going On In the System - Lisa Blakemore Brown, Psychologist via The One Click Group - "Last week I sent in a Rapid Response to the BMJ re: Rebecca Coombes' piece of propaganda in vaccines. These transparent efforts to damn parents who dare to say vaccines harmed their children are not confined to the BMJ and I had replied to another shocking parent bashing article just recently. See A winning campaign would be for professionals to tell the truth, Lisa Blakemore Brown, Journal of the Academy of Pediatrics.  I am grateful to the BMJ for publishing the letter, but disturbed at what they left out."

* ►June 29, 2009 - More Florida parents challenge, push limits of immunization law - Orlando Sentinel - "Florida's school-vaccine law says children must be vaccinated against a host of diseases before they can enroll day care or school — public or private. The law also says kids need more immunizations prior to seventh grade. The law also provides for some exemptions, and the use of those get-out clauses has inched up. In 1999, more than 93 percent of Florida's kindergartners were up to date on immunizations when they enrolled, according to the Florida Department of Health. A decade later, that has fallen to less than 90 percent. But some organizations, such as Jacksonville-based K.N.O.W. Vaccines, offer tips on how to get a religious exemption to the state's immunization law. State Sen. Jeremy Ring, a father of four, sponsored Florida's recent anti-vaccine bill. He thinks children should be vaccinated by the time they start school but doesn't see why parents shouldn't have the choice to 'vaccinate on a different schedule' so that babies do not get multiple immunization shots in a day."

* ►June 29, 2009 - Inquiry continues into Dr Andrew Wakefield - Irish Medical Times - "The Fitness to Practise Panel of the General Medical Council (GMC) in the UK is due to complete its latest sitting of the public inquiry into Dr Andrew Wakefield this Friday, June 26. Together with Prof John Walker-Smith and Prof Simon Murch, Dr Wakefield is being investigated over allegations of serious professional misconduct in relation to a research study involving young children from 1996-98, published in The Lancet, which suggested a link between autism and the MMR vaccine. ... Further sessions are scheduled for the rest of the year, although it is difficult to approximate when the inquiry will conclude. At this stage, further hearing dates include: July 6 to 10 and 27 to 31; August 10 to 28; and November 16 to December 23."

* ►June 29, 2009 - Dr. Nancy, Making the Television Rounds (requires registration) - Washington Post - "On the 'Today' show in February, Snyderman ripped into the author of a 1998 study in the Lancet that asserted a link between childhood vaccines and autism -- which the British medical journal later called 'fatally flawed.' Snyderman, who believes passionately in vaccines, declared: 'This guy is a fraud.' NBC later removed her from a planned 'Dateline' examination of the subject. 'That was a really stupid thing to say,' Snyderman concedes. 'It crossed every line. I shouldn't have said it.'"

* ►June 29, 2009 - 14 Studies Part 3: Ladies and Gentlemen, Take Your Positions By Julie Obradovic - Age of Autism

* ►June 29, 2009 - Spread of a Novel Influenza A (H1N1) Virus via Global Airline Transportation (free full text) - journal article (NEJM)

* ►June 29, 2009 - Historical Perspective — Emergence of Influenza A (H1N1) Viruses (free full text) - journal article (NEJM)

* ►June 29, 2009 - Merck Resolves Shipping Delays For Shingles Vaccine >MRK (requires subscription) - The Wall Street Journal - "A year ago, Merck began telling customers to expect delays of up to six weeks for Zostavax, a shot Merck began selling in 2006. The company had made a batch of so-called bulk varicella that was less potent than required. Bulk varicella is used not only in Zostavax but also for the chickenpox vaccine Varivax. The snag limited production of bulk varicella, forcing Merck to prioritize the ingredient in favor of Varivax, which is part of the routine vaccination schedule for children. The problem had previously forced Merck to stop filling orders for a combination shot, ProQuad, that contained Varivax. Last year's delays caused an 82% plunge in third-quarter sales of Zostavax, and sales have been lumpy since then. For full-year 2008, Zostavax sales rose 32% to $312 million.Merck has resolved the production problem and has significantly increased the manufacture of bulk varicella." 

* ►June 29, 2009 - Big vaccine business for GSK, Novartis? Swine flu may require 600 million doses - AP via WRAL.com

* ►June 29 2009 - Drug cos defend acetaminophen as U.S. weighs limits - Reuters - "Too much acetaminophen has been known to cause liver injury for decades, but FDA officials are worried that the rise of products that combine it with other medications can lead consumers unknowingly to overdose by taking too much of a medication or taking too many different products at once. The agency called for stronger warnings about the risk earlier this year but is seeking advice from outside advisers at a two-day meeting on whether such over-the-counter and prescription combination drugs can safely remain on the U.S. market."

* ►June 29, 2009 - Law means rethinking how you protect patient data - www.ama-assn.org

* ►June 29, 2009 - AMA meeting: Vitamin D checks urged - Studies associate low levels with increased risk of disease, but more extensive research is needed before testing and supplementation become routine. - www.ama-assn.org

 * ►June 29, 2009 - Lawsuits test boundary rights of medical patents - The cases come at a time of renewed interest by the U.S. Supreme Court in patent law and could have ramifications for medical research. - www.ama-assn.org

* ►June 29, 2009 - New Report - Catastrophic Pharmaceutical Drugs Addiction Of Epidemic Proportions - Wales on Sunday via The One Click Group

* ►June 28, 2009 - 19-year-old who died had flu-like symptoms - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - "A former Kenosha high school baseball star who died Saturday reportedly had suffered flu- or pneumonia-like symptoms and had been given antibiotics by a doctor. Sam Schissel became unresponsive at his family's home in Somers and was taken by ambulance to Kenosha Medical Center, the Kenosha County Sheriff's Department said Sunday. Schissel's mother said a doctor had given her son antibiotics, a hospital spokeswoman said. The treatment was given a day or perhaps a couple of days before Schissel's death, the spokeswoman said."

* ►June 28, 2009 - Judge: Wyeth can have data from study - Arkansas Democrat Gazette - "Data that scientists have gathered since August 2005 in following up on a study of the effects of hormone replacement therapy on postmenopausal women should be turned over to Wyeth Pharmaceuticals as it continues to defend itself against lawsuits over its hormone drugs, an attorney for the company argued Friday in Little Rock."

* ►June 26, 2009 - ACIP recommends off-label MCV4 use for certain high-risk individuals - Health care providers may soon be able to administer a second dose of meningococcal polysaccharide diphtheria toxoid conjugate vaccine to individuals at increased risk for meningococcal disease several years following their first vaccination. - Infectious Disease News

* ►June 25, 2009 - KBI rolls out PER.C6 service in US - US contract services firm KBI Biopharma has begun using the PER.C6 platform for cell line generation as part of its offering to meet growing demand for biomanufacturing services. - Outsourcing-Pharma.com - "Part of the reason for the PER.C6 technology’s popularity is related to its high production potential. In June last year a Percivia team reported that they had achieved a new record yield of 27 g/L. This productivity was one of the reasons that Swiss drugmaker Novartis selected the PER.C6 line for its cell culture vaccine production plant in Holly Springs, North Carolina. While Novartis’ adoption of PER.C6 happened years before the H1N1 “swine” flu began the technology's utility and speed advantages over traditional egg-based flu vaccine production will certainly be seen as beneficial for the rapid production of an effective vaccine."

* ►June 22/23, 2009 - The End of Mr Miller's Closing Speech - CryShame - "The GMC Hearing Monday June 22nd and Tuesday June 23rd. - At mid morning on Tuesday June 23rd, Mr Miller finished his closing speech on behalf of Professor Walker Smith. It was a bravura performance Having dealt with the Lancet Children singularly throughout the previous week, on Monday Mr Miller turned his attention to Professor Walker- Smith's involvement in the Lancet paper."

* ►June 12, 2009 - Flu Vaccine 2009 Produced, Ready for Testing - The MCDK cell flu vaccine, prepared in large fermenters and later purified, will be tested to determine its effectiveness for immune protection against swine H1N1 flu. - Suite101.com

* ►June 29, 2009 - MSPs seek answers as cervical cancer vaccine fears grow - The Scotsman - "THE Scottish Government has been challenged to explain why it introduced the cervical cancer vaccination programme in a series of questions by MSPs.  Conservative health spokesman Mary Scanlon has submitted four parliamentary questions to Health Minister Shona Robison after meeting with a Scottish representative from the International Coalition of Advocates for the People (ICAP). Freda Birell, of ICAP, raised concerns about inadequate research, incorrect data presented to parents, and serious illnesses being reported from girls who have received Cervarix."

* ►June 29, 2009 - Mass vaccination against flu - Norway Post - "The Norwegian health authorities will this fall begin a program of mass vaccination against the A H1N1 flu, also called the swine flu. A total of 9.4 million doses have been ordered from the suppliers. All will be given two innoculations, two weeks apart, Bergens Tidende reports. The total cost will be NOK 650 million. So far, only 23 cases of the flu has been diagnosed in Norway, but the authorities expect that the number will increase."

* ►June 29, 2009 - Swine Flu: 86 cases and 8 million vaccines in negotiation - Lepetitjournal.com via eMaxHealth.com - "Greece will spend 55 million euros to purchase 8 million doses of H1N1 swine flu influenza vaccines. Tourists from Australia and USA, traveling to Greece contribute to the spread of swine flu in the country."

* ►June 29, 2009 - Baby Dana McCaffery leaves whooping cough vaccination legacy - Baby Dana McCaffery has more than 32,000 friends on Facebook, none of whom she will ever meet. But her legacy may save their lives. - The Daily Telegraph via www.news.com.au - "Since the four-week-old baby girl died from whooping cough in March, almost 5000 people in NSW have been struck down in an epidemic few people know about despite the death of several babies around the nation."

* ►June 28, 2009 - “Tidal Wave” of Young Adults with Autism about to Flood Cash-Strapped California By David Kirby - Age of Autism

* ►June 28, 2009 - Rise in autistic adults worries caregivers - Sacramento Bee - "In California, regional centers will be serving more than 50,000 autistic people of all ages by the end of this year, according to the state Department of Developmental Services. If the trend continues, that number will grow to 70,000 by June 2012. By 2013, according to the department, more than 4,000 teenagers with autism will reach adulthood, and by 2018 the agency will be serving more than 19,000 adults with the condition. Nationally, the number of autistic children expected to need extensive adult services by 2023 is about 380,000 people, and the bill for caring for them will be in the billions of dollars."

* ►June 28, 2009 - Neb. inmate sues over Zoloft in echo of other cases (requires registration) - AP via Los Angeles Times - "A lawsuit by a Nebraska inmate serving time for his girlfriend's murder, blaming a widely prescribed antidepressant for influencing his behavior, echoes similar claims in other cases. But none of the cases have prevailed against Zoloft's maker, Pfizer Inc., which says the drug is safe and effective."

* ►June 26, 2009 - CDC Telebriefing on Investigation of Human Cases of Novel Influenza A (H1N1) June 26, 2009, 1 p.m. ET (includes audio) - transcript - CDC

* ►June 26, 2009 - East Surrey Hospital apologises for failings which led to the death of a five-year-old boy - This is Surrey, UK - "Fabio was taken into Accident and Emergency on February 14, seen by three nurses and two doctors, but his condition was dismissed as chickenpox. Unable to walk or talk, covered from head to toe with ulcerated lesions, Fabio was barely conscious, his agonising skin keeping him from sleep. Neither his mother's pleas, nor his apparent pain prevented the decision which would send him home with antibiotics and pain killers. When, three days later, his terrified parents returned to the hospital with their dying son medics chose not to contact a specialist hospital for advice. Fabio was eventually transferred to the Evelina Children's Hospital on February 18, where he later died of multi-organ failure."

* ►July 2009 - Enhanced Immunogenicity of Seasonal Influenza Vaccines in Young Children Using MF59 Adjuvant - journal article (The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal) - "Subjects and Methods: Unprimed healthy children (6 to <36 months) were enrolled in an observer-blinded study and randomly assigned to receive 2 doses of MF59-adjuvanted vaccine (Sub/MF59, n = 130) or nonadjuvanted split vaccine (split, n = 139); subgroups of these (n = 43 and 46, respectively) received a booster dose 1 year later. Safety and clinical tolerability were assessed after each dose. Hemagglutination inhibition antibody titers were measured against influenza A and B strains included in the formulation of the vaccines and against mismatched strains. Results: Clinical tolerability and safety were generally comparable between vaccine groups, though some transient, mild solicited reactions were more frequent in the Sub/MF59 group."

* ►July 2009 - Vaccine Refusal, Mandatory Immunization, and the Risk of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases - journal article (The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal)

* ►July 2009 - Outbreak of Atypical Pertussis Detected by Polymerase Chain Reaction in Immunized Preschool-Aged Children - journal article (The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal)

* ►June 28, 2009 - Delay for vaccine as swine flu toll rises - Brisbane Times

* ►June 28, 2009 - Swine flu vaccine likely to be delayed - The Age, Australia

* ►June 27, 2009 - AMA Declares Vaccine / Autism Debate: Over by Curtiss Lee Linderman Sr - American Chronicle - "The American Medical Association has once again declared their true allegiance and it is unfortunately not to the patients whom they have taken their oath to protect. During the organization´s House of Delegates meeting held in Chicago June 13th through the 17th, three resolutions were voted on that were submitted by the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, the American Psychiatric Association, and the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law. These resolutions were; A. that the AMA, reaffirm its support for universal vaccination. B. Asked the AMA Council on Science and Public Health to review the most recent research on vaccines and autism. C. Urged the association to continue to support research into the etiology and treatment of autism."

* ►June 27, 2009 - Massive Swine Flu Vaccination Campaign Being Discussed - redOrbit - "According to officials, an unprecedented 600 million doses of swine flu vaccine may be given this fall even though officials have not yet developed a way to administer such a large number of shots."

* ►June 27, 2009 - Bruce Ivins’ anthrax log, published on author Lew Weinstein’s CASE CLOSED blog, shows multiple shipments of virulent Ames anthrax in the months preceding the 2001 anthrax attacks - press release - Lewis M. Weinstein via Webwire

* ►June 27, 2009 - Obama urges HIV testing (includes video) - Chicago Sun-Times

* ►June 26, 2009 - Immunogenicity of GSKs' MMR Vaccine (209762) vs. M-M-R® II, When Given With Routine Vaccines at 12-15 Months of Age - Sponsored by: GlaxoSmithKline via clinicaltrials.gov

* ►June 26, 2009 - Pandemic Vaccine Preparedness—Have We Left Something Behind? - journal article (PLoS Pathogens)

* ►June 26, 2009 - Wyeth to up vax production in pandemic - Reuters via FierceBiotech

* ►June 26, 2009 - Chromosome Abnormality Tied to Autistic Behavior in Mice - Finding could help advance autism research in humans - Cell via HealthDay News - "The duplicated chromosomal region in mice is the equivalent of human chromosome 15q11-13, which is duplicated in about 5 percent of all people with autism. It is believed that chromosomal abnormalities account for 10 to 20 percent of autism cases, according to a news release from the journal's publisher, Cell Press. So far, duplication of chromosome 15q11-13 is the only recurrent aberration connected to autism."

* ►June 26, 2009 - Risk of mad cow disease from farmed fish? - Reuters Health via Public Broadcasting.net

* ►June 25, 2009 - Notice: Pandemic Influenza Vaccines--Amendment - Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Secretary via www.pharmcast.com

* ►June 25, 2009 - WHO says H1N1 virus is stable, not yet mutating - Reuters - "In prevention and reducing the risk of this infection there is of course a lot of attention given to antivirals and vaccines. But we must not forget there are what we call non pharmaceutical measures which are very effective," she said."

* ►June 26, 2009 - Growing Divide Among Courts On Vaccines - CBS Investigates: Federal Court Decides Boy Vaccinated At 8 Weeks Eligible For Compensation - CBS News - "The National Law Journal recently reported on a DPT (diphtheria, whole-cell pertussis, tetanus) vaccine case that was reversed on appeal, reports CBS News investigative correspondent Sharyl Attkisson. The Federal Circuit Court decided that a boy vaccinated at 8 weeks is entitled to compensation, after all. According to the claim, the vaccination caused a seizure disorder that led to the child, Enrique Andreu, developing a low IQ and language and developmental delays. The Appeals Court (Federal Circuit Court) decided the Special Master (Judge) in the original decision 'erroneously… determined that the testimony of Petitioner's physicians was insufficient to establish ‘a logical sequence of cause and effect’ leading to Petitioner's vaccine-related injury; and (erroneously) imposed upon Petitioner an elevated evidentiary burden, requiring conclusive proof in the medical literature linking Petitioner's symptoms to the vaccine at issue.'"

* ►June 26, 2009 - Federal Circuit Reverses Denial of Vaccine Injury Claim - The National Law Journal via Law.com - "The decision affirms that the special master can't require too high of a burden of proof from plaintiffs because it's a remedial compensation program, said Cliff Shoemaker of Vienna, Va.-based Shoemaker & Associates, who represented the injured party who appealed to the Federal Circuit. 'It's a no-fault compensation program designed to compensate people injured by vaccines,' he said. 'But it's a very adversarial and litigious [process involving] complex litigation. It's not what Congress intended.'  The Justice Department represented the Health and Human Services secretary in the case, and spokesman Charles Miller said the agency declined to comment. The special masters are very protective of vaccines and 'require too much science to prove a case,' said vaccine lawyer Kevin Conway of Boston-based Conway, Homer & Chin-Caplan."

* ►United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit 2008-5184 - ENRIQUE M. ANDREU a minor child, by his parents and natural guardians, ENRIQUE C. ANDREU and SONIA C. ANDREU, Petitioners-Appellants, v. SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Respondent-Appellee. (pdf) - http://amlawdaily.typepad.com
 

* ►July 2009 - New insights into the regulation of T cells by c family cytokines - journal article (Nature Reviews Immunology) - "This knowledge potentially allows for the therapeutic manipulation of immune responses for the treatment of cancer, autoimmunity, allergic diseases and immunodeficiency, as well as for vaccine development."

* ►June 27, 2009 - Case shines light on Merck - Warren Back received his instructions by telephone at 5.30pm on September 29, 2004, sitting in his nondescript hotel room in the US city of Philadelphia. He was told to collect a series of envelopes and distribute them to his international colleagues who had already gathered in the hotel for a conference, and keep one for himself. - The Australian, with The Wall Street Journal

* ►June 26, 2009 - AMA Rejects Call for More Research on Vaccine Link to Autism, Reaffirms Immunization Policies - AAFP News Now - "There's no need for more research into a possible link between vaccines and autism. But there is a continuing need for support of ongoing research into the true etiology of autism and its treatment. And physicians should continue to take a lead role in extolling the benefits of vaccines to health policymakers and the public. Those were among the messages recently sent by the AMA House of Delegates, which met June 13-17 in Chicago."

* ►June 26, 2009 - Arkansas State Health Department: Mandatory Vaccines Are Constitutional - Legal council tells concerned caller that American citizens must accept enforced shot in event of mass swine flu vaccination program - PrisonPlanet.com - "During the phone conversation, the legal council discusses the potential of a future mandatory swine flu vaccination program and states, 'That’s constitutional, there’s no doubt about it….mandatory vaccinations are legal under the Supreme Court….absolutely.'  The caller responds, 'I’m an American and I have a legal right to make my own decision whether or not someone sticks a needle in me,' to which the legal council responds, 'That’s not true….no.' 'As a lawyer you believe that I don’t have the right to deny a vaccination,' asks the caller, to which the legal council responds, 'Absolutely….I don’t know why you have a problem with that….mandatory vaccines are constitutional,' adding that it doesn’t matter about personal or religious objections. ... The legal council at the Arkansas State Health Department cites the 1905 Supreme Court case of Jacobson v Massachusetts to argue that governments can force citizens to take vaccines."

* ►June 26, 2009 - The flu shot: a brief review of anti-influenza vaccinations, by Sherri Tenpenny, D.O. - Generation Rescue

* ►June 26, 2009 - Health Officials: Swine Flu May Have Infected 1 Million in U.S. - AP via The Ledger - "Lyn Finelli, a flu surveillance official with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, made the 1 million estimate in a presentation to the vaccine panel. The number is from mathematical modeling, based on surveys by health officials. Regular seasonal flu sickens anywhere from 15 million to 60 million Americans each year. The United States has roughly half the world's swine flu cases, with nearly 28,000 reported to the CDC so far. The U.S. count includes 3,065 hospitalizations and 127 deaths. The percentage of cases hospitalized has been growing, but that may be because of closer scrutiny of very sick patients. It takes about three days from the time symptoms appear to hospitalization, Finelli said, and the average hospital stay has been three days."

* ►June 26, 2009 - Swine Flu’s Multi-Shot Vaccine May Overwhelm State-Run Clinics - Bloomberg - "Two injections will be required three weeks apart for swine flu, also known as H1N1, and a third will be needed for seasonal flu, health officials said at a meeting today at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in Atlanta. Children younger than 9 years will need four shots, the CDC said. ... The agency estimates that at least 50 million vaccine doses will be available in the U.S. by October 15, and enough vaccine to immunize everyone in the country will be available later in the season."

* ►June 26, 2009 - Tall hurdles in race for a swine-flu vaccine - Authorities will demand thorough testing after spike in Guillain Barré syndrome seen in the 1970s (requires registration) - Canadian Press via Globe and Mail - "It is believed Canada will purchase adjuvanted vaccine. But what testing it will require to assure itself of the product's safety isn't currently known. The Canadian Press has been asking for weeks for an interview with David Butler-Jones, head of the Public Health Agency of Canada, to discuss issues related to the country's pandemic vaccine contract. Permission for an interview has not been granted by the Prime Minister's office. However, Health Canada, which regulates vaccines, provided by e-mail some information on what will be expected from manufacturers to license an H1N1 vaccine. It said companies will be required to submit immunogenicity data – results of clinical trials that show whether the vaccine elicits a sufficiently strong immune response. And vaccine manufacturers are being asked to submit plans for how they will conduct surveillance for adverse events once their vaccines are in wide use."

* ►June 26, 2009 - Swine flu cases soar in England - The number of confirmed swine flu cases in England has jumped by nearly 20% in a single day, latest figures show. - BBC - "Sir Liam said on Thursday that the UK was likely to receive its first batches of swine flu vaccine in August, rather than in the autumn as first expected. The government has contracts with two manufacturers for 132m doses - enough for the whole population."

* ►June 26, 2009 - Influenza A(H1N1) - update 54 - Laboratory-confirmed cases of new influenza A(H1N1) as officially reported to WHO by States Parties to the International Health Regulations (2005) - World Health Organization

* ►June 26, 2009 - Sanofi Eats Merck's Vaccine Business for Lunch; Hopes Pinned on "Gardasil for Boys" - BNET Pharma Blog

* ►June 26, 2009 - Genome-Wide Analyses of Exonic Copy Number Variants in a Family-Based Study Point to Novel Autism Susceptibility Genes - journal article (PLoS Genetics)

* ►June 26, 2009 - Nestlé Said No to FDA Inspectors in Past - Wall Street Journal Health Blog
 

* ►June 26, 2009 - Top Health Care Companies Spent More Than Half Million On Congressional Trips - The Huffington Post - "A review of hundreds of public documents by the Huffington Post shows that from 2000 through 2008 the top 20 most active companies in these fields sponsored 192 trips worth more than $380,000 for dozens of politicians and staff. The list of those companies -- as determined by campaign contributions in the last election cycle -- include industry giants such as Pfizer, Eli Lilly, GlaxoSmithKline, and Merck & Co."

* ►June 26, 2009 - Roche Pulls Accutane Off Market After Jury Verdicts - Bloomberg - "Roche Holding AG, the world’s biggest maker of cancer drugs, is pulling its Accutane acne medicine from the U.S. market after juries awarded at least $33 million in damages to users who blamed the drug for bowel disease."

* ►June 25, 2009 - Scientists unveil vaccination patch - Taipei Times - "Those who tremble at the sight of a needle may one day be able to receive immunizations via a DNA vaccine patch. Funded by the National Science Council (NSC), the patches have been jointly developed by scientists from National Taiwan Ocean University, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology and Academic Sinica’s Genomics Research Center."

* ►June 25, 2009 - Experts see bad, but not disastrous, flu season ahead - Pandemic. The word alone evokes images of societal chaos. But is that what we're really in for this fall, when the world faces its first official pandemic flu season since 1968? - Physorg.com - "Those who dismiss the H1N1 bug, also known as swine flu, as a hoax like to point out the death rate, so far, has been extremely low. Seasonal influenza generally kills about 36,000 Americans a year, while the H1N1 virus has only resulted in 87 confirmed deaths, as of June 24. But those numbers are misleading, health experts say. They point out that the official death count includes only victims whose diagnoses were confirmed by a special laboratory test. The actual number of infections is believed to be far higher, and should continue to climb as the virus gains traction."

* ►June 25, 2009 - Citation amnesia: The results (requires registration) - The Scientist - "Citing past scientific work in present-day research papers can be a slippery business. Contributions from competing labs can be glossed over, pertinent studies accidentally left out, or similar research not mentioned in an attempt to give the study at hand a sheen of novelty."

* ►June 24, 2009 - Immunity requirements for HCW MMR vaccination revised - pediatric supersite

* ►June 24, 2009 - Ask Dr. Weil : Monitor toxins that body burden tests measure - The Arizona Daily Star - "Some experts blame the body burden of industrial toxins for rising rates of asthma, childhood cancers, birth defects and developmental disorders. There is no conclusive evidence for this, but the coincidence is indeed worrisome. Kids have greater exposure to environmental toxins than adults because, pound for pound, they eat more and breathe more air than the average adult."

* ►June 24, 2009 - Processed food and refined grains linked to chronic diseases - Author says rise of processed foods and refined grains are among changes that have ruined our diets - The Vancouver Sun

* ►June 2009 - Personality characteristics of adults with autism spectrum disorders or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder with and without substance use disorders. - journal article (The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease)

* ►May 19, 2009 - 'Vaccine Bar' May Be a Shot in the Arm for Small Firm - The firm of 'A Civil Action' fame takes on vaccination injury cases - The National Law Journal via Law.com - "Five-lawyer Boston law firm Conway, Homer & Chin-Caplan has transformed itself from the products liability firm that housed Jan Schlichtmann's toxic tort case immortalized in the movie "A Civil Action " into a prominent plaintiffs firm in the vaccine bar.  But it hasn't been an easy ride. Name partner Kevin Conway, and other lawyers specializing in vaccine cases filed as part of the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program, say the program's fee rules make it hard for vaccine lawyers to stay solvent."