Wednesday, June 14, 2017, 9:00 — 11:15 a.m. Fostering competition in the pharmaceutical distribution chain

What if cooperative ownership of pharmaceutical companies and distribution chain OWNED up to 60% would  that make a difference globally in drug distribution and pricing? Could community ownership make a difference in ensuring equal pricing and distribution for all?

June 11, 2017

Fostering competition in the  pharmaceutical distribution  chain Wednesday, June 14, 2017, 9:00 to 11:15 a.m. EDT On Wednesday, June 14, Brookings and USC will host  a forum to explore the many segments of the drug  distribution chain and examine proposals to reduce  price markups through increased competition. Register to attend | Register to watch When: Wednesday, June 14, 2017, 9:00 — 11:15 a.m. Where: The Brookings Institution, Falk Auditorium, 1775 Massachusetts Ave, NW, Washington, DC What:  Although a great deal of attention concerning prescription drug prices centers on the prices charged by pharmaceutical manufacturers themselves, markups in the distribution chain—pharmacy benefit managers, wholesalers, and pharmacies—are often substantial. Despite the large role that these actors play, little is known about the discounts they negotiate or markups they charge and how those relate to what patientsultimately pay. On Wednesday, June 14, the USC-Brookings Schaeffer Initiative for Innovation in Health Policy will host a forum to explore the many segments of the drug distribution chain and examine proposals to reduce price markups through increased competition. The event will feature a presentation of two new papers: one estimating profitability in the distribution chains of both branded and generic drugs and another proposing a transparency scheme to foster competition in the distribution of generic pharmaceuticals. Stakeholder panels will follow the presentations of these two papers, to discuss approaches to increase competition in brand and generic drug distribution. After the session, panelists will take audience questions.

June 15, 2017. Virtual disaster housing industry forum

What: Virtual disaster housing industry forum

Time: 2 to 4 p.m. eastern

Date: Thursday, June 15, 2017

FEMA is hosting a virtual industry forum for members of the private sector and academic institutions that have new and innovative solutions for providing temporary living facilities following a disaster.
Participants can present via a web-based platform and phone call.

• The virtual housing industry forum is open to both for and non-profit organizations, trade associations or academic institutions who may be able to provide temporary living facilities following a disaster.
• Interested participants should already have a proto-type of a fully-formed design concept for disaster housing units.
• The ideal housing units can be used anywhere from six to 18 months following a disaster and can be used in a variety of climates.
• Participants can submit up to five power point slides to present. Presentations will be limited to 10 minutes or less.
• This call for presentations does not imply or guarantee a contract or intent to purchase. This call is being conducted to identify diverse options that may be unknown to FEMA.
• Presentations should be submitted no later than noon (eastern) on Tuesday, June 13. Presentation times and call-in information will be sent to those participating on June 13.

Those who are interested in participating or who have questions should contact FEMA-Housing-Assistance-Initiative@fema.dhs.gov.

Best regards,

FEMA Private Sector Division

NIH. Healthy volunteers needed for a study on brain activity when you are performing certain tasks.

“Healthy volunteers needed for a study on brain activity when you are performing certain tasks.”

The purpose of this study is to learn more about brain activity when you are performing certain tasks. Participants will have magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to look at brain areas that are active when these are exposed to different conditions. The study requires one or two outpatient visits to the NIH Clinical Center. Compensation may be provided.

You may be eligible to participate if you:

• Are 21 to 60 years old
• Drink alcohol daily or almost daily (15 + drinks/week for females and 20 + drinks/week for males)
• Are not seeking treatment for drinking alcohol
• Are right-handed

You may not be eligible if you:

• Have a current problem of drug abuse
• Have metals in your body such as pacemakers, medication pumps, aneurysm clips or other metals that would make an MRI unsafe
• Have colorblindness

Location: The NIH Clinical Center, America’s research hospital, is located on the Metro red line (Medical Center stop) in Bethesda, Maryland.

For more information, call:
Office of Patient Recruitment
1-866-444-1132
TTY: 1-866-411-1010
Online: https://go.usa.gov/xXYXf
Study #14-AA-0094

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Questions? Contact Us

90% of health care workers at 2 facilities in Ghana were not adequately trained to handle suspected Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) cases when researchers interviewed them in late 2015

https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12889-017-4474-6?utm_source=Global+Health+NOW+Main+List&utm_campaign=15d9ecdf55-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2017_06_08&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_8d0d062dbd-15d9ecdf55-875135

EBOLA

Unprepared

More than 90% of health care workers at 2 facilities in Ghana were not adequately trained to handle suspected Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) cases when researchers interviewed them in late 2015, says a new BioMed Central study.

Researchers administered a questionnaire—adapted from WHO and CDC Ebola preparedness checklists—to 101 health care workers. Only 26% of participants believed their facilities were properly equipped to handle EVD, and only 9% were able to identify the disinfectant to use after patient contact. Fewer than half of the workers were willing to attend to a patient who might have EVD.

BioMed Central

June 2017. How to Fix the Broken Humanitarian System

http://www.thelancet.com/series/health-in-humanitarian-crises?utm_source=Global+Health+NOW+Main+List&utm_campaign=15d9ecdf55-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2017_06_08&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_8d0d062dbd-15d9ecdf55-875135

How to Fix the Broken Humanitarian System: A Q&A with Paul Spiegel

Last night the Lancet published a multi-part series on humanitarian response. It couldn’t be more timely as the world struggles with multiple crises that have forced tens of millions of people from their homes—a scale unseen since World War II.

Unfortunately, the humanitarian response system designed to help them is broken, says Paul Spiegel, author of an article in the series.

Reconfiguring humanitarian response to make it more coordinated and effective in dealing with prolonged crises like that of Syria is essential for the future, says Spiegel, director of the Hopkins Center for Humanitarian Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

What’s needed? Stronger command and control of response, integration of displaced people into local economies and national health systems and fewer organizations involved in response, says Spiegel in a GHN Q&A.

Brian W. Simpson, Global Health NOW