February 2006

Volume 6, Number 11

A report from the Center for Health and Health Care in Schools on the policies, politics and financing of health programming in schools

In This Issue

Worth Noting FDA Approves Inhaled Insulin for Treating Diabetes  Committee on School Nutrition to Hold Final Meeting  Study Will Look at Re-Using Surgical Masks, Respirators  January News Alerts

Survey Finds Increase in Drug Use Before Age 13 

Of the approximately 1.8 million persons who were admitted to substance abuse treatment facilities in the year 2003, 14 percent said they began using their substances before they were 13 years old, according to an analysis of admissions released January 26 by the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). 

A screening instrument that found 29 percent of the students who took it at risk of committing suicide overwhelmed school staffs and led to discontinuance of the survey after two semesters, according to a report in the February 2006 issue of the American Journal of Public Health.

Marketing to the Young: The Tobacco Industry and Flavored Cigarettes

It’s one of the most innovative industries, and big tobacco hasn’t given up on efforts to recruit young smokers, despite controls imposed in recent years on advertising and promotion to the under-18 age group.

Drug Companies Caution on Pandemic Vaccines

In a congressional hearing January 31, pharmaceutical companies described the current state of influenza vaccine production and warned that unless more is done to increase production, they will not be able to provide a vaccine against avian influenza in time to prevent a worldwide pandemic of that disease. 

Credits: Virginia Robinson, Editor, robinsoneditor@attglobal.net

Health & Health Care in Schools is a monthly journal published in html and PDF versions by The Center for Health and Health Care in Schools. Support for Health & Health Care in Schools is provided by The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.