CPAT CA Access News - July 2007 Issue


July 2007 In this Issue: Healthcare Feature \| Healthcare Reform Update \| New Healthy Living Toolkit \| Partner Spotlight \| Calendar \| Welcome New Partners \| In the News \| Interesting Information

Prevention, Intervention, and Innovation: The Triple Solution for Lower Cost, Higher Quality Healthcare Adapted from Mike Pucci’s “Changing the Debate on Healthcare Costs in the US: The Triple Solution for Lower Cost, Better Quality Healthcare.” You can learn more about this topic at the upcoming CPAT luncheon seminar on July 18th and 19th. Rising healthcare costs rank high on the list of concerns for many Californians and often, the response to rising costs tends to focus on the components of care – cutting reimbursement, price controls, and limits on access for patients in public programs when it should be focusing on the real cost-drivers. Read more about The Triple Solution for Lower Cost, Higher Quality Healthcare...

As part of CPAT’s ongoing commitment to keep partners abreast of California’s health care reform debate, we will be providing “Year of Health Care” updates with information about the latest proposals from state leadership. In response to the Governor’s call for better health care solutions, Assembly Speaker Fabian Núñez (D-Los Angeles) and Senate President pro Tem Don Perata (D-Oakland) have combined their health care reform bills into a single piece of legislation, Assembly Bill 8. AB 8 passed the Assembly on June 7 and is scheduled to be heard in the Senate Health Committee on July 11. The legislation is intended to extend health insurance to over 3 million Californians who are not currently covered, dividing new funding responsibility between employers, individuals, reinvested state dollars and new federal funds. More detailed information about AB 8 and information about the merging proposals is available at Speaker Núñez’s web site: http://democrats.assembly.ca.gov/members/a46/legislation.htm To view additional information on the latest health care reform proposals, please visit the CPAT Web site: http://www.caaccess.org/article_yearofhealthcare.html

New Healthy Living Toolkit Resources Available Online! We are pleased to announce the latest addition to the CPAT Web site: our Health Living Toolkit. You can find it on our main navigation page, by clicking here: http://www.caaccess.org/toolkit.html Healthy living is a simple concept —but it isn’t always easy to put into practice. The materials provided in this toolkit can help ensure you start, or stay, on the right track and show you how to get appropriate medical care, including preventive health care, get the right amount of exercise, eat healthy foods, and keep your stress levels in check. Best of all, these resources are provided in “easy to print” format so you can share the materials with your membership, colleagues, and partners.

National Health Foundation Mission NHF is an independent, charitable corporation dedicated to improving and enhancing the healthcare of the underserved by developing and supporting innovative programs that 1) can become independently viable, 2) provide systemic solutions to gaps in healthcare access and delivery and that 3) have the potential to be replicated nationally. About Since its founding in 1973, NHF has been a consistent force in changing the healthcare delivery system in California. The organization has been instrumental in the development of new initiatives, programs and organizations focusing on healthcare issues throughout the state. NHF continues its commitment to improvements, currently working to develop a comprehensive, online system to provide accurate information about health care programs for uninsured and pregnant women statewide. Web site www.nhfca.org

The California Partnership for Access to Treatment invites you to a complimentary luncheon seminar on The Value of Medicines: The Triple Solution for a Healthier America Guest Speaker *Mike Pucci* Vice President of External Advocacy for GlaxoSmithKline Recent medical advances, including breakthroughs in pharmaceutical research, increase our optimism for a healthier future. The development of new medicines plays an important role in that future. Mr. Pucci will share how innovation has, and will, bring new medicines that provide hope and a future for those living with disease and how prevention and better care for chronic disease is critical to controlling the cost of healthcare and helping people feel better. Wednesday, July 18th 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. Sacramento RSVP to Dorothy at (916) 658-0144 x 196 or e-mail: dorothy@perrycom.com Thursday, July 19th 12:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. Los Angeles RSVP to Andrea at (323) 466-3445 x 240 or e-mail: andrea_s@cerrell.com Save the Date! Be sure to check out the CPAT Calendar of Events to find out about upcoming partner conferences, seminars, fundraisers, and other activities in your area. If you would like your event listed, please contact Dorothy at dorothy@perrycom.com


Allen Chapel AME Church Breathe California of Sacramento-Emigrant Trails California Optometric Association Healthy African American Families II Latino Behavioral Health Institute National Health Foundation National Multiple Sclerosis Society - Pacific South Coast Chapter NEO Tech Insurance Services San Francisco LGBT Community Center Santa Ana Black Historical Society Sister Friend - Birthing Project The Sports Spectacular Charities for Children and Families The Voice of America's Youth


New Alzheimer’s research shows promise USA TODAY June 11, 2007 Researchers are making progress toward finding novel therapies to combat Alzheimer's, including a hay fever drug from Russia that is said to improve memory in people with mild to moderate Alzheimer's. The findings, released Monday at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference on Prevention of Dementia, raise the hope that within the next two to five years, scientists will be in the final phase of getting market approval for new medicines that might treat or slow Alzheimer's. Click here for more information on new developments toward an Alzheimer’s drug. US FDA panel will advise on communicating risks REUTERS June 4, 2007 A new panel of outside experts will advise the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on how to tell the public about the risks and benefits of medicines and medical devices, the agency said on Monday. Click here to read about the full scope of the inquiry and the new advisory board. Sending biotech research to China: A San Diego firm is setting up a lab in Asia to save on costs Los Angeles Times June 2, 2007 Ascenta is betting that its China subsidiary, which employs 20 scientists working for a fraction of what they would be paid in the United States, will drastically reduce the price tag -and time- of bringing its promising cancer-fighting medicines to market. Investors apparently agree. In April, the company announced it had raised $50 million, bringing its total funding to $85.5 million. Click here to read more about the move from California to China. Heart attack deaths plummet in just 6 years: Study shows improved treatments, anti-cholesterol drugs are working Associated Press May 2, 2007 In just six years, death rates and heart failure in hospitalized heart attack patients have fallen sharply, most likely because of better treatment, the largest international study of its kind suggests. The promising trend parallels the growing use of cholesterol-lowering drugs, powerful blood thinners, and angioplasty, the procedure that opens clogged arteries, the researchers said. Click here for additional results of the study and commentary from medical specialists.


It takes 12 years on average for an experimental drug to travel from lab to medicine chest. Only 5 in 5,000 possible drugs that enter testing make it to clinical trials involving human participants. Of these, only one in five are approved. (1) The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved more than 300 new drugs, biologics, and vaccines that prevent and treat over 150 conditions between 1993 and 2003. (2) Pharmaceutical development has helped millions of Americans to live longer, healthier lives, thanks to the discovery of new drugs and treatments. The following are among the successes: In 52 countries with two-year life expectancy increases between 1986 and 2000, 40% is attributed to new drugs. 50% to 60% of the six-year increase in cancer patient survival rates since 1975 is attributed to the increase in available treatment options. 70% drop in death rates from AIDS since new medicines were developed in the 1990s. (3) A variety of new drugs are currently being tested including: 20 drugs for Alzheimer’s 11 for schizophrenia 24 for diabetes 17 for high blood pressure 8 for high cholesterol 29 for rheumatoid arthritis 83 for HIV/AIDS (4) 1. Wierenga D, Eaton R: “Phases of Pharmaceutical Development,” Office of Research and Development, Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association. Accessible at http://www.allp.com/drug_dev.htm 2. PhRMA: “Decade of Innovation – Advances in the Treatment of Rare Diseases,” PhRMA Profiles and Reports. April 2006. Accessed June 2007. http://www.phrma.org/files/Value%20of%20Medicine%202006.pdf 3. PhRMA: “Value of Medicine – Facts and Figures 2006,” PhRMA Profiles and Reports. Summer 2006. Accessed June 2007. http://www.phrma.org/files/PhRMA%20Rare%20Diseases%2006.pdf 4. PhRMA: “Decade of Innovation” CA Access News welcomes contributions from our partners. Please contact us if you have suggestions for future events and stories by calling CPAT at (916) 658-0144, Attn: Janet.

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