Problems With 9/11 Health Bill

Their has been alot of discussion regarding the 9/11 health bill (known as the Zadroga Bill) that was supposed to provide medical care for first responders exposed to the various hazards at the World Trade Center site.  However, the bill did not cover cancer treatments.  The commission running the fund, has had hearings on this issue and have stated they will look at cancer treatments once the science indicates a link between the 9/11 exposure and cancer.  The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, as they usually do, makes us see the ridiculousness of this position.  We hope with a recent study by Lancet, "Early assessment of cancer outcomes in New York City firefighters after 9/11 attacks: an observational cohort study", indicating a modest excess of cancer cases among NYC firefighters exposed at 9/11, that the commission will consider covering cancer medical care.  This is the least the federal government could do for the first responders, considering the misleading information given to these individuals during their time at the site.

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• 9/11 documentary update focuses on health crisis (cbsnews.com)
• For 9/11 first responders, inadequate medical assistance an insult to heroism (nj.com)
• Lawmakers: Zadroga Act should cover cancer (nydailynews.com)
• 9/11 Health Bill Goes Into Effect Today (newyork.cbslocal.com)
• Jon Stewart on 9/11 Health Care Bill: 'How Did We Not Include Cancer?' [Video] (gawker.com)
• For 9/11 Responders, Cancer Cause Remains Unclear (livescience.com)
• 9/11 firefighter hopes study gets him $ aid (cbsnews.com)
• White House and EPA Misled Public on Air Quality After 9/11 Attack. (futureenv.blogspot.com)
• Rudy Giuliani and Air Quality After 9/11: Part 1 & Part 2 (futureenv.blogspot.com)
• Some 9/11 first responders get help - and some don't (money.cnn.com)
• Early Study Examines Cancer Risk in Ground Zero Firefighters (cancer.org)
• Study: 9/11 Firefighters at Higher Risk for Cancer (webmd.com)

Future Environment Designs Sponsors Aspergillus & Aspergillosis Video

Image via Wikipedia

Future Environment Designs is proud to sponsor this informative video on aspergillus and aspergillosis.  The video was designed to help the public have a better understanding of this fungi and disease that it may cause in susceptible indviduals.  We hope you enjoy it and it assists you better understand aspergillus.

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Asthma Control Study Indicates a Home Visit Strategy is Successful.

Image via WikipediaIn a study published in Pediatric Allergy, Immunology, and Pulmonology (Volume 23, Number 2, 2010) called “Home Is Where the Triggers Are: Increasing Asthma Control by Improving the Home Environment” by James Krieger, MD, MPH discusses effectiveness of a home visit strategy. A home visit strategy should include an environmental component that addresses multiple triggers. Visitors assess home environmental conditions, tailor education on how to eliminate triggers to the client’s sensitization status and exposures found in the home, provide trigger reduction resources (eg, vacuums, cleaning supplies, bedding encasements and referral to smoking cessation), help with cockroach and rodent integrated pest management, make minor repairs and provide social support. An important part of the strategy is that visitors build trusting relationships with clients, thus enhancing their effectiveness in motivating behavior changes. These home visits reduce exposure to triggers, decrease symptoms and urgent health-care use, and increase quality of life. Home visit program cost per client ranges from $200 to $1500 based on the type of home visitor and the intensity of the intervention. However, a cost-effectiveness analysis concluded that these home visits have a return on investment of 5.3 – 14.0 and a cost of $12 - $57 per symptom-free day gained. It is important to note that the annual cost of inhaled fluticasone (220ug) is approximately $1567. The study discusses the Seattle-King County Healthy Homes program as an example of a successful program.


The study also talks about the strong evidence that links exposure to allergens commonly found in homes such as those derived from dust mites, cockroaches, rodents, molds, and pet dander, to sensitization and subsequent asthma incidence and morbidity. Exposure to indoor allergens is widespread, with >92% of homes containing sufficient concentrations of at least one allergen in dust to cause symptoms in sensitized individuals and 46% with exposure to three or more. In addition to allergens, other indoor asthma triggers include tobacco smoke, nitrogen oxides from combustion devices, irritants from volatile organic compounds, and fungi.

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CDC Reports on Insufficient Rest or Sleep Among Adults

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The information below was recently published by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC):

"An estimated 50-70 million Americans suffer from chronic sleep and wakefulness disorders. Sleep disorders and sleep loss have been associated with mental distress, depression, anxiety, obesity, hypertension, diabetes, high cholesterol and certain risk behaviors including cigarette smoking, physical inactivity and heavy drinking. A new report from the CDC found that data collected from adults in all 50 United States, DC, and 3 U.S. territories found that 1 in 3 adults (30.7 percent) in 2008, reported no days of not getting enough rest or sleep in the past 30-days. However, 1 in 10 adults (11.1 percent) reported not getting enough rest or sleep everyday during the past month. Females (12.4 percent) were more likely than males (9.9 percent) and non-Hispanic blacks (13.3 percent) were more likely than other racial/ethnic groups to report not getting enough rest or sleep. State estimates of 30 days of insufficient rest or sleep ranged from 7.4 percent in North Dakota to 19.3 percent in West Virginia."

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