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Published: Wednesday, September 27, 2006

Merck wins Vioxx case

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Merck wins Vioxx case

NEW ORLEANS — A federal jury ruled in favor of Merck & Co. Inc. on Tuesday in a lawsuit over the painkiller Vioxx, finding there was not enough evidence to link the drug to a Kentucky man's heart attack. The jury, made up of six women and two men, deliberated about three hours before reaching a verdict. The jurors left the courthouse without commenting on their decision. Robert Garry Smith, 56, claimed in U.S. District Court that the drug contributed to a heart attack he had 31/2 years ago. He said he had taken Vioxx for knee pain for about 41/2 months but didn't realize at the time of the heart attack that Vioxx may have been a cause for concern. But the drugmaker's defense lawyer argued there was no medical testimony indicating Vioxx had anything to do with the heart attack that Smith suffered in 2003.

Abortion measure passes

WASHINGTON — Accompanying a minor across a state line to obtain an abortion and avoid parental notification in the girl's home state would become a federal crime under a bill the House passed Tuesday. Republican supporters said the 264-153 vote confirmed public sentiment that parental involvement superseded a minor's right to have an abortion. Democratic opponents foresaw the arrests of grandmothers and religious counselors trying to shield girls from abusive parents.

Quality of health care
improved, report says

WASHINGTON — The quality of the health care provided to millions of Americans improved last year across several dozen categories, including increased immunization rates among insured children. The improvements are seen through the reporting of data that the White House and Congress want more of from health-care providers. They're contained in a report being issued today by the National Committee for Quality Assurance, which accredits and certifies insurers. The association tracks dozens of care measurements, submitted by many of the nation's insurance plans. For patients in private insurance plans, there was improvement in 35 of 42 measurements, including such categories as cervical cancer screening, colorectal cancer screening and the controlling of high blood pressure in hypertension patients.

Health benefits survey

WASHINGTON — Premiums for employer-sponsored health benefits didn't rise quite as much this year as last, but still went up at twice the pace of workers' wages, according to a major survey released Tuesday. The 7.7 percent increase in premiums between the spring of 2005 and this year continued a three-year trend of reduced growth, but analysts for the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research and Educational Trust noted that since 2000, employees' share of health premiums has increased 84 percent, while average wages have risen 20 percent. Family health coverage now costs an average of $11,480 a year, with workers contributing an average of $2,973 toward that tab, about $1,354 more than they paid in 2000.

Vatican excommunicates
Zambian archbishop

VATICAN CITY — Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo, the charismatic Zambian prelate who defied the Holy See by getting married in 2001, has been excommunicated after installing four married men as bishops, the Vatican said Tuesday. Although Vatican authorities, including the late Pope John Paul II, had tried for years to coax Milingo into mending his ways, Rome lost patience with him over the unauthorized ordinations, which threaten papal authority. The Vatican said the 76-year-old prelate was "automatically excommunicated" under church law for the ordinations Sunday at a church in Washington, D.C.

Combined dispatches

Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Wednesday, September 27, 2006

Merck wins Vioxx case

NEW ORLEANS — A federal jury ruled in favor of Merck & Co. Inc. on Tuesday in a lawsuit over the painkiller Vioxx, finding there was not enough evidence to link the drug to a Kentucky man's heart attack. The jury, made up of six women and two men, deliberated about three hours before reaching a verdict. The jurors left the courthouse without commenting on their decision. Robert Garry Smith, 56, claimed in U.S. District Court that the drug contributed to a heart attack he had 31/2 years ago. He said he had taken Vioxx for knee pain for about 41/2 months but didn't realize at the time of the heart attack that Vioxx may have been a cause for concern. But the drugmaker's defense lawyer argued there was no medical testimony indicating Vioxx had anything to do with the heart attack that Smith suffered in 2003.

Abortion measure passes

WASHINGTON — Accompanying a minor across a state line to obtain an abortion and avoid parental notification in the girl's home state would become a federal crime under a bill the House passed Tuesday. Republican supporters said the 264-153 vote confirmed public sentiment that parental involvement superseded a minor's right to have an abortion. Democratic opponents foresaw the arrests of grandmothers and religious counselors trying to shield girls from abusive parents.

Quality of health care
improved, report says

WASHINGTON — The quality of the health care provided to millions of Americans improved last year across several dozen categories, including increased immunization rates among insured children. The improvements are seen through the reporting of data that the White House and Congress want more of from health-care providers. They're contained in a report being issued today by the National Committee for Quality Assurance, which accredits and certifies insurers. The association tracks dozens of care measurements, submitted by many of the nation's insurance plans. For patients in private insurance plans, there was improvement in 35 of 42 measurements, including such categories as cervical cancer screening, colorectal cancer screening and the controlling of high blood pressure in hypertension patients.

Health benefits survey

WASHINGTON — Premiums for employer-sponsored health benefits didn't rise quite as much this year as last, but still went up at twice the pace of workers' wages, according to a major survey released Tuesday. The 7.7 percent increase in premiums between the spring of 2005 and this year continued a three-year trend of reduced growth, but analysts for the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research and Educational Trust noted that since 2000, employees' share of health premiums has increased 84 percent, while average wages have risen 20 percent. Family health coverage now costs an average of $11,480 a year, with workers contributing an average of $2,973 toward that tab, about $1,354 more than they paid in 2000.

Vatican excommunicates
Zambian archbishop

VATICAN CITY — Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo, the charismatic Zambian prelate who defied the Holy See by getting married in 2001, has been excommunicated after installing four married men as bishops, the Vatican said Tuesday. Although Vatican authorities, including the late Pope John Paul II, had tried for years to coax Milingo into mending his ways, Rome lost patience with him over the unauthorized ordinations, which threaten papal authority. The Vatican said the 76-year-old prelate was "automatically excommunicated" under church law for the ordinations Sunday at a church in Washington, D.C.

Combined dispatches

Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Wednesday, September 27, 2006
A federal jury ruled in favor of Merck & Co. Inc. on Tuesday in a lawsuit over the painkiller Vioxx, finding there was...

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