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Dutch health insurance database easily accessible
The Dutch Vecozo medical database is used by Dutch health care workers to make payments easier and to check Dutch medical insurance data; trouble is, at least 80,000 people are able to search the database, which contains personal information about nearly every Dutch citizen
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Critical infrastructure employees to receive vaccine in influenza pandemic
HHS, CDC, and other government agencies conduct three-day public discussion on how to prioritize allocation of vaccine during an influenza pandemic; majority of discussants emphasize need to distribute vaccines first to employees in critical infrastructure
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China worries about outbreaks of bird flu over winter and spring
Two members of the same family are infected with the H5N1 strain of bird flu in the first case in China since June; China has the world’s biggest poultry population and millions of backyard birds, and the authorities are worried
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Growing concerns about Chinese apple juice imports
In 1996, the United States imported 4.5 million gallons of apple juice concentrate from China; in 2005, 249.54 million gallons were imported; there is growing concern about what goes into these concentrates
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Self-powered biosensor sniffs out danger
University of Glasgow students win prestigious competition with a device which can sniff out pollution and then generate its own electricity to set off an early-warning system
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"Scrambled" polymers kill drug-resistant bacteria
Researchers make molecules that mimic the short proteins known as host-defense peptides; they kill bacteria, and work by sticking onto bacteria’s membranes and opening holes in them
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Prescription for trouble: China about to dominate global drug market
China dominates the production of antibiotics, and Chinese companies have captured a major share of the global sales of many vitamins, antibiotics, enzymes, and painkillers; this is not good for U.S. national security (China now controls key ingredients of Cipro and doxycycline); this is not good for U.S. consumers (China’s drug manufacturing is characterized by lax standards, little by way of enforcement, and corruption)
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Universal Detection fulfills U.K. order for anthrax detection systems
California company ships BSM-2000 anthrax detection systems to London; order includes point detection kits which are capable of detecting anthrax, ricin toxin, botulinum toxin, plague, and SEBs
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New U.S.-China trade agreement calls for tighter product safety measures
In 2007, $2 trillion worth of goods will be delivered into the U.S. by more than 825,000 importers; experts say the amount of imported goods will triple by 2015; next week the U.S. and China will sign trade agreements aiming to ensure enhanced safety of imported food, drugs, and devices; critics say these agreements do not go far enough
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Review criticizes safety analysis of proposed Boston bioterror lab
The National Research Council says that a federal study of a proposed Boston University bioterrorism lab failed to consider fully the dangers of the possible release of deadly viruses and bacteria into the surrounding neighborhood
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Living cells as bioterror detectors
Terrapin researcher has an idea for bioterror attack detection: Use cells that die when exposed to a particular pathogen, thus providing the early warning; the cells are also engineered to produce a signal, such as fluorescence, when attacked
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Foot-and-mouth disease could cost Kansas nearly a billion dollars
Researchers say that the losses for the Kansas economy from a large-scale foot-and-mouth outbreak could reach a billion dollars
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Laser diodes with world's shortest wavelength for bioterror detection
Currently, the shortest laser diode reported measures 343nm — which is problematic: Most biological molecules show strong absorption in the ultraviolet spectral region ranging from 280nm to 340nm; researchers at Bristol and Sheffield universities fabricate the first 337nm laser diode — allowing for continuous monitoring of biological molecules; technology will also increase capacity for information storage
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Hygiena launches hand-held device for contaminant detection
A New Jersey food processor just went belly up as a result of having to launch the second largest recall of contaminated beef in U.S. history; a California company says that if its hand-held contamination monitor were used, the contaminant would have been found earlier, reducing the size of the recall and the subsequent financial hit
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Company at center of large tainted beef recall closes doors
Topps Meat was forced to recall 21.7 million pounds of ground beef — the second largest recall in U.S. history — after its products sickened about forty people in eight states; company now files for bankruptcy
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