Lecture on health care policy at Stanford

Peter Orszag, Director of the Congressional Budget Office, presented a federal perspective on health care policy and costs at the 10th Anniversary Conference and Celebration for the Center for Health Policy and Center for Primary Care and Outcomes Research on September 16, 2008. In his presentation and recent post, Orszag discusses how research on behavioral economics can inform efforts to improve efficiency in health care delivery.

• » Congressional Budget Office, Director's Blog

Probiotics may help adult weight loss, study finds

CHP/PCOR associate John Morton was quoted in various articles discussing probiotics, the "good" bacteria found in yogurts and supplements. According to Stanford researchers, probiotics can help adult gastric-bypass patients lose even more weight. Morton was also quoted in a separate article in the Los Angeles Times that discusses bariatric surgery. Weight reduction surgery is performed on about 200,000 Americans a year and is recommended only for people considered morbidly obese. Morton provides comments on the procedures in the article.

• » MSN.com: "Probiotics help adult weight loss after bariatric surgery"
• » LA Times: "Bariatric surgery by itself isn't enough"

Shortfalls still exist in blood pressure screening, treatment, control

Despite the well-known dangers of high blood pressure, major shortfalls still exist in the screening, treatment and control of the disease, according to a new Stanford study. CHP/PCOR faculty fellow Randall Stafford, associate professor of medicine at the Stanford Prevention Research Center, is mentioned in this news brief.

• » Forbes: "High blood pressure still slipping past doctors"