Health budget President Bush’s 2009 federal budget request has been heavily criticised by health experts, who believe it will have a disastrous effect on health care. Of particular concern are proposed cuts to disease prevention and health insurance programmes for poor and elderly people.

Disaster relief Despite China’s admission that it was ill-prepared for the recent disastrous snow storms, it is making progress on the relief front. About 65 000 medical staff have been dispatched to help the 100 million people affected, of whom 1·6 million have been displaced. Concerns about food safety have prompted the State Food and Drug Administration to increase surveillance of produce to prevent the use of substandard food and drugs in the relief programme.

Food fight In a bid to curb spiralling obesity rates, the EU will require compulsory nutritional information on the front labels of prepacked food in its 27 member states. But UK health charities are disappointed that the traffic-light system, which uses red, amber, and green dots to signal levels of sugar, salt, and fat, was not given the green light under the new rules.

Kidney racket Recent arrests in India, for involvement in the illegal sale and transplant of kidneys, highlight the black-market trade of human organs as a continuing, worldwide problem. People who are sick and wealthy continue to exploit poor people across southeast Asia.

Tamiflu-resistant viruses About 14% of samples of avian influenza tested in nine European countries contained a mutation (H274Y) that confers resistance to the antiviral drug oseltamivir, or Tamiflu. Most of these samples were recovered from people who had not been exposed to Tamiflu. However, the viruses, from the H1N1 strain, were susceptible to three other available drugs.

Aid issues A report from Oxfam, acknowledges the contribution of aid to social and economic infra-structure in Afghanistan, but criticises donors. Oxfam says that the development process has been top-heavy, insufficient, supply-driven, prescriptive, too centralised, and has not responded to Afghan needs. Millions of Afghans, particularly in rural areas, still face severe and per-sistent poverty, and Oxfam has called for a commission to monitor donor performance.

Vendor bender A marijuana dispensary in California, where personal use of marijuana on a doctor’s recommendation is legal, has installed an automated vending machine. A swipe card and fingerprint scan confirms each user’s identity and entitlement before delivering a plastic bag of dope.

Child soldiers Action has been taken against 43 officials for recruiting child soldiers, according to a high-ranking official in the Burmese Military Govern-ment-Major General Thura Myint Aunga. He said 792 children were returned to their parents between 2002 and 2007, but Human Rights Watch estimates that Burma currently has up to 70 000 child soldiers.

Drug-name confusion The official US standards-setting body for medicines-US Pharmacopeia (USP)-has reported that drug name mistakes threatening patients’ health have more than doubled since 2004. 1470 drugs have been subject to such errors, 1·4% of which led to patient harm. USP has advised pharmacists to include an “indication for use” on prescriptions.

Drug donation The neglected tropi-cal-disease programme in Burkina Faso, one of the world’s poorest countries, has received a welcome boost. Pharmaceutical companies-Pfizer, Merck, and GlaxoSmithKline-have announced a donation of $450 million of medicines to help treat trachoma, schistosomiasis, onchocerciasis, lymphatic filariasis, and intestinal worms.

Australian apology The Australian Government intends to apologise formally to the “stolen generations”- Aboriginal children who were abducted from their families by government agencies and church missions between 1869 and 1969. Compensation has been refused, and remarkable disparities in health, wealth, and treatment by official agencies remain to be addressed.

Zips for snips Textile artists and scientists from two UK universities have developed a new surgical gown with nine zips, each representing an incision for a major surgical procedure. The gown, called Incisions, is made from human-tissue-like silk and is designed to encourage medical students to empathise with patients. It’s the cutting edge of fashion.

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