HEALTH

STUDY: OBESITY SURGERY RISK HIGHER THAN THOUGHT

The chances of dying within a year after obesity surgery are much higher than previously thought, even among people in their 30s and 40s, a study of more than 16,000 Medicare patients found.

Some previous studies of people in their 30s to their 50s – the most common ages for obesity surgery – found death rates well under 1%. But among 35- to 44-year-olds in the Medicare study, more than 5% of men and nearly 3% of women were dead within a year, and slightly higher rates were seen in patients 45 to 54.

Among patients 65 to 74, nearly 13% of men and about 6% of women died. In patients 75 and older, half of the men and 40% of the women died.

“The risk of death is much higher than has been reported,” said University of Washington surgeon Dr. David Flum, the Medicare study’s lead author. “It’s a reality check for those patients who are considering these operations.”

The study involved 16,155 Medicare patients who underwent obesity surgery between 1997 and 2002. It was published in today’s Journal of the American Medical Association.

– Associated Press

WASHINGTON

FRIST SAYS HE’S ‘COOPERATING FULLY’ WITH PROBE

Senate Majority Leader Frist said yesterday he is “cooperating fully” with federal investigators probing his sale of stock in a large health care company founded by his father, but declined to say whether he has been subpoenaed or personally answered questions in the case.

“I acted properly at every point. I am absolutely confident of the outcome itself,” said the Tennessee Republican, whose decision to order the sale of stock from his blind trusts in June is under review by both the Securities and Exchange Commission and federal prosecutors.

Dr. Frist directed the sale of his stock in HCA, Inc., about two weeks before the for-profit health care firm issued a disappointing earnings forecast that drove its share price down almost 16%. At the same time, top executives and directors of the company were selling shares totaling $112 million in value.

Dr. Frist has denied acting on insider information. He has previously said he wanted to divest himself of shares in the company to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest at a time when he was preparing for a possible 2008 presidential campaign.

– Associated Press

BUSH, CHERTOFF, AND CHAO PROMOTE GUEST WORKER PROGRAM

President Bush yesterday argued for his temporary worker plan for foreigners, hoping to win over skeptical conservatives with get-tough promises about illegal immigration.

“We’re going to get control of our borders and make this country safer for all our citizens,” said Mr. Bush. He commented as he signed into law a $32 billion homeland security bill that has large increases for patrolling borders but fewer grants for local first responders and a freeze in transit security funding.

Hours earlier, administration officials appeared on Capitol Hill to promote the guest worker plan, saying action is needed beyond improving border patrols to stem the flow of illegal immigrants. “We’re going to need more than just brute enforcement,” Homeland Security Secretary Chertoff told the Senate Judiciary Committee. “We’re going to need a temporary worker program as well.” Mr. Bush last year introduced a plan that would allow undocumented workers to get three-year work visas.

– Associated Press

SOUTH

COURT ALLOWS SCIENTIST TO PURSUE LIBEL LAWSUIT AGAINST NY TIMES

RICHMOND, Va. – A federal appeals court yesterday allowed a former Army scientist to proceed with a libel lawsuit against the New York Times that claims one of the paper’s columnists unfairly linked him to the 2001 anthrax killings.

Steven Hatfill sued the Times for a series of columns written in 2002 by Nicholas Kristof that faulted the FBI for failing to thoroughly investigate Mr. Hatfill for anthrax mailings that left five people dead. The initial columns identified Mr. Hatfill only as “Mr. Z,” but subsequent columns named him after Mr. Hatfill stepped forward to deny any role in the killings. Federal authorities labeled Mr. Hatfill “a person of interest” in their investigation. Mr. Hatfill, a physician and bioterrorism expert, worked in the late 1990s at the Army’s infectious disease laboratory at Fort Detrick, Md.

In a 6-6 decision, with one judge not participating, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals failed to produce a majority of judges needed to grant a rehearing and affirmed an earlier decision to reinstate the case.

– Associated Press

HONDURAS, CARIBBE AN BRACE FOR HURRICANE WILMA

Hurricane Wilma whirled into the record books yesterday as the 12th such storm of the season, on course to sideswipe Central America or Mexico and looming as a “significant threat” to Florida by the weekend.

Forecasters warned that Wilma was “a major hurricane” that was likely to rake Honduras and the Cayman Islands before turning toward the narrow Yucatan Channel between Cuba and Mexico’s Cancun region – then move into the storm weary Gulf. By 2 p.m., Wilma was centered about 180 miles south of Grand Cayman Island, and was moving toward the west-northwest at nearly 8 mph, with maximum sustained winds at 80 mph. Forecasters said Wilma was likely to become a Category 3 hurricane, with winds reaching 120 mph by tomorrow.

– Associated Press