ALSO NOTED: AARP: Brand name drug prices up 6.5 percent; Part D impact on charitable programs examined; and much more...

> The AARP released a report on pharmaceutical prices that notes that the cost of brand-name prescription drugs rose 6.5 percent in 2005. Article

> Years after September 11, a majority of those who survived the attack on the World Trade Centers are experiencing problems rangina from respiratory illness to severe mental health issues. Article

> Medicare Part D has caused serious problems for some patients who rely on charitable programs run by pharmaceutical companies. Article

> The Chicago Tribune examines technologies that are expected to allow aging Americans to live ordinary lives by using digital age technologies to monitor their health. Article

> Former Pittsburgh Children's Hospital CEO Ronald Violi and local attorney Vincent Deluzio have formed a consulting firm. R&V Associates (as in Ronald & Vincent),  won its first contract, to Manage Wheeling Hospital in West Viriginia in January. Article

> Miami Herald columnist John Dorschner argues that participants of consumer driven high-deductible plans could be the "new uninsured." Article

> Tommy Thompson proposes the creation of a federally-financed system that would allow states to provide health insurance to the uninsured in an editorial in the Indianapolis Star on Sunday. Article

And Finally … An explosion has killed 15 people at a hospital in China's Shanxi province. Article