personal health records (PHR)

> The US Department of Agriculture released its new food pyramid for kids, tailored to the six to 11 age group. Story

> A new report by the advocacy group Families USA questions the value delivered by Medicare Part D. Supporters are crying foul. …

As we predicted in yesterday's newsletter, the issue of missing medical files following Hurricane Katrina is becoming a major story in the tech and industry press. Missing and destroyed medical records are causing major problems for those trying to deliver healthcare services in the affected areas, something which probably would not have have happened with digital records. With no documentation available on medical histories, seriously ill people are having to start over again, almost …

San Diego hosts the 65th annual American Diabetes Association (ADA) Scientific Sessions this weekend. That means we can probably expect a lot of talk about diabetes and chronic diseases in general over the next week. Eli Lilly is expected to talk up its partnership with Amylin Pharmaceuticals, which produced the recently approved Byetta, a new twice-a-day treatment for controlling blood sugar levels which appears to show great promise.

We'll also be hearing a lot about the things …

American Medical News takes a look at the phenomenon of the personal health record and the growing disagreement about what one should look like. What exactly is a PHR? That depends on who you're talking to. Hospitals, vendors and patients have very different takes on the subject. American Medical News examines each perspective. Commercially available products already let patients assemble information on their own medical histories online, but some physicians worry that …