BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan (AP) ? Kyrgyzstan's president has reaffirmed that next year the Central Asian nation will evict the U.S. air base that supports military operations in nearby Afghanistan.
President Almazbek Atambayev has repeatedly pledged to shut the Manas Transit Center next year, dismissing U.S. assumptions the base would remain in exchange for higher rent. The United States pays $60 million annually for the base.
Atambayev said Tuesday the Kyrgyz Cabinet had drafted a bill on the base closure and submitted it to parliament. He said Kyrgyzstan would compensate for the loss of revenue through other economic projects.
All U.S. troops moving in and out of nearby Afghanistan travel through Manas. Large numbers of troops are set to flow through the facility as part of the withdrawal of most international troops next year.
Contact: Stephanie Desmon sdesmon1@jhmi.edu 410-955-8665 Johns Hopkins Medicine
Repeatedly changing primary care providers linked to more ER trips, study finds
Overweight and obese patients are significantly more likely than their normal-weight counterparts to repeatedly switch primary care doctors, a practice that disrupts continuity of care and leads to more emergency room visits, new Johns Hopkins research suggests.
The practice of "doctor shopping" among overweight patients may be a result of negative experiences with the health care system, whether that be off-putting comments by office staff, unsolicited weight loss advice by providers, or improperly sized medical equipment and office furniture, says Kimberly A. Gudzune, M.D., M.P.H., an assistant professor in the division of general internal medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Gudzune led the research described online in the journal Obesity.
Gudzune, who has conducted other research on challenges faced by overweight patients in their interactions with the health care system, and her colleagues define doctor shopping as seeing three or more different primary care physicians over the course of 24 months. In their study of more than 20,700 patients in a BlueCross BlueShield claims database, the researchers found that 23 percent met the definition. The odds of doctor shopping increased by 19 percent for overweight patients and 37 percent for obese patients, as compared with normal-weight patients in the database. Four percent of patients saw five or more primary care doctors over two years, a practice more likely in obese and overweight patients as well.
Gudzune cautions that not all doctor shopping is counterproductive or ill-considered. "If you are dissatisfied with your care or feel judged because of your weight, then you may be better served by finding a provider who can meet your needs," she says. The concerning issue, she adds, is that some patients may not find a provider that they connect with and are then driven to keep searching for new ones.
"There's something going wrong in these doctor-patient relationships that make these switches so frequent for this group of people," Gudzune says. "The real problem here is that the health of overweight and obese patients who doctor shop is being compromised. Because they do not remain with their doctors for very long, they are ending up in the emergency room, likely for things that could have been taken care of in a primary care office."
The researchers found that compared with normal-weight non-shoppers, overweight and obese doctor shoppers were 85 percent more likely than these normal-weight individuals to visit the ER. Even when compared to non-shoppers of their own weight, the overweight and obese doctor shoppers were still significantly more likely to visit the ER.
Moreover, this group was not more likely to be hospitalized, Gudzune notes, suggesting that their problems likely could have been solved by a primary care doctor in an office setting.
Gudzune says that other studies have shown that care continuity is associated with decreased hospitalizations and ER visits, improved use of preventive services and reduced health care costs.
Gudzune emphasizes that although her study did not determine the exact reasons why overweight and obese patients were switching doctors so often, the results affirm observations from a focus group study of obese women who discussed switching from doctor to doctor until they located a physician who met their needs.
Gudzune says more study is needed to tease out the reasons behind this phenomenon and to look for ways to ensure delivery of more compassionate care to overweight and obese patients.
"If they feel judged or hear offhanded comments about their weight, if the blood pressure cuff won't fit properly or they are afraid the examination table will not support their weight, it reinforces negative stereotypes obese patients encounter elsewhere," she says. "We need to strive to create a safe, judgment-free environment where all patients can receive satisfying medical care."
###
Other Johns Hopkins researchers involved in the study include Sara N. Bleich, Ph.D.; Thomas M. Richards, M.S.; Jonathan P. Weiner, Dr.P.H.; and Jeanne M. Clark, M.D., M.P.H.
The research was supported by grants from the Health Resources and Service Administration (T32HP10025-16-00) and the National Institutes of Health's National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (1K01HL096409).
For more information:
http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/awomansjourney/baltimore/2012_conference/2012_speaker_profiles/kimberly.gudzune.html
Johns Hopkins Medicine
Media Relations and Public Affairs
Media Contacts:
Stephanie Desmon
410-955-8665; sdesmon1@jhmi.edu
Helen Jones
410-502-9422; hjones49@jhmi.edu
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Contact: Stephanie Desmon sdesmon1@jhmi.edu 410-955-8665 Johns Hopkins Medicine
Repeatedly changing primary care providers linked to more ER trips, study finds
Overweight and obese patients are significantly more likely than their normal-weight counterparts to repeatedly switch primary care doctors, a practice that disrupts continuity of care and leads to more emergency room visits, new Johns Hopkins research suggests.
The practice of "doctor shopping" among overweight patients may be a result of negative experiences with the health care system, whether that be off-putting comments by office staff, unsolicited weight loss advice by providers, or improperly sized medical equipment and office furniture, says Kimberly A. Gudzune, M.D., M.P.H., an assistant professor in the division of general internal medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Gudzune led the research described online in the journal Obesity.
Gudzune, who has conducted other research on challenges faced by overweight patients in their interactions with the health care system, and her colleagues define doctor shopping as seeing three or more different primary care physicians over the course of 24 months. In their study of more than 20,700 patients in a BlueCross BlueShield claims database, the researchers found that 23 percent met the definition. The odds of doctor shopping increased by 19 percent for overweight patients and 37 percent for obese patients, as compared with normal-weight patients in the database. Four percent of patients saw five or more primary care doctors over two years, a practice more likely in obese and overweight patients as well.
Gudzune cautions that not all doctor shopping is counterproductive or ill-considered. "If you are dissatisfied with your care or feel judged because of your weight, then you may be better served by finding a provider who can meet your needs," she says. The concerning issue, she adds, is that some patients may not find a provider that they connect with and are then driven to keep searching for new ones.
"There's something going wrong in these doctor-patient relationships that make these switches so frequent for this group of people," Gudzune says. "The real problem here is that the health of overweight and obese patients who doctor shop is being compromised. Because they do not remain with their doctors for very long, they are ending up in the emergency room, likely for things that could have been taken care of in a primary care office."
The researchers found that compared with normal-weight non-shoppers, overweight and obese doctor shoppers were 85 percent more likely than these normal-weight individuals to visit the ER. Even when compared to non-shoppers of their own weight, the overweight and obese doctor shoppers were still significantly more likely to visit the ER.
Moreover, this group was not more likely to be hospitalized, Gudzune notes, suggesting that their problems likely could have been solved by a primary care doctor in an office setting.
Gudzune says that other studies have shown that care continuity is associated with decreased hospitalizations and ER visits, improved use of preventive services and reduced health care costs.
Gudzune emphasizes that although her study did not determine the exact reasons why overweight and obese patients were switching doctors so often, the results affirm observations from a focus group study of obese women who discussed switching from doctor to doctor until they located a physician who met their needs.
Gudzune says more study is needed to tease out the reasons behind this phenomenon and to look for ways to ensure delivery of more compassionate care to overweight and obese patients.
"If they feel judged or hear offhanded comments about their weight, if the blood pressure cuff won't fit properly or they are afraid the examination table will not support their weight, it reinforces negative stereotypes obese patients encounter elsewhere," she says. "We need to strive to create a safe, judgment-free environment where all patients can receive satisfying medical care."
###
Other Johns Hopkins researchers involved in the study include Sara N. Bleich, Ph.D.; Thomas M. Richards, M.S.; Jonathan P. Weiner, Dr.P.H.; and Jeanne M. Clark, M.D., M.P.H.
The research was supported by grants from the Health Resources and Service Administration (T32HP10025-16-00) and the National Institutes of Health's National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (1K01HL096409).
For more information:
http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/awomansjourney/baltimore/2012_conference/2012_speaker_profiles/kimberly.gudzune.html
Johns Hopkins Medicine
Media Relations and Public Affairs
Media Contacts:
Stephanie Desmon
410-955-8665; sdesmon1@jhmi.edu
Helen Jones
410-502-9422; hjones49@jhmi.edu
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
A huge tornado ripped through Moore, Okla. on Monday afternoon, leaving a 20-mile path of death and destruction. At least 24 people were killed, including at least 7 children, according to AP. The powerful twister struck only a day after a tornado killed two people in Shawnee, Okla., and left 39 others injured throughout the state.
If you'd like to help the victims of the storms, here are the organizations that are working on relief and recovery in the region:
BAPTIST GENERAL CONVENTION OF OKLAHOMA: Disaster relief volunteers from Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma are sending relief teams and feeding units to affected areas. Please designate your gift to "Disaster Relief." Donate here.
THE SALVATION ARMY USA: The Salvation Army of Arkansas and Oklahoma is becoming active in disaster response to several areas as a result of weather related events.? The Salvation Army is providing mobile feeding units for first responders and survivors. Please designate your gift to "Disaster Relief." Donate here.
THE RED CROSS: The Red Cross has set up shelters in the Moore, Okla., and elsewhere in the state. Donate here.
If you've cut the cable cord, you've probably found that live sports are the hardest type of content to replace. Normally you have to be a DirectTV subscriber to stream NFL games on your laptop or phone, but there's a very interesting Madden 25 bundle currently on Amazon that'll get you access.
Amazon is selling preorders for the special edition of Madden 25?think Madden 2014?for $100, which is $40 more than the standard game. But supposedly the first 50,000 copies of both the Xbox and PS3 game have a unique code that'll get you access to NFL Sunday Ticket streaming?which brings you all 17 weeks of NFL games barring blackouts plus NFL RedZone?on your laptop or mobile device. From EA's FAQ:
Is a DIRECTV subscription necessary in order to view NFL Sunday Ticket via computer, mobile or tablet?
No, it is not necessary to have a DIRECTV subscription. Each Anniversary Edition aspecial code for eligible gamers giving them the opportunity to unlock a special, 2013 regular season (17 weeks) trial of NFL Sunday Ticket on computer, tablet and mobile devices.
There's a ton of fine print, mostly because this promotion is meant to garner more subscribers for DirectTV, which may not be a subscription you want. One detail that should be noted is that this Sunday Ticket "trial" won't work on the PS3. But after parsing through the FAQs, fine print, and tweets, Kotaku's always excellent Owen Good concluded that yes, Virginia, this deal does net you NFL Sunday Ticket streaming for $100. I don't think that's available anywhere else a la carte, for any price. Plus, you'll get the newest Madden on the first day it's available.
A note on Dealzmodo: We're professional shoppers. Yes, we make money if you end up buying. That's capitalism, but we're absolutely looking out for your best interest. Read this if you want to know more.
Why sign up for a one-way Mars trip? Three applicants explain the appeal - Cosmic Log
NASA / STScI
Mars looms large in a Hubble Space Telescope photo - and in the imaginations of those who have signed up for a one-way trip to the Red Planet. "It's not that I'm trying to get away," says 18-year-old Kayli McArthur, one of tens of thousands of applicants. "It's like I'm trying to strive for something more."
By Alan Boyle, Science Editor, NBC News
A one-way trip to Mars sounds like something you'd wish on your worst enemy ? so why would more than 78,000 people from around the world pay up to $75 for a chance to die on another planet?
"I can say I have an ulterior motive," said David Brin, who has written more than a dozen science-fiction novels ??including "The Postman," which was turned into a Kevin Costner movie in 1997. "I'd get a lot of writing done, and it might be memorable."
As a master of hard science fiction, the 62-year-old Brin knows better than most applicants what the first Red Planet settlers would face if they're sent off in 2022, as the Dutch-based Mars One venture has proposed.
The settlers would have to be sealed up in habitats, protected from harsh radiation, supplied with machine-made air and water, and nourished by whatever food can be grown on a cold, barren planet. They'd have to keep their sanity, millions of miles away from their families and Mission Control. Worst of all, they'd have to face the fact that there's no guarantee of ever going back.
View results
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{{data.totalVotes}} votes
Will this scheme actually work? "I give it a low probability of happening," Brin said, "and I don't consider it to be the most responsible thing I've ever seen."
Nevertheless, the venture has an attraction for Brin and tens of thousands of others, The ages of those listed in Mars One's database range from 18 to 71. All those applicants are facing a long road even before the first four-person crew gets off the planet. Mars One is accepting applicants through Aug. 31. The field of applicants would first be whittled down by panels of experts. Then they'd undergo trial by reality TV, followed by years of training.
"This may sound crazy, but it kind of reminds me of 'The Hunger Games,'" said Kayli McArthur, an 18-year-old student who's one of the youngest Mars One applicants. "It's cool that it would be televised, but that's not my whole thing."
On the other end of the age spectrum, 71-year-old psychiatrist Sanford Pomerantz is a little surprised that it's taking this long to get something like Mars One off the ground. "I thought by now we would have colonized Mars," said Pomerantz, who's currently the oldest applicant on Mars One's list.
So what's the appeal of Mars One? It's too early for Brin, McArthur and Pomerantz to give a lot of thought to their adventure on Mars, let alone their death on Mars. Instead, they're focusing on the adventure here on Earth. Here's what's behind their thinking:
Mars One
David Brin: 'My main purpose is the conversation' Brin sees Mars One as just one of a number of ventures aimed at expanding humanity's frontier, ranging from Virgin Galactic's suborbital space tours to Golden Spike's moon missions. "It's emblematic of the new era that we're about to enter at long last ? what I call the barnstorming era," he said.
Like the daring airplane fliers of the 1920s, these 21st-century space barnstormers are willing to take bigger risks in hopes of providing bigger thrills ? and eventually, earning bigger payoffs. The Mars One project is "a great way to get the discussion going," Brin said.
"You have to assume that it may not work, and that there will be a statue of you on Mars someday," he said. "I'm aware of the tradeoffs, and I'm willing to explore it further, but largely my main purpose is the conversation. We've got to be talking about how we can be a more exploratory people ? a more interesting people, if you like."
Brin doesn't doubt that Mars One will find plenty of qualified (and interesting) people willing to take the risk.
"People who cannot imagine any sane person making that choice simply aren't envisioning the wide range of human diversity," said Brin, who has three children in school. "Consider what I told my family. By the very earliest date that Mars One might launch, I expect to be a spry 75-year-old whose kids are already successfully launched, and who might spend a few years doing something truly remarkable."
Even if it means dying on alien soil? Brin isn't completely sure he'd go that far, but he's willing to bet that others would.
"I think you'll find tens of thousands of people who, under those circumstances, will at least ponder it seriously," Brin said.
Mars One
Kayli McArthur: 'I'm trying to strive for something more' McArthur, a freshman at the University of Arizona, is one of more than three dozen?18-year-olds?on Mars One's list of applicants. Ever since she applied, she's been hearing that she has her whole life ahead of her, so why would she want to leave it all behind for Mars?
"Being young doesn't make me want to do it any less because I have my whole life ahead of me," she said. "It makes it more exciting. ... I love all my friends, my guy friends, my family. It's not that I'm trying to get away. It's like I'm trying to strive for something more."
She has long dreamed of going into outer space, and she figures that her future degree in materials science would come in handy for creating the first interplanetary settlement. "Going to Mars, there are so many opportunities for that," she said.?
So far, her family hasn't stood in her way. "My family jokes, like, 'Oh, Kayli, have your fun with it,'" she said. If the selection process gets more serious, she suspects she might face more resistance from her parents. But not from her grandfather.
"My grandpa is a retired three-star [general] in the Air Force," she said. "We were talking about it. I get really worked up and excited, and he was talking about it, too, and being realistic about it. He said, 'That would be so cool if you were able to do it.' ... I know my grandpa would totally support me."
Mars One
Sanford Pomerantz: 'Grandpa is going to Mars!' Pomerantz is old enough to remember when the idea of sending people into outer space seemed as far out as the idea of sending people on a one-way trip to Mars seems now. One of the books that made an impression on him in grade school was Robert Heinlein's "Red Planet: A Colonial Boy on Mars,"?which was published in 1949.
"I started as a physics major in the university, but then I got accepted into med school and changed directions," he said. At the age of 71, he's still a practicing psychiatrist in Topeka, Kan. But he's also still holding onto that boyhood dream of spaceflight.
"The Mars thing is exciting, because I hope it'll stimulate people to get interested in space. ... And I hope it has the secondary effect of stimulating science education, especially in the U.S.," he said.
Just as McArthur believes that Mars will need a materials scientist, Pomerantz believes the crew will need a psychiatrist. "Psychologically, it's going to be an interesting challenge, but human beings are very adaptable," he said. "It'll be exciting to go to a whole new world. It'll be a major step in human evolution."
If Pomerantz ends up being selected for the first Mars crew, he's likely to become not only the oldest human to head for the Red Planet, but the oldest human to go on any space mission. (The current record-holder is John Glenn, who flew on the shuttle Discovery when he was 77 years old.) For now at least, that prospect doesn't faze Pomerantz's three children and two grandchildren. "The grandchildren are excited," he said. "It's like, 'Grandpa is going to Mars!'"
Pomerantz became a certified scuba diver just two years ago, and he still expects to be in good physical and mental shape for liftoff in 2022. "Remember, age is a state of mind," he said. "Chronologlcally, I may be 71. ... But psychologically and physically, I'm definitely in my 20s. I look in the mirror and say, 'Who's that old guy?'"
Mars One's founders and would-be astronauts discuss plans to go a one-way trip to the Red Planet in 2023.
More about missions to Mars:
David Brin's latest science-fiction novel is "Existence,"?which is set in the latter part of the 21st century and involves matters way beyond Mars.
Alan Boyle is NBCNews.com's science editor. Connect with the Cosmic Log community by "liking" the NBC News Science Facebook page, following @b0yle on Twitter and adding the Cosmic Log page to your Google+ presence. To keep up with NBCNews.com's stories about science and space, sign up for the Tech & Science newsletter, delivered to your email in-box every weekday. You can also check out "The Case for Pluto," my book about the controversial dwarf planet and the search for new worlds.
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Why sign up for a one-way Mars trip? Three applicants explain the appeal - Cosmic Log
NASA / STScI
Mars looms large in a Hubble Space Telescope photo - and in the imaginations of those who have signed up for a one-way trip to the Red Planet. "It's not that I'm trying to get away," says 18-year-old Kayli McArthur, one of tens of thousands of applicants. "It's like I'm trying to strive for something more."
By Alan Boyle, Science Editor, NBC News
A one-way trip to Mars sounds like something you'd wish on your worst enemy ? so why would more than 78,000 people from around the world pay up to $75 for a chance to die on another planet?
"I can say I have an ulterior motive," said David Brin, who has written more than a dozen science-fiction novels ??including "The Postman," which was turned into a Kevin Costner movie in 1997. "I'd get a lot of writing done, and it might be memorable."
As a master of hard science fiction, the 62-year-old Brin knows better than most applicants what the first Red Planet settlers would face if they're sent off in 2022, as the Dutch-based Mars One venture has proposed.
The settlers would have to be sealed up in habitats, protected from harsh radiation, supplied with machine-made air and water, and nourished by whatever food can be grown on a cold, barren planet. They'd have to keep their sanity, millions of miles away from their families and Mission Control. Worst of all, they'd have to face the fact that there's no guarantee of ever going back.
View results
{{percent}}%
({{numVotes}} votes)
{{/data.answerData}}
{{data.totalVotes}} votes
Will this scheme actually work? "I give it a low probability of happening," Brin said, "and I don't consider it to be the most responsible thing I've ever seen."
Nevertheless, the venture has an attraction for Brin and tens of thousands of others, The ages of those listed in Mars One's database range from 18 to 71. All those applicants are facing a long road even before the first four-person crew gets off the planet. Mars One is accepting applicants through Aug. 31. The field of applicants would first be whittled down by panels of experts. Then they'd undergo trial by reality TV, followed by years of training.
"This may sound crazy, but it kind of reminds me of 'The Hunger Games,'" said Kayli McArthur, an 18-year-old student who's one of the youngest Mars One applicants. "It's cool that it would be televised, but that's not my whole thing."
On the other end of the age spectrum, 71-year-old psychiatrist Sanford Pomerantz is a little surprised that it's taking this long to get something like Mars One off the ground. "I thought by now we would have colonized Mars," said Pomerantz, who's currently the oldest applicant on Mars One's list.
So what's the appeal of Mars One? It's too early for Brin, McArthur and Pomerantz to give a lot of thought to their adventure on Mars, let alone their death on Mars. Instead, they're focusing on the adventure here on Earth. Here's what's behind their thinking:
Mars One
David Brin: 'My main purpose is the conversation' Brin sees Mars One as just one of a number of ventures aimed at expanding humanity's frontier, ranging from Virgin Galactic's suborbital space tours to Golden Spike's moon missions. "It's emblematic of the new era that we're about to enter at long last ? what I call the barnstorming era," he said.
Like the daring airplane fliers of the 1920s, these 21st-century space barnstormers are willing to take bigger risks in hopes of providing bigger thrills ? and eventually, earning bigger payoffs. The Mars One project is "a great way to get the discussion going," Brin said.
"You have to assume that it may not work, and that there will be a statue of you on Mars someday," he said. "I'm aware of the tradeoffs, and I'm willing to explore it further, but largely my main purpose is the conversation. We've got to be talking about how we can be a more exploratory people ? a more interesting people, if you like."
Brin doesn't doubt that Mars One will find plenty of qualified (and interesting) people willing to take the risk.
"People who cannot imagine any sane person making that choice simply aren't envisioning the wide range of human diversity," said Brin, who has three children in school. "Consider what I told my family. By the very earliest date that Mars One might launch, I expect to be a spry 75-year-old whose kids are already successfully launched, and who might spend a few years doing something truly remarkable."
Even if it means dying on alien soil? Brin isn't completely sure he'd go that far, but he's willing to bet that others would.
"I think you'll find tens of thousands of people who, under those circumstances, will at least ponder it seriously," Brin said.
Mars One
Kayli McArthur: 'I'm trying to strive for something more' McArthur, a freshman at the University of Arizona, is one of more than three dozen?18-year-olds?on Mars One's list of applicants. Ever since she applied, she's been hearing that she has her whole life ahead of her, so why would she want to leave it all behind for Mars?
"Being young doesn't make me want to do it any less because I have my whole life ahead of me," she said. "It makes it more exciting. ... I love all my friends, my guy friends, my family. It's not that I'm trying to get away. It's like I'm trying to strive for something more."
She has long dreamed of going into outer space, and she figures that her future degree in materials science would come in handy for creating the first interplanetary settlement. "Going to Mars, there are so many opportunities for that," she said.?
So far, her family hasn't stood in her way. "My family jokes, like, 'Oh, Kayli, have your fun with it,'" she said. If the selection process gets more serious, she suspects she might face more resistance from her parents. But not from her grandfather.
"My grandpa is a retired three-star [general] in the Air Force," she said. "We were talking about it. I get really worked up and excited, and he was talking about it, too, and being realistic about it. He said, 'That would be so cool if you were able to do it.' ... I know my grandpa would totally support me."
Mars One
Sanford Pomerantz: 'Grandpa is going to Mars!' Pomerantz is old enough to remember when the idea of sending people into outer space seemed as far out as the idea of sending people on a one-way trip to Mars seems now. One of the books that made an impression on him in grade school was Robert Heinlein's "Red Planet: A Colonial Boy on Mars,"?which was published in 1949.
"I started as a physics major in the university, but then I got accepted into med school and changed directions," he said. At the age of 71, he's still a practicing psychiatrist in Topeka, Kan. But he's also still holding onto that boyhood dream of spaceflight.
"The Mars thing is exciting, because I hope it'll stimulate people to get interested in space. ... And I hope it has the secondary effect of stimulating science education, especially in the U.S.," he said.
Just as McArthur believes that Mars will need a materials scientist, Pomerantz believes the crew will need a psychiatrist. "Psychologically, it's going to be an interesting challenge, but human beings are very adaptable," he said. "It'll be exciting to go to a whole new world. It'll be a major step in human evolution."
If Pomerantz ends up being selected for the first Mars crew, he's likely to become not only the oldest human to head for the Red Planet, but the oldest human to go on any space mission. (The current record-holder is John Glenn, who flew on the shuttle Discovery when he was 77 years old.) For now at least, that prospect doesn't faze Pomerantz's three children and two grandchildren. "The grandchildren are excited," he said. "It's like, 'Grandpa is going to Mars!'"
Pomerantz became a certified scuba diver just two years ago, and he still expects to be in good physical and mental shape for liftoff in 2022. "Remember, age is a state of mind," he said. "Chronologlcally, I may be 71. ... But psychologically and physically, I'm definitely in my 20s. I look in the mirror and say, 'Who's that old guy?'"
Mars One's founders and would-be astronauts discuss plans to go a one-way trip to the Red Planet in 2023.
More about missions to Mars:
David Brin's latest science-fiction novel is "Existence,"?which is set in the latter part of the 21st century and involves matters way beyond Mars.
Alan Boyle is NBCNews.com's science editor. Connect with the Cosmic Log community by "liking" the NBC News Science Facebook page, following @b0yle on Twitter and adding the Cosmic Log page to your Google+ presence. To keep up with NBCNews.com's stories about science and space, sign up for the Tech & Science newsletter, delivered to your email in-box every weekday. You can also check out "The Case for Pluto," my book about the controversial dwarf planet and the search for new worlds.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) ? First lady Michelle Obama has some advice for some Tennessee high school graduates: strike your own path in college and life and work to overcome inevitable failures with determination and grit.
Mrs. Obama spoke for 22-minutes to the Martin Luther King Jr. Academic Magnet High School in Nashville in her only high school graduation speech this year.
The first lady told the 170 graduates that she spent too much of her own time in college focusing on academic achievements. She said while her success in college and law school led to a high-profile job, she ended up leaving to focus on public service.
Mrs. Obama had this message for the graduates: "Do not waste a minute living someone else's dream."
Mrs. Obama later presented graduate diplomas on stage.
WASHINGTON (AP) ? More than 85,000 veterans were treated last year for injuries or illness stemming from sexual abuse in the military, and 4,000 sought disability benefits, underscoring the staggering long-term impact of a crisis that has roiled the Pentagon and been condemned by President Barack Obama as "''shameful and disgraceful."
A Department of Veterans Affairs accounting released in response to inquiries from The Associated Press shows a heavy financial and emotional cost involving vets from Iraq, Afghanistan and even back to Vietnam, and lasting long after a victim leaves the service.
Sexual assault or repeated sexual harassment can trigger a variety of health problems, primarily post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. While women are more likely to be victims, men made up nearly 40 percent of the patients the VA treated last year for conditions connected to what it calls "military sexual trauma."
It took years for Ruth Moore of Milbridge, Maine, to begin getting treatment from a VA counseling center in 2003 ? 16 years after she was raped twice while she was stationed in Europe with the Navy. She continues to get counseling at least monthly for PTSD linked to the attacks and is also considered fully disabled.
"We can't cure me, but we can work on stability in my life and work on issues as they arrive," Moore said.
VA officials stress that any veteran who claims to have suffered military sexual trauma has access to free health care.
"It really is the case that a veteran can simply walk through the door, say they've had this experience, and we will get them hooked up with care. There's no documentation required. They don't need to have reported it at the time," said Dr. Margret Bell, a member of the VA's military sexual trauma team. "The emphasis is really on helping people get the treatment that they need."
However, the hurdles are steeper for those who seek disability compensation ? too steep for some veterans groups and lawmakers who support legislation designed to make it easier for veterans to get a monthly disability payment.
"Right now, the burden of proof is stacked against sexual trauma survivors," said Anu Bhagwati, executive director of the Service Women's Action Network. "Ninety percent of 26,000 cases last year weren't even reported. So where is that evidence supposed to come from?"
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has said reducing the incidence of sexual assaults in the military is a top priority. But it's a decades-old problem with no easy fix, as made even more apparent when an Air Force officer who headed a sexual assault prevention office was arrested on sexual battery charges.
"We will not stop until we've seen this scourge, from what is the greatest military in the world, eliminated," Obama said after summoning top Pentagon officials to the White House last week to talk about the problem. "Not only is it a crime, not only is it shameful and disgraceful, but it also is going to make and has made the military less effective than it can be."
The VA says 1 in 5 women and 1 in 100 men screen positive for military sexual trauma, which the VA defines as "any sexual activity where you are involved against your will." Some report that they were victims of rape, while others say they were groped or subjected to verbal abuse or other forms of sexual harassment.
But not all those veterans seek health care or disability benefits related to the attacks. The 85,000 who sought outpatient care linked to military sexual trauma during the latest fiscal year are among nearly 22 million veterans around the country.
The VA statistics underscore that the problems for victims of sexual abuse do not end when someone leaves the service.
Psychological issues, including PTSD, depression and anxiety, are most common, according to the agency. Victims also can develop substance abuse problems.
Some victims like Moore are so disabled that they are unable to work. Others need ongoing care at VA outpatient clinics and hospitals.
In the final six months of 2011, an average of 248 veterans per month filed for disability benefits related to sexual trauma. That rose by about a third, to 334 veterans per month in 2012, an increase the VA attributed in part to better screening for the ongoing trauma associated with sexual assault. Of those who filed in 2012, about two-thirds were women and nearly a third were men.
"We do a lot more awareness, and as we educate everyone on the potential benefits and that it's OK to come forward, I think you see an increase in reporting," said Edna MacDonald, director of the VA's regional office in Nashville.
To get disability benefits related to sexual trauma, veterans must be diagnosed with a health problem such as PTSD, submit proof that they were assaulted or sexually harassed in a threatening manner and have a VA examiner confirm a link to their health condition.
Many lawmakers and veterans groups support allowing a veteran's statement alone to serve as the proof that an assault or harassment occurred. An examiner would still have to find there's a link to the health condition diagnosed.
The VA's records indicate that veterans seeking compensation related to military sexual trauma had about a 1 in 2 chance of getting their claim approved last year, up from about 34 percent in June 2011.
The VA does not break out the cost of treating and compensating individual veterans for sexual abuse or trauma. A veterans combination of disabilities are unique to each individual, so it's not able to attribute specific spending levels for individual disabilities.
Benefits depend on the severity of the disability. For example, a veteran with a 50 percent rating and no dependents would get $810 a month. A veteran with a 100 percent rating and a spouse and child to support would get nearly $3,088 a month.
Moore estimates the government's cost for her disability benefits and treatment could well exceed $500,000 over the course of her lifetime.
It wasn't until June 2011 that the VA began recording monthly disability claims related specifically to military sexual trauma. Veterans file claims for conditions that are a result of the trauma, not for MST itself, which made it particularly difficult to track. The VA came up with a special process for doing so in 2010.
There's no time limit to filing a claim. "We have veterans who call our help line who have been assaulted way back in time. They're still suffering from the effects of World War II or Vietnam. I wish I were exaggerating," said Bhagwati, whose organization advocates for female veterans.
The VA's undersecretary for benefits, Allison Hickey, a 27-year veteran and former Air Force general, has required all workers handling disability claims to undergo sensitivity training in dealing with military sexual trauma.
Hickey also assembled a task force to review the claims process for veterans claiming sexual assault or harassment while serving in the military. The group looked at 400 claims and determined that nearly a quarter were denied before all the evidence was presented. That led to another training program on the evidence needed or establishing a PTSD claim connected to military sexual trauma. The approval rate is now much closer, though still slightly behind that for other PTSD claims.
Even though the VA's statistics indicate that a greater percentage of military sexual trauma are getting benefits, lawmakers believe more action is required.
"If half of them are being denied their claims, that's still a lot of people, said Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-Maine.
Pingree and Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., are the lead sponsors of the legislation that would allow the veteran's word to serve as sufficient proof that an assault occurred. The legislation is named after Moore, who spent years fighting for disability benefits.
The VA originally opposed Pingree's bill, saying the legislation didn't allow for the minimal evidence "needed to maintain the integrity of the claims process." But VA spokesman Josh Taylor said Thursday that there's been a change of heart and that the VA no longer opposes the legislation.
"VA supports the goals of the legislation, and will continue to work with Congress on the best approach to accomplish it," Taylor said.
An amended version of Pingree's bill passed the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs two weeks ago and could go to the full House as early as this week. The bill no longer requires the department to alter its regulations for military sexual trauma claims. Instead, the bill says that it's Congress' sense that the VA should update and improve its regulations regarding military sexual trauma. And until it does, it must meet extensive reporting requirements, which include a monthly report to all veterans who have submitted a claim that would, among other things, detail the number of claims relating to MST that were granted or denied, the three most common reasons for a denial and the average time it took to process a claim.
Supporters are hoping that the reporting requirements prove so cumbersome that the VA agrees to ease the evidentiary burden for the veterans.
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Public release date: 21-May-2013
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