ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, September 12, 1996 TAG: 9609130042
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-3 EDITION: METRO
Mail carrier wins Hero of Year award
WASHINGTON - A mail carrier who struggled to save victims of a deadly rail crash was named national ``Hero of the Year'' by the National Association of Letter Carriers on Wednesday.
The honor went to Joan Barr of Mechanicsville, Md., who was headed home when she stopped to help victims of the fiery crash of a Maryland commuter train and an Amtrak liner outside Washington on Feb. 16.
``Every day, all across America, letter carriers keep a watchful eye on the neighborhoods in which they deliver mail,'' said Vincent R. Sombrotto, the association's president. ``These men and women are superb examples of letter carriers who are integral parts of their communities.'
- Associated Press
Cancer experts ask FDA to OK pain drug
WASHINGTON - Cancer experts recommended Wednesday that the Food and Drug Administration approve a drug to reduce the severe pain dying prostate cancer victims suffer.
The drug Novantrone, known chemically as mitoxantrone, does not appear to fight the prostate cancer itself, or to help patients live longer.
But manufacturer Immunex Corp. argued that 38 percent of patients who tried Novantrone plus standard pain treatment reported a decrease in pain, vs. 21 percent of patients on standard therapy alone.
- Associated Press
Study: Blacks get worse medical care
BOSTON - Despite equal Medicare coverage, affluent elderly white people often receive better medical care than blacks or poor people of all races, a study found.
Simply having decent medical insurance does not guarantee top-notch medical care.
The study was conducted by Marian E. Gornick and others from the Health Care Financing Administration, which runs Medicare. It was published in today's issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
``If racism is involved, it is unlikely to be overt or even conscious,'' wrote Dr. H. Jack Geiger of City University of New York in an editorial in the journal.
While everyone over age 65 is covered by Medicare, higher-income people often have supplementary insurance.
The study found blacks and the poor are less likely to make office visits to doctors and to get mammograms or flu shots. But they are hospitalized more often and have higher death rates. Considering income reduced, but did not eliminate, racial differences in health care received.
- Associated Press
LENGTH: Medium: 56 linesby CNB