Ragbag Headliners

U.S. Recognition Of Same-Sex Marriages In Utah Sparks Conservative Backlash

The Heritage Foundation is pushing a "bipartisan" bill that would require the federal government to respect state laws on gay marriage.

The announcement by Attorney General Eric Holder that the U.S. would recognize the marriage licenses of same-sex couples in Utah has sparked conservative backlash.  The Heritage Foundation has come out in support of a House bill that would require the federal government to respect state laws on gay marriage.

A federal court recently overturned Utah’s ban on same-sex marriages.  Gay couples in the state rushed to get married, and some 1,300 did. The state government, though, has said that they won’t recognize those marriages.

On Friday, Holder said that the federal government would recognize the Utah marriages as a court battle over gay marriage continues.  That recognition includes giving federal benefits to same-sex couples.

That move has dismayed the right-wing Heritage Foundation, who is pushing a bill in the House that would require “the federal government to look to the laws of the state where citizens reside to determine the definition of ‘marriage,’” as the foundation wrote in a blog post. The "State Marriage Defense Act of 2014" is being marketed by the Hertiage Foundation as a "bipartisan" bill.

“Redefining marriage will entail high social costs. Thus all Americans should insist our laws embody the truth about marriage. And the federal government should respect it when state laws do so,” the Heritage Foundation’s Ryan Anderson wrote. –AlterNet

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Today in Manhood: Is It Better to Sit While Peeing?

Now that the government is back up and functioning again, we can start worrying about how other countries are run. For example, in Sormland, Sweden, a county counselor named Viggo Hansen tried passing legislation that required men to sit down while peeing to use public bathrooms. Because he believes it would stop the spread of disease, and also has the added benefit that sitting while peeing "fully empties" the bladder, which is healthier for the prostate, which means a better sex life.

Thing is, Hansen isn't alone in this school of thought. According to Mental Floss, similar ideas were proposed by men like Stephen Shen, Taiwan's head of the environmental protection agency. But is there any legitimacy to these claims?

Mental Floss asked Benjamin Davies, associate professor of urology at the University of Pittsburgh, who claimed that urine is sterile, and actually safe to drink. However, that's only partly true. Last year, researchers at the Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine (SSOM) found that urine is only sterile prior to entering the urethra. Upon making its way out of the body, urine can smell because of the bacteria lining the urethra, and also because there's ammonia in it.

That said, women have more problems dealing with bacteria in urine than men. Likely because the female urethra is shorter and closer to the anus, and men have an antibacterial substance in their prostate gland. And besides, women already pee sitting down, so either way the argument's invalid. So when Davies says that there's not much to worry about, he's probably right. Oh, and Hansen's claim that peeing while sitting down will help your sex life? Davies calls it "total bullshit."

So there you have it. Hopefully the facts don't piss off Viggo Hansen and Stephen Shen. –GQ

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HHS Strengthens Patients’ Right To Access Lab Test Reports

As part of an ongoing effort to empower patients to be informed partners with their health care providers, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has taken action to give patients or a person designated by the patient a means of direct access to the patient’s completed laboratory test reports.

“The right to access personal health information is a cornerstone of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule,” said Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. “Information like lab results can empower patients to track their health progress, make decisions with their health care professionals, and adhere to important treatment plans.”

The final rule announced today amends the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988 (CLIA) regulations to allow laboratories to give a patient, or a person designated by the patient, his or her “personal representative,” access to the patient’s completed test reports on the patient’s or patient’s personal representative’s request. At the same time, the final rule eliminates the exception under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Privacy Rule to an individual’s right to access his or her protected health information when it is held by a CLIA-certified or CLIA-exempt laboratory. While patients can continue to get access to their laboratory test reports from their doctors, these changes give patients a new option to obtain their test reports directly from the laboratory while maintaining strong protections for patients’ privacy.

The final rule is issued jointly by three agencies within HHS: the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), which is generally responsible for laboratory regulation under CLIA, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which provides scientific and technical advice to CMS related to CLIA, and the Office for Civil Rights (OCR), which is responsible for enforcing the HIPAA Privacy Rule.

Under the HIPAA Privacy Rule, patients, patient’s designees and patient’s personal representatives can see or be given a copy of the patient’s protected health information, including an electronic copy, with limited exceptions. In doing so, the patient or the personal representative may have to put their request in writing and pay for the cost of copying, mailing, or electronic media on which the information is provided, such as a CD or flash drive. In most cases, copies must be given to the patient within 30 days of his or her request.

The final rule is available for review by clicking here.