The Associated Press/Chicago Tribune: Whistleblower Lawsuit Accuses Generic Drugmakers Of Scheme That Overcharged MedicaidThree generic drugmakers are being accused in a whistleblower lawsuit of scheming to overcharge the government by tens of millions of dollars for medicines. The U.S. Attorney's office on Tuesday joined in the lawsuit, brought by Chicago pharmacist Bernard Lisitza. His attorneys alleged in a 162-page complaint unsealed Tuesday afternoon that Par Pharmaceuticals Companies Inc. of Woodcliff Lake, N.J., and two foreign generic drugmakers overcharged the Medicaid program by getting pharmacies to dispense different, more-expensive, dosage forms than what was prescribed (Johnson, 9/6).

NPR: Conservatives Step Up Attacks On Public Funding For Birth ControlIt used to be that opposition to publicly funded birth control was linked to abortion. Either the birth control in question allegedly caused abortion, or the organization providing the birth control (read: Planned Parenthood) also performed abortions. But that's changing. These days, more and more voices are opposing the provision of birth control for its own sake (Rovner, 9/7).

Chicago Tribune: HPV Vaccination Rates Low NationwideA nationwide survey of 13- to 17-year-old girls by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2010 found that only about half had received at least one dose of the three-part HPV vaccination series. Illinois was at the low end, according to the CDC results released in August, with only 39.7 percent of female adolescents receiving at least one dose of the series and only 26 percent receiving the full three doses (Neumann, 9/7).

NPR: Haggle, Don't Settle, When It Comes To Health CostsSeems like forever that Consumer Reports has been telling people to haggle over the price of a microwave or a car. Now the folks behind the magazine want you to haggle with your doctor -; or at least let her know that you can't afford that bypass (Shute, 9/6).

The Washington Post: Author Geralyn Lucas Puts A Fresh Face On Cancer SurvivalGeralyn Lucas thought she would be dead by 30. Instead, 16 years after her breast cancer diagnosis, the author and activist is a huge fan of hair dye and Botox. Ironic, she acknowledges, because all she ever wanted was to grow old. ... Before such celebrities as Christina Applegate and Sheryl Crow helped take the edge off the C-word, Lucas was speaking out irreverently about the disease. Her 2004 memoir, "Why I Wore Lipstick to My Mastectomy," became an international hit, as did the ensuing Emmy-nominated 2006 movie. Now Lucas leads a growing number of Gen-X and younger cancer survivors who are changing attitudes toward a disease that was once a death sentence but now has more young survivors than at any point in history (Wax, 9/7).

This article was reprinted from kaiserhealthnews with permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Kaiser Health News, an editorially independent news service, is a program of the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonpartisan health care policy research organization unaffiliated with Kaiser Permanente.