The National Business Group on Health will host a press briefing on Wednesday, Aug. 28 at 10:00 a.m. EDT at the National Press Club to discuss the results of its annual survey of large employers on health care benefit costs and changes they are making to their programs in the wake of economic uncertainty and rising costs.

As part of its Media Fellowships Program, the Kaiser Family Foundation is organizing a series of interactive webinars exclusively for journalists to address key aspects of the 2010 Affordable Care Act, the implications for consumers, and strategies for connecting the dots for different audiences.

The first webinar will take place from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. ET on Wednesday, August 28, and will be an overview of how health reform’s impact will vary for people in different circumstances, including those currently with employer coverage, those who buy their own insurance and those who are currently uninsured. Foundation State Health Policy Director Jennifer Tolbert and Senior Fellow Karen Pollitz will explain the law’s individual mandate requiring most Americans to obtain coverage, as well as the law’s new coverage options, including new state insurance marketplaces, subsidies for people with low- and moderate incomes, and new rules prohibiting insurers from discriminating based on pre-existing conditions. They will answer journalists’ questions about the law as part of the webinar.

The CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics will release embargoed information about adults’ use of prescription sleep aids in the United States, 2005-10.

The CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics will release data and information about the “Use of Family Planning and Related Medical Services among Women 15-44 in the United States” from the National Survey of Family Growth 2006-2010. All materials are embargoed until 12:01 a.m. on the date of release.  For more information or to request an interview please contact the NCHS press office at 301-458-4800 or paoquery@cdc.gov.

The CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics will release data and information about “Births: Preliminary Data for 2012.” All materials are embargoed until 12:01 a.m. on the date of release.  For more information or to request an interview please contact the NCHS press office at 301-458-4800 or paoquery@cdc.gov.

Thomas R. Frieden, M.D., director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, will report on the state of our health security at this National Press Club luncheon. Frieden will identify eminent dangers to our health security – superbugs, disasters, and leading causes of death – and the assets the nation’s health protection agency can use to thwart them.

To submit a question in advance, put FRIEDEN in the subject line and email to president@press.org before 10 a.m. the day of the luncheon.

The HIT Policy Committee’s Privacy and Security Tiger Team, part of the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, will be holding a virtual, public hearing to explore practical ways to provide patients with greater transparency about the uses and disclosures of their digital, identifiable health information.

People can start enrollwing in the Health Insurance Marketplace, a new way for people without insurance to get coverage and a key component of the health reform law.