Talk! with Audrey

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: REVEREND KERON SADLER, NAACP National Health Program Manager is my guest. February 7th is National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. Did you know that the African American community bears the largest burden of the HIV epidemic over any other racial or ethnic group in the United States? Reverend Sadler has information about the NAACP's partnership with Black Church's to provide training for faith leaders and a first-of-its-kind manual to offer a framework to integrate HIV education in churches and seminaries.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: JONATHAN BLUM, Principal Deputy Administrator, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is my guest. Medicare Open Enrollment is the time when people with Medicare are encouraged to review their current health and prescription drug coverage and changes in costs and benefits that will take effect for 2014. This year’s annual Medicare Open Enrollment period, which began on October 15, is ending on December 7 so there isn’t much time left. If you want to change your health and prescription drug coverage for next year, doing it during this period will ensure your new coverage can begin without interruption on January 1, 2014.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: DR. DEMETRIUS K. LOPES, Neurosurgeon and National Spokesperson, American Heart Association/American Stroke Association is my guest. One in six people worldwide will have a stroke in their lifetime. In the United States alone, someone has a stroke every 40 seconds.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: Thousands of service members have been returning from Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom with injuries that have been called the "signature wounds" of Iraq and Afghanistan. CRAIG ROBERTS, Spokesperson for The AMERICAN LEGION joins me to talk about issues of importance to veterans and military families and what The American Legion can do to help.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: ALLEGIANT is the highly anticipated final book in VERONICA ROTH’s bestselling DIVERGENT trilogy. First published in May 2011, DIVERGENT was an instant best seller, immediately embraced by both teen readers and adults alike. The book series is poised to become a major pop culture phenomenon. VERONICA ROTH joins me on the show to talk about ALLEGIANT . . . Photo: Courtesy of Harper Collins. Subject to Copyright

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month – CHANDINI PORTTEUS, MPH, Chief Mission Officer, Susan G. Komen Foundation is my guest. This is an ideal time to discuss what we have learned from more than 30 years of research and what that means in terms of prevention, screening, and treatment of breast cancer today, as well as the challenges still faced in the mission to end breast cancer forever.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY:BERTRAM SCOTT, President & CEO, Affinity Health Plan, Bronx, NYC is my guest. On October 1, the New York State Health Plan Marketplace opened under the Affordable Care Act and with 16 health insurers to choose from, understanding the differences between plan options will be critical to New York families. We talk about what every you need to know about navigating the health insurance marketplace.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: MARK VELLECA,Chief Policy and Advocacy Officer for The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society is my guest. On October 1, 2013, as part of the new Affordable Care Act (ACA), health insurance exchanges opened for enrollment and millions of Americans who were previously uninsured now have the opportunity to purchase health insurance coverage effective in 2014. The new health care legislation poses some specific challenges for cancer patients, including those with a blood cancer.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: CLAUDIA CHAN is an inspirational women's leadership and lifestyle expert who has dedicated 12 years to entertaining and empowering women. Her mission is to empower and inspire a generation of women to dream and do big with passion and purpose and to do it with impact! Claudia joins me on the show this week to talk about S.H.E. SUMMIT WEEK, a Global Leadership and Lifestyle Event for Women, designed to inspire modern women personally and professionally.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: Although everyone is aware of skin cancer and the role of sunscreen in helping to prevent it, the details that will save lives are often surprising even to savvy consumers. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has taken steps on multiple fronts to protect consumers from the skin damage that can be caused by too much exposure to the sun. DR. REYNOLD TAN, FDA’s Division of Nonprescription Regulation Development joins me with sun protection tips, how the FDA is helping protect consumers and to tell us all about NATIONAL DON’T FRY DAY.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: Do you know someone affected by breast cancer? No doubt we all do, and sometimes it’s hard to know how to help. FujiFilm Medical Systems U.S.A., Inc. and the National Breast Cancer Foundation are working together to raise awareness and encourage all women to understand the importance of early detection of breast cancer. The partnership recently launched Images of Health, a campaign designed to provide educational resources and support for breast cancer patients, survivors and their loved ones. BETTY DEDON, is a Breast Cancer Survivor and the Product & Marketing Manager, Women’s Health Fujifilm Medical Systems U.S.A. Inc.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: This week, I decided to go back to into my archives and because Mother's Day is Sunday, I thought my exclusive interviews with celebrity moms might be of interest to you.These interviews were recorded in 2007 to promote the National Association of Black Female Executives in Music and Entertainment's ( NABFEME) Annual Conference. Founded by former entertainment executive, JOHNNIE WALKER, NABFEME promotes the entry, development and advancement of women of color in music and entertainment. During each conference, Johnnie held a luncheon to honor the mother's of the industry. There wasn't a dry eye in the house! I spoke with Dr. Mahalia Hines, mother of Common; Sharon Benjamin Hodo, mother of Andre 3000; and if you like those; I also have Will Smith's mom! Check out my conversation with CAROLYN BRIGHT SMITH, the mother of WILL SMITH! Hear what she has to say about her life and her famous son!

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: This week, I decided to go back to into my archives and because Mother's Day is Sunday, I thought my exclusive interviews with celebrity moms might be of interest to you.These interviews were recorded in 2007 to promote the National Association of Black Female Executives in Music and Entertainment's ( NABFEME) Annual Conference. Founded by former entertainment executive, JOHNNIE WALKER, NABFEME promotes the entry, development and advancement of women of color in music and entertainment. During each conference, Johnnie held a luncheon to honor the mother's of the industry. There wasn't a dry eye in the house! I spoke with Dr. Mahalia Hines, mother of Common; Sharon Benjamin Hodo, mother of Andre 3000; and Will Smith's mom, CAROLYN BRIGHT SMITH! Check out my conversation with SHARON BENJAMIN HODO, the mother of ANDRE 3000! Hear what she has to say about her life and her famous son!

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: This week, I decided to go back to into my archives and because Mother's Day is Sunday, I thought my exclusive interviews with celebrity moms might be of interest to you.These interviews were recorded in 2007 to promote the National Association of Black Female Executives in Music and Entertainment's ( NABFEME) Annual Conference. Founded by former entertainment executive, JOHNNIE WALKER, NABFEME promotes the entry, development and advancement of women of color in music and entertainment. During each conference, Johnnie held a luncheon to honor the mother's of the industry. There wasn't a dry eye in the house! I spoke with Dr. Mahalia Hines, mother of Common; Sharon Benjamin Hodo, mother of Andre 3000; and if you like those; I also have Will Smith's mom! Check out my conversation with DR. MAHALIA HINES, the mother of one of the most respected and conscious rappers in hip-hop history, COMMON! Hear what she has to say about her life and her famous son!

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: In May 2010, with her father’s legacy of duty to country instilled in her heart, Marie-Yolaine, a Haitian-American took action. The January 12, earthquake that struck Haïti, killing over 300,000 people, some in her own family, and displacing more than 1 million people, compelled her to move. She resigned from her position at American Express and with her experience in communications and business management created Community2Community (C2C) to help rebuild her father’s hometown of Petit Goâve. Her goal: to replicate the pilot project throughout Haïti, offering Haitians across the Diaspora and those with a heart for Haïti an opportunity to be a part of something greater then themselves.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: April is National Minority Health Month, a time to increase awareness of diseases and health conditions that disproportionately impact minorities and for African-Americans hypertension, or high blood pressure, is one of them. Dr. David S. Kountz, President, International Society on Hypertension in Blacks (ISHIB), is here today to talk about the risk factors and cardiovascular disease prevention.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: Almost everyone would agree that health care is expensive, more specifically that illness or injury can be exceedingly costly, even with major medical insurance. But what many people don't know is that even with medical coverage, serious medical conditions could result in thousands of dollars in out-of-pocket expenses, Personal Finance Expert, MANISHA THAKOR with information about how to prepare for the unexpected costs of illness and injury.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: One in two Americans suffers from diabesity, the condition of metabolic imbalance and disease that ranges from mild blood sugar imbalance to full-blown diabetes. Diabesity is the underlying cause that drives most chronic illness in the 21st century, including heart disease, stroke, dementia, and cancer, and the numbers of sick people keep growing. One in three children born today will have diabetes. We are now raising the first generation of Americans to live sicker and die younger than their parents. In The Blood Sugar Solution, Dr. Mark Hyman, Chairman of the Institute for Functional Medicine and founder and medical director of The UltraWellness Center, reveals the secret to losing weight and preventing diabesity.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: Globalization is benefiting the medical field, opening the doors to adventures abroad for U.S. Educated critical care nurses who want to earn a great income and accelerate their career growth. ANN GRIFFIN, Senior Recruiting Specialist and Managing Director with Professional Connections joins me with information about how to apply for international nursing opportunities.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: For many schools, finding money in the budget for upgrades can seem impossible, especially if it means coming at the expense of the education offered and other necessities. Higher learning institutions across the country have been struggling with how to stretch this money as far as possible, and it’s no different for the United States’ 105 historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). MELISSA GRAY BROWN, Manager, Multicultural Marketing, Home Depot joins me with information about The Home Depot Fourth Annual “Retool Your School” HBCU GRANT PROGRAM.