Most Read News (So Far) of 2017

With the year 2017 halfway over, The American Journal of Managed Care^® is looking back at the news of the first half of the year. Here we bring you the most read news stories, including conference coverage, a take on the new president’s first executive order, reimbursement challenges, and more.

10. FTC Remains Doubtful About Walgreens' Acquisition of Rite Aid

From the very beginning, the proposed Walgreens and Rite Aid merger faced intense scrutiny. As part of the deal, Walgreens would buy Rite Aid for more than $17.2 billion, giving Walgreens control over more than 12,700 stores nationwide. This would also give Walgreens a near monopoly—CVS would be in a distant second with just 7800 stores.

On June 29, Walgreens decided to scrap its plans to merge with Rite Aid, and instead chose to purchase nearly half of Rite Aid’s stores for $5 billion.

Read more.

9. Heart Risks at Midlife Signal Dementia Down the Road

A study presented at the International Stroke Conference added to the growing body of evidence linking heart disease and diabetes to dementia. The study followed nearly 16,000 people in the US and found the risk of developing the cognitive disorder later in life was 77% higher for people with diabetes, 41% higher among those who smoked at midlife, 39% higher in people with high blood pressure, and 31% higher in people with prehypertension.

Read more.

8. What Does Trump's Executive Order Mean for Diabetes Prevention?

The first thing President Donald J. Trump did after being inaugurated was sign an executive order to ease the regulatory burdens of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). However, people in the diabetes community were concerned about what the order meant for the National Diabetes Prevention Program, which is set to launch on January 1, 2018. The program took advantage of the ACA’s waiver process to provide federal dollars for a program that aimed to prevent diabetes in a group of Americans who already had prediabetes.

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7. Driving Value With Innovative Approaches to Colon Cancer Screening

This article from AJMC.com contributor Jim Thomson, the chief operating officer at Physicians Plus Insurance Corporation, took a look at screening recommendations for colorectal cancer (CRC). He noted that compliance for CRC screening is merely 38%, even though there is clear benefit to being screened. However, despite being a valuable tool, the fact that people avoid CRC screening because they don’t want to get a colonoscopy undermines the value of it.

Read more.

6. Trial Results Published for Medtronic's MiniMed 670G

The MiniMed670G from Medtronic was the first “artificial pancreas” approved by the FDA. A pivotal trial for the device found that the hybrid closed-loop insulin delivery system was safe for home use, reduced glycated hemoglobin and hypoglycemia or hyperglycemia compared with where patients were at baseline.

Read more.

5. Medicare Issues Rules for CGM Coverage—No Smartphones Allowed

Another article to do with a device for diabetes care. CMS announced that it would cover Dexcom’s G5 Mobile continuous glucose monitoring system, but there was a catch: to get coverage, people with diabetes cannot use the system with a smartphone app. Instead, they had to use the receiver that comes with the system. And if they use their smartphone at all, even alongside the receiver, Medicare won’t pay.

Read more.

4. Dr Jim McDermott Discusses Objectives and Outcomes of CVD-REAL Trial

At the 66th Scientific Sessions of the American College of Cardiology (ACC), Jim McDermott, PhD, vice president for medical affairs, diabetes, at AstraZeneca, discussed the objectives and outcomes of the CVD-REAL study. The study looked at all-cause mortality and hospitalization for heart failure for patients with type 2 diabetes and compared outcomes of SGLT2 inhibitors to other glucose-lowering drugs.

Watch the interview.

3. Concerning Trends in Colorectal Cancer Incidence Among Younger Adults

Researchers analyzing data on the incidence of CRC from 1974 to 2013 found a disturbing trend: a significant uptick in the prevalence among young adults. While incidence of CRC continued to decline for older Americans, the risk of CRC for young adults is now as high as it was among those born a century earlier. The authors determined lifestyle changes are the most likely culprit for the spike in CRC among young adults.

Read more.

2. Can SGLT2 Inhibitors Prevent Heart Failure in a Broad Population?

More coverage from ACC 2017 on the outcomes of the CVD-REAL trial. The study was looking to answer questions raised by an earlier study, the EMPA-REG OUTCOME study. Specifically, the CVD-REAL study was trying to see if the effects of SGLT2 inhibitors on heart failure apply to a broad population. The trial included nearly 365,000 patients.

Read more.

1. Type 2 Diabetes: Changing the Paradigm From Management to Reversal

Contributor Sarah Hallberg, DO, MS, discussed the results from the first 70 days of the Virta Clinic trial, which seem to suggest that the historical view that diabetes is a chronic condition that is inevitably progressive may be wrong. She writes that the early results of an ongoing 2-year trial show that medicine may be on the cusp of going from management of type 2 diabetes to actually reversing it, without the use of surgery.

Read more.