Following Scuttled Mergers, Insurers Consider Next Steps
Both the Anthem-Cigna and Aetna-Humana megamergers have been blocked, so what is next for insurers? According to Bloomberg, the companies may consider other deals with the cash they have allocated. Plus, companies may try new deals with the hope that the Trump administration’s antitrust officials may be more open to large takeovers. Humana may still remain a sought after target for deals.
GOP Split on ACA Repeal Timeline
Some of the more conservative members of the Republican Party are calling for a faster repeal of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). They believe that President Donald Trump’s speculation that the repeal could happen next year, and even assertions from House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wisconsin, that repeal would happen by the end of this year, are too slow, reported Kaiser Health News. This subset of the party is pushing to repeal the ACA now even without a replacement ready—something insurers and other stakeholders, as well as some party leaders now, are opposed to.
Should You Finish Antibiotics?
The instruction from doctors that patients finish prescribed antibiotics even when they feel better may go away. STAT reported that such a directive might actually be exacerbating antibiotic resistance. Patients who take antibiotics when they are no longer sick may drive bacteria in the body to develop a resistance so the antibiotics don’t work the next time there is an infection. The World Health Organization will debate the argument in March.
What We’re Reading: Abortion Privacy Rules; Alzheimer Drug Hurdles; Nursing Home Staffing Overhaul
April 23rd 2024New health privacy rules aim to protect patients and providers in an evolving abortion landscape; some physicians express concerns about efficacy, risks, and entrenched beliefs in treating Alzheimer disease; CMS addresses longstanding staffing deficits in nursing homes.
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Navigating Health Literacy, Social Determinants, and Discrimination in National Health Plans
February 13th 2024On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we're talking with the authors of a study published in the February 2024 issue of The American Journal of Managed Care® about their findings on how health plans can screen for health literacy, social determinants of health, and perceived health care discrimination.
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Survey Results Reveal Potential Factors Slowing the Decline in Cardiovascular Mortality Rate
April 23rd 2024Research indicated that worsened glycemic, blood pressure, and obesity control, as well as increased alcohol consumption, leveled lipid control, and persistent socioeconomic disparities may have contributed to the decelerated cardiovascular mortality decline in recent years.
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Drs Raymond Thertulien, Joseph Mikhael on Racial Disparities in Multiple Myeloma Care Access
December 28th 2023In the wake of the 2023 American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition, Raymond Thertulien, MD, PhD, of Novant Health, and Joseph Mikhael, MD, MEd, FRCPC, FACP, chief medical officer of the International Myeloma Foundation, discussed health equity research highlights from the meeting and drivers of racial disparities in multiple myeloma outcomes.
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