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What We're Reading: The ACA Fails the Working Poor
What we're reading, January 5, 2016: A special report highlights how the working poor slip through the cracks of the Affordable Care Act; the FDA approved 51 drugs in 2015 with nearly half being first-in-class; and the Senate is expected to vote on President Obama's nomination for FDA commissioner next Tuesday.
Millions of Americans, the working poor, remain uninsured, especially if they live in one of the 20 states that hasn’t expanded Medicaid. A special report from USA Today examined how the Affordable Care Act affects these individuals and found that companies are getting around paying for insurance for workers by hiring contract workers. In addition, up to 20% of businesses have cut or plan to cut workers’ hours in order to avoid paying for their health benefits.
In 2015, the FDA approved 51 new drugs, which is the largest number since 1950. Notably, among those drugs approved were 20 first-in-class drugs. However, Forbes points out that this number from the FDA may be conservative, as 4 other drugs should merit first-in-class recognition. Including those drugs—Farydak, Unituxin, Kybella, and Natpara—would mean 47% of the drugs the FDA approved in 2015 were first-in-class.
On Tuesday, January 12, the Senate health committee will vote on President Obama’s nominee, Robert Califf, MD, to be the commissioner of the FDA. During hearings, some voiced concerns about his connections with drug companies. In particular, Democratic presidential hopeful Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt) said he would oppose the nomination. However, for the most part, Dr Califf’s nomination is expected to easily be approved, reported The Hill.
Real-World Study Reveals Key Insights into DLBCL Treatment Patterns, Outcomes
April 18th 2024A recent study offers valuable insights into the characteristics, treatment patterns, and outcomes of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) in patients across different lines of therapy, providing a look into the landscape of DLBCL management.
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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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Gene, Light Therapy Combo Shows Promise Against Prostate Cancer Cells in Proof-of-Concept Study
April 18th 2024In their preclinical model, the researchers found efficacy both in vitro and in vivo by using CRISPR-Cas9 to mimic porphyria and combining the technology with light therapy.
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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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Collecting SDOH Data Can Assess Risk of Medical Nonadherence, Improve HEI and Star Ratings
April 18th 2024At the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP) 2024 annual meeting, a panel of presenters explored changes coming to Medicare that incorporate social determinants of health (SDOH) data to improve patient and health system outcomes.
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