Navigating the Mental Health Challenges of Cancer Diagnosis, Treatment, and Survivorship
March 12th 2024Stress has potential links to worse outcomes in cancer, such as decreased quality of life and greater risks of disease progression and metastasis. There is a complex mix of emotions patients with cancer experience.
Read More
Most private health insurers have yet to publish criteria for when they will cover postpartum depression drug, zuranolone; state lawmakers are increasingly opposing health care mergers that they believe do not serve the public interest; Medicaid extensions made in 2021 led to a 40% decline in postpartum lack of insurance.
Read More
From Stigma to Solutions: MBGH Panel Explores Mental Health Paradigm Shift in the Workplace
March 8th 2024The critical issue of mental health in the workplace was discussed by experts in the field at the recent Midwest Business Group on Health (MBGH) Mental Health Forum, shedding light on the growing concern surrounding alcohol use disorder and the pressing need for innovative therapies.
Read More
The FDA has pushed back its approval deadline for donanemab, Eli Lilly’s experimental Alzheimer’s treatment; Cigna recently announced the launch of a program on aimed at capping annual weight-loss drug cost increases for health insurance providers and employers at 15%; a new monoclonal antibody product to protect against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) was 90% effective at preventing children from being hospitalized.
Read More
President Biden will preview his plan to more than double the size of Medicare’s new drug price negotiation program in the upcoming State of the Union address; Mexicans and Central Americans were most affected by the pandemic in terms of all-cause mortality; two Alabama fertility clinics said they expect to resume in vitro fertilization (IVF) services after a bill was passed to protect doctors.
Read More
Insurer Costs of COVID-19 by Disease Severity and Duration
Payer costs for COVID-19 ranged from a mean of $505 for asymptomatic cases to $126,094 for severe cases with post–COVID-19 condition.
Read More
Evaluation of a Collaborative Model Between Managed Care and Affordable Housing on Acute Care Costs
A collaborative service model between a managed care organization and an affordable housing provider reduced acute care use and costs.
Read More
Coverage Expansion, Other Economic Policies May Yield Positive Impact on Hypertension Management
February 28th 2024Researchers of the review are underscoring the potential for economic policies to improve the management of hypertension for the millions of people throughout the United States with the condition who are at risk for cardiovascular disease.
Read More
Primary Care Delivery Is in Urgent Need of Innovation
February 28th 2024At an Institute for Value-Based Medicine® event cohosted by The American Journal of Managed Care® and Optum, speakers emphasized that innovation is urgently needed in primary care delivery to address the broken US health care system.
Read More
What We’re Reading: Alabama IVF Ruling Impacts; Administrative Task Fees; Nursing Shortage Response
February 26th 2024Patients with cancer express shock and anxiety over the recent ruling by the Alabama Supreme Court regarding frozen embryos; doctors are beginning to charge fees for administrative tasks; some universities are implementing accelerated nursing programs to help with the shortage.
Read More
Health Equity and Access Weekly Roundup: February 24, 2024
February 24th 2024This week's news from the Center on Health Equity and Access discusses racial disparities in prostate cancer outcomes, the impact of access to cancer care on racial gaps in CLL/SLL outcomes, the effects of 340B programs on drug pricing and health care disparities, the role of mental illness in maternal mortality rates, and racial bias and diagnosis disparities in bipolar disorder.
Read More
What We’re Reading: Weight Loss Drug Coverage; COVID Vaccine Potential AEs; Shifting Medicaid Policy
February 20th 2024Insurers grapple with expanding overage for weight loss medications; a new analysis reveals a potential correlation between COVID-19 vaccinations and various adverse effects (AEs); reshaping Medicaid programs remains an ongoing debate about ensuring health care access.
Read More
Health Equity and Access Weekly Roundup: February 17, 2024
February 17th 2024This week in health equity and access includes challenges for independent physicians due to Medicare cuts, inequities in access to State Health Insurance Assistance Program counseling, a study on patient experiences in national health plans, strategies for building trust in cancer care, and increasing breast cancer rates in young Black women.
Read More
Dr David Eagle: CMS Reimbursement Cuts Encourage Trend of Independent Physician Exodus
February 12th 2024Over the past 20 years, Medicare physician pay has plummeted by 26% when adjusted for inflation, while hospital reimbursement has surged by 70%, prompting over 100,000 doctors to abandon independent practice for hospital or corporate employment since 2019.
Read More