The HHS announced an increase in individuals seeking coverage from Healthcare.gov; monkeypox will receive a name change to destigmatize the virus; a gene therapy for hemophilia was approved and is now the most expensive in the world.
The Biden administration announced that there was an increase in new customers seeking health care coverage through the Affordable Care Act’s marketplace on Healthcare.gov, according to AP News. Nearly 3.4 million people have enrolled for coverage, which is an increase of 17% compared with last year. The number of uninsured Americans had previously reached a low of 8% this year. More than 665,000 new individuals have bought plans on the marketplace since open enrollment began. There is no information on the demographics of the new enrollees currently, but marginalized communities, such as Latino and Black communities, have seen a jump in the number of people enrolled in the past 2 years.
The World Health Organization (WHO) plans to change the name for the monkeypox virus. It will now be referred to as “MPOX” in hopes of destigmatizing the virus, according to Politico. The WHO had previously agreed to consider suggestions for a new name for the virus this past summer. The Biden administration had also pressured WHO officials to make the change as quickly as possible and suggested that the United States would change the name if WHO did not act quickly, citing worries that the name was generating too much stigma in the United States, especially to people of color.
The FDA has approved a hemophilia B gene therapy, making the drug, at $3.5 million per dose, the most expensive drug in the world, according to Bloomberg. Etranacogene dezaparvovec-drlb (Hemgenix), produced by CSL Behring and given as a one-time infusion, was able to reduce the number of bleeding events expected in a year by 54%. A total of 94% of patients were also able to clear their schedule of time-consuming and costly infusions of Factor IX, the traditional treatment for hemophilia. Experts believe that the drug may find success despite the price, given the fear of bleeding among patients with hemophilia and the appeal of a one-off infusion.
Bleeds and Resource Use in Hemophilia B: Retrospective Observational Study
May 15th 2024This real-world US study describes individuals with hemophilia B who experience bleeds despite factor replacement therapy and quantifies the associated comorbidity and health care resource utilization burden.
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Health Equity, Accessibility Essential to Supporting Women Affected by Hemophilia
May 10th 2024Due to often being overlooked as only carriers of hemophilia, the review authors sought to highlight the needs of female caretakers for patients with the disorder and the possibility of women themselves being affected by it.
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Coexistence of HIV, Hemophilia May Lead to Increased Presence of Coronary Artery Stenosis
May 8th 2024In patients living with HIV, the cardiovascular risk factors that come with infection may lead to an increased prevalence of coronary artery stenosis, especially in those who also have hemophilia.
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Review: One-Shot Etranacogene Dezaparvovec Represents Game-Changing Gene Therapy for Hemophilia B
May 3rd 2024More than 20 years of gene therapy clinical research have led to etranacogene dezaparvovec’s use in hemophilia B, according to authors of a recent review—and it takes its place in a line of current and potentially many future genomic medicines for a range of diseases.
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Males With Hemophilia A Report Physical, Mental Burdens of Disease Regardless of Severity
April 25th 2024Self-reported data from adult and pediatric males with hemophilia A show that burden of the disease persists regardless of severity, highlighting a need for improved prophylactic treatment.
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