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Large Self-insured Employers Lack Power to Effectively Negotiate Hospital Prices

This study examines the ability of self-insured employers to negotiate hospital prices and the relationship between hospital prices and employer market power in the United States.

Chronic Overlapping Pain Conditions and Long-term Opioid Treatment

Little is known about opioid prescribing patterns in patients with chronic overlapping pain conditions. This study suggests target populations for interventions to manage chronic pain.

Post-SNF Outcomes and Cost Comparison: Medicare Advantage vs Traditional Medicare

Patients enrolled in Medicare Advantage had better outcomes and lower cost following skilled nursing facility (SNF) discharge than patients enrolled in traditional fee-for-service Medicare.

Geographic Variability of Medicaid Acceptance Among Allergists in the US

The proportion of allergists accepting Medicaid in the US varied significantly among and within states.

Advanced Care at Home at Scale in an Integrated Health Care System

Advanced care at home (otherwise known as hospital at home) can be scaled and provide care for a sizable portion of a hospital’s inpatient census, creating hospital capacity in an integrated delivery system.

Standardized Total Knee Arthroplasty Pathway Improves Outcomes in Minority Patients

In a minority-predominant patient population, a standardized pathway for total knee arthroplasty was associated with improved outcomes with no change in postoperative complication rates.

Cost Analysis of Self-Monitoring Blood Glucose in Nonintensively Managed Type 2 Diabetes

Analysis of claims data showed reduced utilization and costs among patients with nonintensively managed type 2 diabetes using self-monitoring of blood glucose compared with continuous glucose monitoring.

The Hepatitis B Care Cascade Using Administrative Claims Data, 2016

Analysis of a large, nationally representative claims database to longitudinally monitor enrollees with hepatitis B showed that 36% received recommended care and 18% were prescribed treatment.

Peer Support, Not Perfect Words, Key to Suicide Prevention

During Suicide Prevention Month, UPMC experts discuss how lived experience, peer support, and connection strengthen suicide prevention.

Patient and Physician Perceptions of a Hypercholesterolemia Safety-Net Program

Patients’ misperceptions of statins and physicians’ limited knowledge of a hypercholesterolemia safety-net program warrant additional interventions to reduce barriers and improve care.

Evaluating Smoking Cessation Service at an Emergency Department Clinical Observation Unit

This study aimed to evaluate the impact of a smoking cessation service in a group of patients admitted to a short-stay unit in the emergency department.

Targeted Policies, Further Research Needed to Tackle Insulin Costs, Use Disparities: Elise S. Tremblay, MD, MPH

Elise S. Tremblay, MD, MPH, explores potential policy solutions and research directions to address ongoing challenges in insulin affordability and access.

Covishield India: Demystifying Myths Through an Early Multicenter Safety Study

This was a multicenter study carried out in India to study the adverse and systemic effects of the indigenously developed Covishield vaccine.

Price Transparency and Patient Engagement: Social Messaging Matters

This study examined the impact of price transparency and prosocial messaging on patient engagement of price-protected consumers in seeking value-based care.

Process Reengineering and Patient-Centered Approach Strengthen Efficiency in Specialized Care

Improving efficiency is complex and requires a multimodal approach. Health information systems, patient feedback, and multidisciplinary teams are components that can improve clinical processes.

Successes and Failures With Bundled Payments in the Commercial Market

The relatively few examples of commercially funded condition-specific bundled payments provide insights into how to spread this alternative payment model further in the private insurance market.

Outcomes of Antiviral Treatment for Influenza in Type 2 Diabetes

Antiviral treatment was associated with lower health care resource utilization and costs in patients with type 2 diabetes and a diagnosis of influenza.

Association of Dermatology Wait Times With Insurance Coverage in Michigan

Disparities in dermatologic care for patients with Medicaid exist, and delays in medical dermatologic care among Medicaid patients must be addressed.

Health Equity in the Era of Large Language Models

This article presents challenges and solutions regarding health care–focused large language models (LLMs) and summarizes key recommendations from major regulatory and governance bodies for LLM development, implementation, and maintenance.

FDA Approval of DOR/ISL Expands HIV Treatment Options Beyond INSTIs: Amy Colson, MD, MPH

Newly FDA-approved DOR/ISL offers an INSTI-free, 2-drug HIV treatment option with durable suppression and favorable safety.

Integrating Primary Care and Public Health for Advance Care Planning

This article proposes a new model, Public-Primary ACP, that leverages coordination between primary care and public health workforces to improve delivery of advance care planning.

Treatment Patterns for Patients With Advanced/Metastatic Cancers by Site of Care

Treatment patterns and overall survival were similar regardless of site of care between patients receiving anticancer therapy in the hospital outpatient vs physician office setting.

Medicaid Managed Care: Further Reform Needed to Deliver on Promise

Medicaid managed care has not been the panacea for spending, care quality, and access that policy makers expected, but reforms could change that.

Participating Faculty: Addressing Excessive Evaporation: An Unmet Need in Dry Eye Disease

Association of Physician Coordination With Interfacility Transfer Acceptance Timeliness

The authors reviewed physician-to-physician conversations during emergency transfer of patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction and found that higher-quality physician coordination was associated with faster time to acceptance.

Managing Complex Medicare Patients in ACOs: Tom Kim, MD

Tom Kim, MD, of Sound Long-Term Care Management, discusses how serious illness and care coordination set these ACO patients apart.

Effect of Care Coordination on Patients With Alzheimer Disease and Their Caregivers

The authors investigated whether patient coordination and caregiver support for Alzheimer disease reduced health care utilization and expenditures among enrollees in the Memory Program in South Carolina.

Go for Bold: Improving Outcomes One Pound at a Time

The Go for Bold initiative, which aims to help individuals in Washington County, Maryland, lose 1 million lb by 2030, serves as a successful, replicable model for community-wide health improvement.

SGLT2 Inhibitor Adherence and Diabetes Hospitalization Risk in Type 2 Diabetes

Consistent adherence to sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors in individuals with type 2 diabetes reduces the risk of hospitalization, supporting targeted interventions to improve medication-taking behavior.

Behavior-Based Diabetes Management: Impact on Care, Hospitalizations, and Costs

The Diabetes Care Rewards program offers a business case for health plans to promote engagement through use of contingent incentives, thus improving health outcomes and lowering costs.