Interviews

David B. Hoyt, MD, FACS, executive director, American College of Surgeons (ACS), says that his organization has studied the concept of improving and sustaining quality while lowering costs. They find there are a variety of results when it comes to hospitals creating, meeting, and maintaining quality standards.

Gregory L. Fricchione, MD, of Harvard Medical School, says that patients suffering from non-communicable disease face a number of challenges.

Rebecca Killion, MA, McKenna Long & Aldridge, says that patients' adherence to diabetes treatment is anything but simple.

Tracy Watts, senior partner at Mercer Human Resource Consulting, says that health management programs are hugely important.

Anthony Slonim, MD, DrPH, CPE, FACPE, executive vice president, chief medical officer, at Barnabas Health says that being a member of The American Journal of Managed Care's ACO and Emerging Healthcare Coalition is valuable.

John Neal, vice president, EMD Serono Managed Markets, says that this year's EMD Serono Specialty Digest identifies several emerging trends in health plans.

Avik Roy, senior fellow, Manhattan Institute, says that the problem with the community rating provision is that age bands can make insurance costly for young patients.

Eleanor Perfetto, PhD, MS, professor, pharmaceutical health services research, School of Pharmacy, University of Maryland, says that incorporating comparative effectiveness research (CER) into pharmacy curriculums is important for the next generation of pharmacists.

Wayne J. Katon, MD, professor of psychiatry, director of the division of health services and epidemiology, and vice chair of the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the University of Washington Medical School, says that people with psychiatric illness in primary care settings cost the system twice as much as those without mental illness. Comorbidities such as depression can add to those costs.

Farzad Mostashari, MD, visiting fellow, Brookings Institution, former national coordinator for health information technology (HIT), US Department of Health and Human Services, says interoperability is the concept of being able to securely exchange health information, and then appropriately understand and use it.

Lee Newcomer, MD, MHA, of Oncology, Genetics and Women's Health for UnitedHealthcare, says the National Comprehensive Cancer Network is transforming genetic testing by utilizing a tool called the NCCN Biomarkers Compendium, which encourages evidence-based decision-making.

Edmund J. Pezalla, MD, MPH, national medical director, Aetna Pharmacy Management, says that Aetna recognizes the implications of the obesity epidemic and how it contributes to a variety of other medical problems such as diabetes and hypertension.

Christine Strahl, PharmD, MBA, BCPS, specialty pharmacy program manager, HealthPartners, says there are several new distribution channels in specialty pharmacy.

Amy Tenderich of DiabetesMine.com, a web-based news source for persons with diabetes, took part in panel discussions at Patient-Centered Diabetes Care: Putting Theory into Practice, sponsored by The American Journal of Managed Care.

Robert A. Gabbay, MD, PhD, chief medical officer and senior vice president, Joslin Diabetes Center, says that there are opportunities for treating diabetes within accountable care organizations (ACOs).

Peter B. Bach, MD, MAPP, director, Center for Health Policy and Outcomes, says accountable care organizations and patient-centered medical homes are trends driven by macro issues, which include decreased reimbursement to private practices and drug discounts from the 340B program.

The STABLE study compared patients who took weekly tests compared with those who tested less regularly, and found that those who tested weekly had better results than those who did not.

Gary Liska, with Alere Home Monitoring Inc, says Alere's commitment to patients' safety is why they supported the STABLE study.

Robert A. Gabbay, MD, PhD, chief medical officer and senior vice president of Joslin Diabetes Center, highlights why stakeholders should attend the Patient-Centered Diabetes Care: Putting Theory into Practice event on April 10-11, in Princeton, NJ.

Edmund J. Pezalla, MD, MPH, national medical director, Aetna Pharmacy Management, says Aetna engages consumers in decision-making in a variety of ways.

Farzad Mostashari, MD, visiting fellow, Brookings Institution, former national coordinator for health information technology (HIT), US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), discusses how data and digitization are driving innovation in healthcare.

Toby Cosgrove, MD, president and CEO, The Cleveland Clinic, says their organization has implemented a variety of strategies to bend the cost curve.

Karen Lewis, MS, MM, CGC, says counselors act as the middle man in the process of genetic counseling.

Richard Umdenstock, president and chief executive officer, American Hospital Association, says institutions may face a number of challenges as they absorb the newly insured.

Steven D. Shapiro, MD, executive vice president, chief medical and science officer, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), says that when improving care, sometimes less is more.

Peter B. Bach, MD, MAPP, director, Center for Health Policy and Outcomes, and attending physician at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, says accountable care organizations (ACOs) and patient-centered medical homes (PCMHs) may have the potential to drive cost savings, especially in clinical areas such as readmissions.

Chris Belmont, vice president and chief information officer, MD Anderson Cancer Center, says the right timing and the right context are essential to effective health data management.

Karen Lewis, MS, MM, CGC, says the goals of Healthy People 2020 are developed by looking at a variety of key areas in healthcare, and then choosing the most actionable items to improve the overall health of the general population.