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This week in managed care, the top stories included discussions on biomarkers and financial toxicity at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, and a preview of the 76th Scientific Sessions of the American Diabetes Association.

Treatment for Duchenne muscular dystrophy remains in flux with the FDA delaying a decision on Sarepta's treatment and Biomarin discontinuing development on its own drug.

What we're reading, June 10, 2016: Carolinas HealthCare System faces antitrust lawsuit; Alaska looks to bail out its Obamacare marketplace; and Pfizer increases drug prices in the US for the second time this year.

Results presented at the European League Against Rheumatism Annual Congress have confirmed that Systemic Lupus Erythematosus can increase the risk of developing cervical cancer in women.

Prescription drug monitoring programs have been associated with a decreased number of written prescriptions for the highly-addictive and most recently abused drug.

The Colombian government is forcing pharmaceutical giant Novartis to lower prices of its leukemia medicine, imatinib (Gleevec).

Healthcare leaders and experts will come together to discuss disruptors, consumer engagement, digital health, and more at the AHIP Institute & Expo, being held June 15-17 in Las Vegas.

If policy makers made changes to the spending, volume, and price to traditional Medicare services, there would be a significant causal effect on national healthcare spending, a new study finds.

Only half of US veterans who died from cancer received palliative care, while the use of hospice depended upon the care environment. Overall, there was a gap between the percentage of patients who received palliative care and recommended use.

A new analysis from The Commonwealth Fund has found that the Cadillac tax will likely be more progressive than initially thought.

Each of the 10 major public health achievements of the 21st century identified by the CDC was catalyzed by health policy change.

What we're reading, June 9, 2016: Philadelphia is poised to become the first major city to pass a soda tax; California raises its smoking age to 21; and the Obama administration looks to limit short-term health plans.

The German-Australian AML Study Group, one of the largest global groups evaluating treatments for acute myeloid leukemia (AML), has published results in the New England Journal of Medicine that now classifies AML into 11 classes based on the harbored genetic mutations.

A commentary in the special issue of JAMA on obesity argues that the nation has reached a point where therapy can no longer undo the damage of poor diets and lack of exercise, and a reckoning of policy change is needed.

An additional 3 defendants are joining 6 others previously charged for one of California’s largest healthcare fraud schemes.

Even in a state with relatively few Medicaid restrictions on hepatitis C virus medications, a low number of patients requested treatment.

States are taking the lead in the fight against rising drug prices. Vermont has passed legislation to regulate yearly drug price hikes and other states have introduced similar legislation.

What we're reading, June 8, 2016: obesity rate among women reaches record high; abuse-resistant opioid recommended for approval by advisory panel; and Gilead does not owe Merck money in drug-patent dispute.

The Department of Justice has announced that Genentech and OSI Pharmaceuticals “will pay $67 million to resolve False Claim Act allegations that they made misleading statements about the effectiveness of the drug Tarceva to treat non-small cell lung cancer.”

Mental disorders rank number 1 as the most costly of all health diseases in the United States, with a total estimated spending of $201 billion in 2013.

Many patients 65 years or younger are still receiving aggressive cancer treatment in their final months of life despite Choosing Wisely recommendations encouraging symptom-directed palliative care.

The appellate ruling flatly rejected the request to overturn regulators' approval of Horizon's tiered network. But this is not the end of litigation over the controversial plan.

Can the Oncotype DX Breast Cancer Assay impact recommendation and receipt of chemotherapy in early stage breast cancer? Does the test also improve patient experience? These were some of the questions asked by researchers at the University of Michigan, and the results presented during the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

Older patients and those with other complications are at greatest risk.

There is a significant variation in quality of urgent healthcare provided during virtual visits, according to a new study published in JAMA Internal Medicine.

What we're reading, June 7, 2016: opioid restrictions disproportionately affect older patients with chronic pain; Genentech and OSI Pharmaceuticals settle Tarceva lawsuit; and trouble raising Zika virus funds.

The American Society of Clinical Oncology’s first-ever clinical trial is growing with the addition of its seventh and eighth pharmaceutical companies, Bayer and Merck, and 30 additional trial participants.

After reading two CDC accounts of this strange set of symptoms among gay men, Anthony S. Fauci, MD, recalls redirecting his research efforts to combat a disease that didn't even have a name.

The first study sheds light on the complex interaction between underlying metabolic risk and breast cancer.

What we're reading, June 6, 2016: Vice President Joe Biden will announce the launch of an open-access cancer research database, and a new bill in Congress would allow companies to repurpose existing drugs for rare diseases.