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The June issue of The American Journal of Managed Care® (AJMC®) featured research on care coordination and low back pain therapy in addition to studies on its theme of oncology. Here are 5 findings from research published in the issue.

Coverage of our peer-reviewed research and news reporting in the healthcare and mainstream press.

A federal appeals court has ruled that the Trump administration's family planning rule can go into effect as several lawsuits over the rule play out; Missouri's only abortion clinic will defy the state by refusing to perform a required pelvic exam days before an abortion; the World Health Organization (WHO) has removed 2 guidelines on opioids following allegations of industry influence.

With the expected surge of aging Americans over the next few decades, states are trying to prepare for a wave of Alzheimer disease and dementia, which carries with it an enormous societal burden, extracting a toll on families and caregivers, and impacts state Medicaid budgets. In response, nearly every state is turning to Alzheimer action plans to try to cope with what is coming in the years ahead.

The PrEP Access and Coverage Act would require all private and public insurance plans to cover pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention and related services with no out-of-pocket costs and would promote access to the prevention pill for the uninsured.

Patients with Parkinson disease appeared to have more than a 2-fold higher risk of developing temporomandibular disorder, known as TMD, in a study that evaluated health insurance data from Taiwan.

Adding hydroxyurea to the selective inhibitor of Janus kinase 1 and 2 could elicit a high clinical response and increased ruxolitinib exposure for patients with hyperproliferative forms of myelofibrosis.

https://www.pharmacytimes.org/on-demand/examining-the-application-of-immunoglobulin-in-multiple-disease-states-a-review-of-evidence

Surprise medical bills affect 16% of in-network patient stays and 18% of emergency visits; new research has identified a link between World Trade Center dust and prostate cancer among first responders; the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has approved UnitedHealth Group’s acquisition of DaVita Inc on the condition that it sells one of its newly purchased healthcare organizations.

Comorbidities, toxicities, and certain treatments received, including immunotherapy and bone marrow transplants, were found to be the strongest predictors of high costs among oncology patients.

Obesity could exacerbate inflammation and worsen clinical disability in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis.

Senators Lamar Alexander, R-Tennessee, and Patty Murray, D-Washington, introduced bipartisan legislation that aims to lower some healthcare costs.

A Quest Diagnostics webinar discussed how lab services fit in with value-based care strategies and could reduce total healthcare costs, improve care coordination, and enhance member experiences.

A recent study examined cognitive changes in a type of migraine termed chronic migraine with medication overuse headache (CM-MOH).

It is imperative for organizations to support diversity and acknowledge individuals’ differences in order to foster better morale, promote creativity and innovations, improve decision making, and create social justice that advocates equity.

Tensions have risen between White House officials and HHS Secretary Alex Azar; a life-saving bladder cancer drug is in short supply; suicide rates for children and young adults have soared.

Women 80 years or older with osteoporosis have a high hip fracture probability even when accounting for mortality risk, suggesting that these patients are candidates for drug treatment to prevent hip fractures.

The FDA is partnering with COTA, a precision medicine technology company, to gain better insight into treatment variation within subpopulations of patients using real-world data. The program will start with breast cancer and may expand to other cancer types.

CMS has released a proposed rule that would allow clinicians to complete prior authorizations online through a more streamlined process.

An analysis of spending on low- and high-value services between 2014 and 2016 found that despite significant discussion about reducing low-value care, reduction has been slight.

The FDA said it is expanding a database used by generic drug manufacturers to understand when their product can be approved and marketed.

Researchers recently conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to examine whether leukocytosis is a risk factor for thrombosis in patients with myeloproliferative neoplasms.

The researchers concluded that pembrolizumab is appropriate for FDA-approved indications and clinical trials among patients with HIV.

Texas' governor signs legislation to protect patients from receiving surprise medical bills; a Nebraska school district approves random nicotine testing for students; the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children lowered obesity rates for young children from 2010 to 2016.

Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) accountable care organizations (ACOs) cover more than 32 million lives and have been found to save money and improve quality in past research, but a new study in Annals of Internal Medicine is calling their success into question.

Merck's Center for Observational and Real-World Evidence has spent several years gathering evidence on clinical inertia and is now working on solutions to overcome it at the point of care.

The FDA's approval of the glucagon-like peptide receptor agonist marks the first non-insulin drug approved for youth with type 2 diabetes since the approval of metformin for pediatric use in 2000.

European researchers said they have mapped the human lung on a single-cell level, differentiating cell types between patients with asthma and those without, including the discovery of a new cell state that produces mucus in asthma. This understanding could lead to finding new drug targets for treating asthma, the researchers said.