Rising Number of Latinos Diagnosed With Alzheimer’s Disease
By the year 2060, the number of Latinos in the United States with Alzheimer’s disease is expected to rise by more than 8 times. Alzheimer’s is increasingly common in the US, but Latinos represent the fastest growing minority, reported Kaiser Health News. This population is at least 50% more likely to develop the disease than whites, and they are more likely to have a family member care for someone with Alzheimer’s rather than place the person in a nursing home. But using formal care services is now becoming more common among Latinos.
Government Sues UnitedHealth Over Medicare Scheme
A lawsuit against UnitedHealth Group alleges that the insurer overcharged Medicare hundreds of millions of dollars. According to Reuters, the lawsuit, which was filed in 2011 but was just unsealed on February 16, claims the insurer depicted Medicare members as being sicker than they were. The Department of Justice has joined the lawsuit against UnitedHealth, as well as one against WellMed Medical Management, which UnitedHealth bought in 2011.
Evidence Shows Wearable Devices Don’t Result in Weight Loss
Wearable technology like Fitbit and Apple Watch, may be encouraging people to be more active, but they aren’t resulting in people losing more weight. In a column for The New York Times’ "The Upshot," Aaron E. Carroll, MD, MS, lays out the evidence from past trials that show people using wearable devices lose less weight than people not using these devices. These devices are good for improving activity over time, but not for losing weight.
Government agencies have created an online portal for the public to report potential anticompetitive practices in health care; there are changes coming to the “boxed warning” section for chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapies (CAR T) to highlight T-cell blood cancer risk; questions about the safety of obesity medications during pregnancy have arisen in women on them who previously struggled with fertility issues.
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Navigating Health Policy in an Election Year: Insights From Dr Dennis Scanlon
April 2nd 2024On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we're talking with Dennis Scanlon, PhD, the editor in chief of The American Journal of Accountable Care®, about prior authorization, price transparency, the impact of health policy on the upcoming election, and more.
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Gene, Light Therapy Combo Shows Promise Against Prostate Cancer Cells in Proof-of-Concept Study
April 18th 2024In their preclinical model, the researchers found efficacy both in vitro and in vivo by using CRISPR-Cas9 to mimic porphyria and combining the technology with light therapy.
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Exploring Medicare Advantage Prior Authorization Variations
March 26th 2024On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we're talking with the authors of a study published in the March 2024 issue of The American Journal of Managed Care® about their findings on variations in prior authorization use across Medicare Advantage plans.
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Many Patients With Psoriasis in Clinical Trials Experience Nocebo Effects, Study Finds
April 18th 2024Half of patients exposed to placebo in clinical trials experienced adverse events (AEs), which may be partially explainable by nocebo effects, according to a recent review and meta-analysis.
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