The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the World Health Organization, and the Congolese government announced that 2 experimental antibody-based treatments for Ebola are working so well that they will now be offered to all patients in the Democratic Republic of Congo; enrollment in insurance exchanges under the Affordable Care Act remains stable for people with lower incomes who received subsidies, but premium increases caused a 24% decline for people who did not qualify for assistance; scientists are repurposing old drugs or combining them with traditional antibiotics in an effort to combat antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the World Health Organization (WHO), and the Congolese government announced that 2 experimental antibody-based treatments for Ebola are working so well that they will now be offered to all patients in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The New York Times reported that officials hope the news will transform the course of the epidemic, which was declared a public health emergency last month and has killed more than 1800 people, according to the WHO.Enrollment in insurance exchanges under the Affordable Care Act remains stable for people with lower incomes who received subsidies, but premium increases caused a 24% decline for people who did not qualify for assistance, The Hill reported. CMS data shows that enrollment rose by 300,000 people among those with lower incomes who did qualify for financial help. Average ACA premiums fell by 1% between 2018 and 2019, reversing years of steep increases as many insurers stopped losing money in the market.Scientists are repurposing old drugs or combining them with traditional antibiotics in an effort to combat antibiotic-resistant bacteria, NPR reported. A recent study described the work of researchers at Brown, Emory, and Harvard universities who sought to find an existing drug that could target the bacteria's membrane, a part of the bacteria that most antibiotics don't attack. Bithionol, a drug formerly used to treat parasitic infections in horses, killed methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, a common hospital-acquired bug that causes pneumonia as well as infections.
CMS' 340B Repayment Proposal May Harm Vulnerable Hospitals, Reward Those With Higher Revenues
April 26th 2024The 340B hospitals not receiving an offsetting lump-sum payment from CMS following 2018-2022 cuts later ruled unlawful are disproportionately rural, publicly owned, and nonacademic, according to a new study.
Read More
Examining Low-Value Cancer Care Trends Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic
April 25th 2024On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we're talking with the authors of a study published in the April 2024 issue of The American Journal of Managed Care® about their findings on the rates of low-value cancer care services throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
Listen
Empowering Community Health Through Wellness and Faith
April 23rd 2024To help celebrate and recognize National Minority Health Month, we are bringing you a special month-long podcast series with our Strategic Alliance Partner, UPMC Health Plan. In the third episode, Camille Clarke-Smith, EdD, MS, CHES, CPT, discusses approaching community health holistically through spiritual and community engagement.
Listen
Kaiser Permanente was hit by a data breach in mid-April, impacting 13.4 million health plan members; GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) sued Pfizer and BioNTech for allegedly infringing on its messenger RNA technology patents in the companies’ COVID-19 vaccines; the CDC announced the first-known HIV cases transmitted via cosmetic injections.
Read More