As the panelists discuss cancer immunotherapy, Daniel J. George, MD, recognizes the tremendous amount of progress made in the development of immunotherapy agents. Dr George explains that as immunotherapy continues to evolve, the therapy option is now branching out to treat an entire host of tumors for all different stages of cancer, whereas in the past, immunotherapy played a role mainly in bladder cancer.
Jeffrey Weber, MD, PhD, discusses how immunotherapy agents can be divided into 4 or 5 categories. Vaccines such as ipilmumab are among the most promising.
As exciting as the future looks, Michael Kolodziej, MD, is concerned about the cost of cancer immunotherapy drugs. Dr Kolodziej explains that these new therapies are very expensive, and is further concerned about the costs, as therapies are sometimes combined.
Dr George argues that the expense of these agents forces patients and their providers to stick to FDA-labeled treatments, whereas in the past, patients were treated off-label in certain instances. It is now too expensive to go off-label, and it is important that treatment decisions be data driven rather than focused on cost.
Unfortunately, Dr Weber argues, not all data are reflected on a drug’s label or package insert.
The Supreme Court seems likely to reject a challenge to the abortion pill mifepristone; the FDA is inspecting far fewer pharmaceutical companies conducting clinical research; AstraZeneca has sued to block an Arkansas law that it said would unlawfully expand the 340B program to include for profit-pharmacy chains.
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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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Navigating Health Literacy, Social Determinants, and Discrimination in National Health Plans
February 13th 2024On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we're talking with the authors of a study published in the February 2024 issue of The American Journal of Managed Care® about their findings on how health plans can screen for health literacy, social determinants of health, and perceived health care discrimination.
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A global AIDS program that was in limbo for months got temporary relief after congressional negotiators agreed to a 1-year renewal in the next government funding package; the outcome of the November presidential election could determine the state of fetal tissue research in the US; federal officials and industry executives failed to make improvements that stop hacking attacks.
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Covered Preventive Services at Risk: V-BID Summit Breaks Down the Braidwood v Becerra Case
March 20th 2024For more than a decade, certain high-value preventive care services have been covered at no cost to patients under the Affordable Care Act, but a current legal challenge has the coverage at risk.
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