October 31st 2024
As health care costs escalate, a new survey reveals that 74% of employers are grappling with the impact on employee wages and benefits, with many anticipating further cost-shifting to their workforce.
Some communities will use COVID relief money to pay medical debt; residents living near train car derailment site in Ohio are worried about toxic chemical health effects; following medical guidelines point by point would create impossibly long workdays for providers, studies are pointing out.
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CMS Outlines 3 New Drug Pricing Models Targeting Wide Scope of Therapies
February 14th 2023Targeting everyday chronic conditions to rare diseases that require costly, sometimes 1-time treatments, CMS Tuesday announced an intent to test 3 new models in an effort to lower drug prices and widen access to expensive, life-changing therapies for patients in Medicare and Medicaid.
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CMS Releases Guidance on the Math Behind Part B, Part D Drug Rebates
February 10th 2023The Biden administration released 2 sets of guidance documents for pharmaceutical manufacturers about how it plans to implement the new Medicare Prescription Drug Inflation Rebate Program as required under the Inflation Reduction Act, and said some beneficiaries could see lower coinsurance for some Part B drugs as soon as April 1.
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Jessica Allegretti, MD, MPH, medical director of the Crohn's and Colitis Center, Brigham and Women's Hospital, discussed how the FDA’s approval of Rebyota for the prevention of recurrent Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) may promote cost effective management of CDI for patients and health systems.
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Examining Trends in Outpatient Cancer Costs in Medicare During Last 6 Months of Life
February 7th 2023Drug costs, particularly for immunotherapies, contributed to the rising cost of care during the last 6 months of life for a fee-for-service Medicare beneficiary, according to a recent study.
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Contributor: Employers Are Turning to Virtual Care Options to Mitigate Costs
February 5th 2023Virtual care not only means saved time and costs for employees, but improvements to employers' bottom lines, through more proactive management of health concerns, notes UCM Digital Health CEO and co-founder Keith Algozzine.
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What We’re Reading: Eyedrops Recalled; Inaccessible Weight Loss Drugs; Doctor, GOP Governor Spar
February 3rd 2023CDC warns against EzriCare Artificial Tears, which were recalled by the manufacturer; certain weight loss drugs not covered by most payers; Mississippi's Republican governor denies being privately in support of Medicaid expansion.
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IRA Insulin Cap Could Have Saved Medicare Beneficiaries Millions in 2020
January 30th 2023An HHS report said that if the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) had been implemented in 2020, Medicare Part D beneficiaries could have saved a total of $734 million, averaging out to about $500 per member.
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Adults With Diabetes in High-Deductible Health Plans More Likely to Have Severe Hyperglycemia
January 26th 2023Adults with diabetes who were forced to switch from an employer-sponsored health plan to a high-deductible health plan (HDHP) were 25% more likely to require an emergency department (ED) or hospital visit for hyperglycemia, but not for hypoglycemia, than those who did not switch plans.
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Amazon Introduces Prescription Drug Subscription Program for $5 Monthly Fee
January 24th 2023Amazon’s announcement of a prescription subscription service that charges a flat monthly fee instead of offering discounts on each prescription fill represents the retail giant’s latest foray into the health care space.
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Eli Lilly will tack on $450 million more to increase capacity in a diabetes drug plant in light of shortages; patients emailing and messaging medical providers online might be charged; 57% of adults in a recent survey think that the federal government should secure health care coverage for all Americans.
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What We’re Reading: US Hits Debt Limit; More Oversight of Organics; Drug-Resistant Gonorrhea
January 20th 2023As the country hits the debt limit spending on Medicare and Medicaid may be at risk; the Agriculture Department targets fraudulent claims in products labeled as organic; first cases of drug-resistant gonorrhea strain found.
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No difference in treatment efficacy was observed between intranasal mometasone furoate and saline for the management of sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) symptoms in children, with findings indicating that almost one-half of children with SDB could be initially managed in the primary care setting.
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