Health Care Delivery

A new study by researchers at the Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research has found that visits by trained community health workers improved screening rates for breast cancer among Latino women.

What we're reading: California will open Medi-Cal to all low-income children regardless of immigration status; Arizona governor signs bill to follow earlier FDA guidelines for abortion-inducing drug; and the loss of 2 Obamacare provisions could result in increased premiums in 2017.

The National Pharmaceutical Council has released a set of guiding principles on specific elements that should be included in value assessment frameworks.

According to IMS Health, increased penetration and acceptance of biosimilars in Europe and in the United States can result in $110 billion in total savings to the 2 healthcare systems.

During the opening session at the National Comprehensive Cancer Network 21st Annual Conference, healthcare providers came together to discuss palliation from the provider and the patient perspective.

Tricia Neuman, ScD, director of the Kaiser Family Foundation's Program on Medicare Policy and the Project on Medicare's Future, discussed patient access to expensive treatments and the barriers to improving transparency.

The current primary care provider workforce will not be able to meet the growing demands driven by recent healthcare reforms. What is the solution?

State newspapers have been sharply critical of Governor Matt Bevin's last-minute changes to the Benefind system, which was designed to work alongside Kynect to integrate benefits, not replace it to administer Medicaid.

The Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco and the Association for the Treatment of Tobacco Use and Dependence have developed a position statement recommending access to smoking cessation interventions for smokers in the high-risk group who undergo a lung cancer screen.

What we're reading, March 30, 2016: the Supreme Court asks for more information in birth control case; Americans display lack of knowledge about Zika virus; and China provides an opportunity for drugs that fail to make it to market elsewhere.

Getting patients access to their own data is a good thing that will increase engagement, but it is important that improving access to data will create cohesive care for the patient and not lead to fragmentation, said Julia Adler-Milstein, PhD, assistant professor at the School of Information and the School of Public Health at the University of Michigan.

What we're reading, March 29, 2016: the Obama administration is expected to announce new measures to combat opioid addiction; cholesterol test results from Theranos could throw off doctors' decisions; and Republicans aren't talking as much about Obamacare on the campaign trail.

Pointing out that high drug prices are access barriers, the Congressmen have urged the government agencies to hold a public hearing to address the issue.

The Affordable Care Act’s cost-sharing reductions vary by plan making the out-of-pocket costs for the qualifying patients very different.

What we're reading, March 28, 2016: Covered California mishap with insured consumers' tax forms; Ted Cruz needs to outline his Obamacare replacement plan; and Google's life sciences startup runs into trouble.

Chip Kahn, president of the Federation of American Hospitals, discusses the future of the Affordable Care Act, and the importance of coordinated care.

The mains why Americans are less satisfied with their health system compared with people in other countries is their concern and uncertainty about being able to access “most preferred care.”

Sync for Science-a collaboration between the National Institutes of Health, Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT, and Harvard Medical School-will allow patients to access their own health data, which they can then share with researchers involved in the initiative.

In a survey conducted by a sales and marketing firm, oncologists, oncology nurses, and oncology administrators have expressed displeasure with the customer experience rendered by oncology manufacturers.

Overall, the healthcare industry in the United States is getting better at acknowledging social determinants involved with health, but housing for Medicaid patients remains an issue, explained J. Mario Molina, MD, president and CEO of Molina Healthcare.

What we're reading, March 25, 2016: Congress went on its spring recess without voting on Zika emergency funding; HealthCare.gov has more than 300 cybersecurity incidents; and Indiana's Medicaid expansion model has caught the attention of other conservative states.

Experts say it all the time: healthcare is local. That makes it really important to involve employers and local communities that know best the challenges consumers face, said Karen van Caulil, PhD, president and CEO of the Florida Health Care Coalition.

A retrospective research study has identified disparity in the use of the test, primarily driven by race, insurance status, and the type of facility where treatment was administered.

What we're reading, March 24, 2016: Valeant doubles the price of aid-in-dying drug; the Supreme Court seems split on contraception case; and less than 3% of Americans meet qualifications for a healthy lifestyle.

Bruce Gilbert, executive director of the Silver State Health Insurance Exchange in Nevada explains how the exchange has targeted a more specific audience for enrollment and how the state has benefited from having a state exchange.

Smartphone personal voice assistants, such as Siri and Cortana, often fail to provide appropriate information when asked questions about mental health, rape, and domestic violence.

A new study in JAMA Internal medicine has found that the concurrent use of interacting medications has increased since 2005 and that 15% of older adults are potentially at risk for a major drug-drug interaction.

What we're reading, March 22, 2016: the reduction of the uninsured rate was driven mostly by the Affordable Care Act, not economic recovery; heart disease rates dropped; and participation in meaningful use program declines.

Analysis of data on nearly 27,000 patients with rectal cancer found distance from site of radiation therapy, along with a few other factors, could significantly impact the possibility of the patient receiving treatment.

What we're reading, March 21, 2016: government action to lower drug prices unlikely; women live longer than men but face more years of disability; and the movement to give nurses more autonomy.