Health Care Delivery

Highlights from last week include President Trump's executive orders, the FDA approval of esketamine nasal spray for depression, mental health access through Medicaid Managed Care, the impact of travel time on surgical outcomes, and life expectancy disparities.

Bispecific antibodies have altered the multiple myeloma (MM) treatment landscape, but some practices still lack enough familiarity with these therapeutics to deliver them in outpatient settings.

On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we speak with the author of a study published in the January 2025 issue of The American Journal of Managed Care® to examine the association between quantitative network adequacy standards and mental health care access among adult Medicaid enrollees.

While higher patient-reported Psoriatic Arthritis (PsA) Impact of Disease questionnaire (PsAID-12) scores were associated with treatment escalation, physicians primarily relied on clinical assessments when making treatment decisions.

Clinically significant reductions in bleeding underscore abelacimab’s strong potential to address an unmet need for patients with atrial fibrillation (AFib).

President Donald Trump's initial executive orders target previous efforts to reduce health care costs, pandemic preparedness, and international partnerships, showing a stark contrast to the Biden administration.

Christopher Sayed, MD, discusses how hidradenitis suppurativa typically presents and looks forward, following the November approval of bimekizumab.

Analyzing patients' travel time to receive emergency surgical services provides valuable insights that can inform policy reform and address the needs of rural communities.

Infection risk remains a prominent clinical concern for patients with multiple myeloma (MM), even with the advent of modern, novel therapies.

Attorneys General from several districts have come together in a lawsuit seeking damages from Walgreens for allegedly knowingly filling opioid prescriptions that lacked a genuine medical purpose.

Peptidomics offered new diagnostic insights into the underlying processes of metabolic dyfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD).

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the widespread adoption of telemental health care, and new research indicates significant racial and ethnic disparities in access to this technology among Medicaid beneficiaries with schizophrenia.

An increased public interest and support for medication abortion following the federal Supreme Court ruling, particularly among marginalized groups, suggests a shift towards more accessible and autonomous models of abortion care.

The findings challenge the effectiveness of these widely used transitional care interventions and suggest a need for more targeted, multifaceted approaches to address the needs of higher-risk patients.

Patient outcomes appeared to be more heavily driven by breast cancer stage than delays in diagnosis, researchers found.

This article examines the prevalence of unused primary care appointments in the Veterans Affairs Health Care System.

There is limited awareness and utilization of supplemental benefits among Medicare Advantage beneficiaries, with cost-sharing and out-of-pocket spending playing key roles, a new study has found.

The health equity impact of the polypill is significant; by effectively controlling cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in populations with limited health care access, there's potential to reduce income- and race-related health disparities.

Jessica Tracy, head of Growth and Partnerships at Enthea, shares how employers and unions can support mental health and address access barriers to evidence-based ketamine treatments.

Some populations face significant disparities in accessing lung cancer screening facilities, with American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN)-majority and rural census tracts facing the greatest travel distances.

This meta-analysis sheds more light on the beneficial impact of multiple melanoma (MM) treatments and the predictive value of minimal residual disease (MRD) status for patient prognoses.

For diverse patient populations who are historically marginalized within health care, student-run clinics may offer a potentially cost-effective access point to dermatological care.

ACA enrollment rate hits a milestone, though IRA subsidies may not extend beyond 2025; network adequacy standards fail to translate into efficient access to mental health care for Medicaid enrollees; research examines racial disparities in postpartum hypertension and vaccine uptake.

Patients with multiple myeloma (MM) can experience diminished immune responses during prolonged treatment; however, mRNA vaccines could bolster immunity in this vulnerable population.

Acts of discrimination, including subtle microaggressions, during pregnancy and childbirth contribute to higher maternal mortality rates, especially among Black women, and are linked to increased postpartum blood pressure, highlighting the need for improved health care interventions and racial equity in maternity care.