Policy

Ali Khawar, principal deputy assistant secretary with the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), US Department of Labor, explains how the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA) aims to address the mental health crisis in the US.

The authors explore the economic impact and accessibility challenges of new Alzheimer disease drugs under the Inflation Reduction Act, with emphasis on Medicare, pricing, and health care equity.

FDA and the Department of Justice were criticized during a Senate hearing on the youth vaping crisis; a new COVID-19 vaccine promises easier storage and superior protection; the Supreme Court ruled to allow mifepristone to be mailed to patients without an in-person doctor’s visit.

Migvis Monduy, MD, medical director of Neuromuscular and Movement Disorders Programs at Nicklaus Children's Hospital, discussed challenges in Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) treatment access and how policy changes may support patients with DMD.

New estimations show a historic increase in health spending last year, which is projected to account for 19.7% of the gross domestic product by 2032.

At a symposium on the impact of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) on pharmaceutical innovation and access, speakers urged the audience to join in advocating for changes to the law.

This study reports qualitative findings from an explanatory sequential mixed-methods investigation to understand hospitals’ approaches to a novel commercial episode-based reimbursement incentive program.

Judge rules Florida's ban on gender-affirming care for minors unconstitutional; first consensus definition for long COVID aims to standardize diagnosis and care; pilot program for clinical trial diversity discontinued due to high cost and lack of impact.

During the CMS Health Equity Conference, health care leaders shared groundbreaking strategies to integrate health equity into value-based care models, aiming to enhance patient outcomes and reduce costs.

Jeff Levin-Scherz, MD, MBA, population health leader at WTW, explains that obesity care in the US is inconsistent and costly, with significant gaps across Medicare, Medicaid, and employer-based insurance.

This cross-sectional analysis of commercially insured delivering mothers suggests that greater out-of-pocket spending is incurred when pregnancy spans 2 years, causing them to face out-of-pocket limits twice.

Uninsured rates among minority groups plummeted between 2010 and 2022; Democrat lawmakers are challenging drug patents that they believe are deliberate attempts to eliminate low-cost, generic competitors; the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is piloting a nationwide network for primary care research.

During the CMS Health Equity conference, the “Implementing Health Equity Through Value-Based Care for People in Medicare” session featured a series of expert speakers who shared insights on pioneering strategies designed to advance health equity.

Initiatives that encourage or mandate collecting LGBTQ+ data could provide a plethora of benefits for clinicians and health care providers, from identifying disparities to creating stronger, more trusting relationships between LGBTQ+ patients and the health care system.

Going forward, the federal government must pay potentially hundreds of millions more to underfunded Native American tribes with health care programs; the FDA reversed its ban on Juul e-cigarettes yesterday as it reviews new court decisions and updated information; hospitals nationwide are experiencing workforce shortages as doctors and nurses increasingly leave the field.

The Bundled Payments for Care Improvement program was associated with improved quality of skilled nursing facilities in hospital referral networks for patients undergoing surgery for joint replacement.

US tuberculosis (TB) programs have helped to identify those with TB and latent TB infection and ensure they completed treatment; FDA advisers instructed that the COVID-19 vaccine Americans will receive in the fall should target the JN.1 strain; lawmakers are divided over the CMS nursing home staffing mandate.

FDA advisers have voted against the use of MDMA as a post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) treatment; House members have expressed support for the 340B drug discount program but disagreed on whether it needs tighter regulation; a federal judge sided with SCAN Health Plan over CMS about incorrect 2024 Star Rating calculations.

Chief Health Equity Officer and Senior Vice President Aletha Maybank, MD, MPH, of the American Medical Association (AMA), delivered a powerful plenary session at the CMS Health Equity conference exploring the changes sparked by pivotal moments within the last 5 years.

The updated branding better reflects the group's mission of research and advocacy.

Expansion of Medicaid coverage will now include all-in-one mental health and substance use clinics; 61% of adults are estimated to have cardiovascular disease (CVD) by 2050; the FDA has taken a historic step in potential psychedelic drug approval.

Fauci’s first testimony since leaving government service set to address alleged misconduct and pandemic management; vaccine makers advised to focus on JN.1 and derived subvariants; AstraZeneca and Boehringer Ingelheim introduce $35 monthly cap on inhalers.

For June and Pride Month, we are bringing you our newest limited-edition podcast series. In this first episode, we speak with Lancaster, Pennsylvania, native and president of Lancaster Pride, Tiffany Shirley.

Presenters from CMS and the CDC explored the importance of standardizing health equity data collection at the 2024 CMS Health Equity Conference.

There has been a lack of visible progress from RECOVER, the $1.6 billion initiative launched by the National Institutes of Health to research long COVID; the CDC has detected a third human case of bird flu linked to sick dairy cows; small businesses and their workers are struggling to receive weight-loss drug insurance coverage.

Experts warn of insufficient support for patients amid surge in prescriptions for weight loss; new Florida law will allow C-sections in clinics; focus shifts to amending international health regulations for pandemic preparedness.

Patients struggle to afford glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) medications for diabetes; doctors see potential and pitfalls in new ChatGPT model’s humanlike conversations; Medicare payment reform efforts focus on inflation adjustments and payment model overhauls.

Kimberly Westrich, MA, chief strategy officer of the National Pharmaceutical Council, shares 3 key recommendations to improve the accuracy and quality of drug pricing data.

Prospective data from patients attending a rural practice in West Virginia between 2016 and 2023 show that a quality improvement program that followed guideline recommendations and was tailored to specific patient needs reduced preventable bleeds and lowered costs.