Killing Pain: Fewer Opioid Scripts

The Biden administration recently met with manufacturers of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) immunizations to encourage them to increase access to the vaccine; since the Dobbs v Jackson decision, many patients have been seeking more permanent reproductive health care solutions; a Mathematica analysis showed that Medicare prescription drug price negotiations could have cut seniors’ out-of-pocket costs by nearly a quarter had the program been in effect in 2021.

Robin Shah, CEO of Thyme Care, which he founded in 2020 with Bobby Green, MD, president and chief medical officer, joins hosts Emeline Aviki, MD, MBA, and Stephen Schleicher, MD, MBA, to discuss his evolution as an entrepreneur in oncology care innovation and his goal of positively changing how patients experience the cancer system.

Data analysis showed that 40% of patients who filled a prescription for Wegovy in 2021 or 2022 were still taking it a year later; both Democrats and reproductive rights organizations are pressuring the Biden administration to ensure health insurers fully cover contraception; CMS implemented Medicare changes in March that limited access to blood tests that help transplant recipients ensure their organs remain healthy.

Debra Patt, MD, PhD, MBA, joins hosts Emeline Aviki, MD, MBA, and Stephen Schleicher, MD, MBA, for episode 2 of our newest podcast, "Oncology Onward: Conversations With Innovators and Changemakers in Cancer Care."

The sustained, collaborative effort to expand Medicaid will improve the lives of working North Carolinians who, prior to enactment, earned too much to qualify for Medicaid, but not enough to afford insurance on the marketplace.

Safety-net programs need to not only be budgeted for but also aimed at the right people to ensure receipt of proper health care.