What we're reading, August 31, 2016: 51% of Americans have a negative view of the pharmaceutical industry; the CDC is running out of funds to fight the Zika virus; and Pennsylvania chooses 3 private companies to manage Medicaid plans.
A Gallup poll has found that just 28% of Americans have a positive view of drug makers, while 51% have a negative view. According to STAT, the only business sector included in the survey that the American public holds in lower esteem is the federal government. Ongoing controversy over the rising cost of drugs has overshadowed advances made by the pharmaceutical industry with new medicines treating cancer and curing hepatitis C. The pharmaceutical industry registered a net positive rating of negative 23, but the healthcare sector didn’t fare much better with a rating of negative 20.
The coffers for fighting the Zika virus are running dry. CDC Director Tom Frieden, MD, MPH, announced Tuesday that the CDC is out of money to fight Zika and that Congress needs to “do something,” reported The Hill. Almost all of the $222 million borrowed from HHS has been spent or budgeted, with half going to state and local health agencies and the rest going to development of new diagnostic tests, public outreach efforts, and staffing to deal with outbreaks in Puerto Rico and Florida.
Private companies will manage Medicaid plans for 420,000 people in Pennsylvania. The contracts with the 3 companies are part of the state’s overhaul of how nursing home stays, home care, and other supports for the elderly and physically disabled are paid for, reported The Philadelphia Inquirer. The contracts are part of a new program called Community HealthChoices and it supplements managed physical and mental health care for Medicaid beneficiaries, as well as covers people who are eligible for both Medicaid and Medicare.
Oncology Onward: A Conversation With Thyme Care CEO and Cofounder Robin Shah
October 2nd 2023Robin 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.
Listen
HMO and EPO Insurance Plans More Likely to Promote Use of Biosimilars
November 21st 2023Health plan type highly influences the likelihood of biosimilar uptake, with low-flexibility insurance plans more likely to have patients who either switched to a biosimilar or were initiated on a biosimilar.
Read More
Oncology Onward: A Conversation With Dr Debra Patt of Texas Oncology
August 1st 2023Debra 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."
Listen
Therapists’ Perspectives on Access to Telemental Health Among Medicaid-Enrolled Youth
November 10th 2023This qualitative study elucidates therapists’ perspectives on barriers to and facilitators of access to telemental health among Medicaid-enrolled youth served by a large safety-net organization.
Read More