Laura is the vice president of content for The American Journal of Managed Care® (AJMC®) and all its brands, including Population Health, Equity & Outcomes; Evidence-Based Oncology™; and The Center for Biosimilars®. She has been working on AJMC since 2014 and has been with AJMC’s parent company, MJH Life Sciences®, since 2011.
She has an MA in business and economic reporting from New York University. You can connect with Laura on LinkedIn or Twitter.
NCCN Guidelines Become Resource Stratified for Global Use
Resource constraints may confine the ability of physicians to deliver optimal cancer care to all patients across the world, which the National Comprehensive Cancer Network is acknowledging by resource stratifying its Guidelines.
20 Years of Creating and Embracing Guidelines in Cancer Care
When the first National Comprehensive Cancer Network Guidelines were developed 20 years ago, even the participating members who were there at the beginning were skeptical they would be able to come to an agreement and build something lasting.
Secretary Burwell Reflects on Open Enrollment and Looks Ahead
Although HHS Secretary Sylvia M. Burwell touted the success of this past open enrollment period and the affordability of quality health plans, she declined to comment on King v. Burwell during her keynote speech at America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP)'s National Health Policy Conference.
ACA Causes Modest Change in ED Use Among Young Adults
Young adults appear to have changed their use of the emergency department since the implementation of the Affordable Care Act to reflect a more efficient use of medical care, according to a new report in the Annals of Emergency Medicine.
Americans Skeptical About Vaccines Remain Small Segment of Population
Despite the measles outbreak resulting from the anti-vaccination movement in the United States, the percent of Americans who said it's "extremely important" to get children vaccinated continued to fall, according to a new Gallup poll.
CMS Has More Work to Do to Improve HealthCare.gov
The second open enrollment period for the Affordable Care Act went much smoother for consumers signing up for health plans through HealthCare.gov; however, CMS still has much work to do, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office.
Outpatient Departments Treat Sicker, Costlier Patients Than Physician Offices
New proposals from Congress would decrease Medicare payments to hospital outpatient departments, which traditionally serve patients who are more likely to be minority, poorer, and have more severe chronic conditions compared with patients treated in physician offices.
GAO Finds Much Work Remains for CER Dissemination
While some progress has been made to disseminate comparative effectiveness research as mandated by the Affordable Care Act, the Agency of Healthcare Research and Quality has not taken actions to fully address requirements, according to a report from the Government Accountability Office.
Barriers Prevent Widespread Use of Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs
While the majority of primary care physicians are aware of and use state prescription drug monitoring programs to reduce drug abuse and diversion, many do not access these programs routinely, according to researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Study Analyzes Truth of IDN Claims of High-Quality, Low-Cost Care
Despite large claims that integrated delivery networks (IDNs) delivery higher quality care more efficiently and cost-effectively, a study of the nation's 15 largest IDNs provided scant evidence to back them up, according to a new report.
Proposed Medicare Advantage Cuts Will Disrupt Care for Beneficiaries
Proposed payment cuts to Medicare Advantage (MA) could cause many beneficiaries to lose access to MA plans and cause great disruption to the market, according to a new report by Oliver Wyman for America's Health Insurance Plans.
Increased Health Coverage Will Not Overly Burden US Healthcare Delivery System
Despite concerns that increasing healthcare coverage for Americans through the Affordable Care Act would lead to substantial strain on the US healthcare delivery system, The Commonwealth Fund found that increases will only modestly increase the demand for healthcare services.
California Makes Strides in Mental Health, Slams Kaiser for Failures
While California has made great strides to improve mental health prevention and early intervention, the state's Department of Managed Health Care found causes for concern regarding Kaiser Permanente's behavioral health services.
UCLA Health System President Stepping Down for Geisinger Position
The president of the UCLA Health System, which is still contending with the outbreak of a superbug that infected 7 patients and killed 2, is stepping down from his position for a new appointment as president and chief executive officer of Geisinger Health System.
EHR Use Sharply Increased in Emergency Departments
With the availability of government incentives, electronic health record use among hospital emergency departments and outpatient departments increased sharply from 2006 to 2011, according to a new analysis from the National Center on Health Statistics.