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.
Physicians May Be Underestimating Patients' Nonadherence
While physicians recognize medication adherence is an extremely important factor in clinical outcomes for patients with chronic conditions, respondents in a new survey seemed to overestimate the medication adherence and persistence of their own patients.
Super Utilizers Cost Pennsylvania Medicare, Medicaid $761 Million
Hospital super utilizers in Pennsylvania account for $761 million of the state's Medicare and Medicaid expenditures for inpatient stays, according to a new report from the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council.
FDA Expands Indication for Revlimid in Multiple Myeloma
The combination of Revlimid with dexamethasone, previously approved for treatment in patients with multiple myeloma who received at least 1 prior treatment, has received FDA approval for use in newly diagnosed multiple myeloma patients.
Cancer Patients Rarely Request Inappropriate Tests, Treatments
A new study debunks the common assumption that high medical costs are a result of patients demanding more tests and treatments. Researchers analyzed more than 5000 patient-clinician visits and found that cancer patients rarely push for medical interventions.
Marketplaces Can Improve on Aiding Informed Decision Making
Although this year's enrollment period has gone far smoother compared to the first year, there is much room for improvement particularly when it comes to helping consumers make informed decisions, according to a report commissioned by the National Partnership for Women & Families.
Study Reveals Higher Cost Emergency Care Yields Better Outcomes
Despite studies suggesting higher spending levels do not necessarily produce better health outcomes, a new paper to be published in the Journal of Political Economy found the opposite to be true with regard to emergency care.
Considering Social Determinants of Health When Caring for Underserved Communities
Panelists at the annual meeting of the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology discussed efforts to holistically treat low-income or chronic care populations by taking social determinants of health into consideration.
Evidence-Based Care Can Eliminate Gaps in Cancer Survival Rates
Although African Americans have had lower colon cancer survival rates over the past 2 decades compared with white patients, researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have found evidence-based care can remove the racial disparity.
Innovation in Interoperability and Engaging Patients
Putting data in patient hands, the construction of an open API, and interoperability are big hopes for the future of health information technology (IT), according to panelists at the annual meeting of the Office of the national Coordinator for Health IT.
Health IT Creates Unintentional Healthcare Disparities
Health information technology (IT) can create greater healthcare disparities if all patient groups and their concerns aren't considered properly, panelists said on the first day of the annual meeting of the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT.
Insurers Find New Way to Discriminate Against Patients
Although one of the central features of the Affordable Care Act was eliminating discrimination based on preexisting conditions, there is evidence insurers have found ways to dissuade high-cost patients from enrolling in their plans.