All News

Health-related workplace absenteeism may provide additional information about the extent of influenza sickness in the working-age population, a CDC report said.

This week, the top managed care news included bipartisan Senate bills taking aim at drug prices, especially insulin; a study linking payer refusal to pay for proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 inhibitors with heart attacks and deaths; and a former FDA commissioner visiting The American Journal of Managed Care®.

Coverage of our peer-reviewed research and news reporting in the healthcare and mainstream press.

Amid a contentious debate, the Senate Finance Committee voted 19-9 to advance legislation introduced by Senators Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, to rein in drug costs in Medicare and Medicaid; a House of Representatives subcommittee accused Juul Labs, maker of the ubiqutious e-cigarette device blamed for a youth vaping epidemic, of targeting children through health promotion activities at about a half dozen schools and summer camps; at their annual meeting this week, governors from around the country are discussing what they will do if a federal appeals court invalidates the Affordable Care Act.

Some cancers, such as breast cancer and leukemia, were well-funded compared with their incidence, mortality, and person-years of life lost, while others, such as gastrointestinal and brain cancers, were all poorly funded.

A new report from the HHS’ Office of the Inspector General praises 20 high-performing accountable care organizations (ACOs) for the strategies they are using in the shift to value-based care.

Results of a study on patients with early-stage Parkinson disease (PD) add to the evidence showing an association between PD and pulmonary function and point to the potential use of respiratory center drive to identify early PD.

President Trump is preparing an executive order that would slash prices on nearly all drugs sold to Medicare; Allergan has recalled certain breast implants following 573 cases of implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma; a study has found 1 in 4 people intend to use antibiotics without a prescription.

Nasal glucagon is seen as a game-changing delivery method to replace the multistep system of mixing powder and liquid with a simple, 1-step spray.

The prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) was nearly 50% higher among patients with arthritis compared with those without arthritis, even after adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics, risk behaviors, frequent distress, and asthma status.

The Senate on Tuesday approved funding for the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund through 2090; the FDA is warning a leading marijuana company against illegally selling unapproved products containing cannabidiol (CBD); an implanted HIV drug may someday be able to prevent HIV for up to a year.

A recently published study used linguistic analysis to investigate communication gaps between patients with Parkinson disease and physicians about off periods using a database containing dialogues recorded during regular office visits. Not only did the recordings show 4 specific areas that need improvement, they also showed a care gap between what the physicians thought they did and what actually happened.

The participation in workplace health promotion programs (WHPPs) varies depending on sociodemographics and occupation, suggesting the need for employers to adjust their WHPPs for maximum participation, according to research.

Spearheaded by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Ranking Member Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, the bipartisan bill would lower out-of-pocket (OOP) costs for Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries and save the government billions.

The likelihood of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) maintaining their employment status in 2 years can be predicted by their levels of physical disability and executive functioning, but not by other measures of cognition, according to new study findings.

A new study is indicating that microbiota composition in the gut could have implications for treatment response in multiple myeloma.

Given that psoriatic arthritis is associated with increased fracture risk, neutralizing the key proinflammatory and bone-destructive mediators of the disease, wrote the authors, appears to be important to restoring bone health.

House Democrats will unveil a bill to lower drug prices in September; on Tuesday, the Department of Agriculture will unveil regulations to cut food stamp benefits for 3 million people; neither Purdue Pharma nor the FDA will release data about whether reformulated OxyContin, designed to prevent abuse, is actually achieving that goal.

Researchers said they have identified the mechanics that link a pro-inflammatory lipid in the infant microbiome at birth to the later development of allergies and asthma.

Patients were 16% more likely to have a cardiovascular event if their prescription was rejected and 21% more likely to have a cardiovascular event if they did not fill their prescription.

The bill would reduce prices up to 75% based on anticipated 2020 levels, according to Senator Jeanne Shaheen, D-NH, the lead sponsor.

Unusual eating behavior can be seen in 70% of children who have autism, and it is so characteristic of this group that hypersensitivity to food textures or temperatures can be a reason for parents to look into an autism diagnosis, according to new research from Penn State College of Medicine.

Nivolumab (Opdivo) monotherapy is currently indicated for the treatment of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma who were previously treated with the targeted therapy sorafenib, sold as Nexavar, based on the CheckMate 040 trial. Assessing the safety and efficacy of nivolumab in combination with ipilimumab (Yervoy) among these patients, researchers have observed clinically meaningful responses and an acceptable safety profile.

As the CDC released data showing an approximate 500% increase in the use of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention among men who have sex with men (MSM) in urban areas between 2014 and 2017, a study published in the American Journal of Public Health revealed that a significant amount of MSM elsewhere live in PrEP-access deserts.

A federal judge upheld the Trump administration's expansion of short-term health insurance plans that lack coverage requirements of the Affordable Care Act; politicians and others call for change after The Washington Post published a government database tracking nationwide opioid distribution along with unsealed court documents showing the role of various companies in the drug crisis; the plight of mentally ill refugees in the mix of detained undocumented immigrants is going unnoticed.

While poor sleep quality is common in patients with interstitial lung disease (ILD), it is unclear which factors other than sleep disordered breathing may contribute to poor sleep quality for these patients. A study published in ERJ Open Research found that providers should target depression and coexisting sleep disorders in order to improve sleep quality and quality of life for patients with ILD.

Researchers from Houston Methodist Cancer Center and The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center said they demonstrated a new monoclonal antibody blocked ovarian and pancreatic tumor activity in mice.

In a study recently published in Respirology, investigators sought to identify the benefit of using a handheld flow meter in screening patients for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

A new initiative seeking to transform healthcare delivery will elevate precision medicine with a focus on cancer, Alzheimer disease, cardiovascular disease, and more.