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New vision loss gene therapy gets a price tag below the expected $1 million mark; new evidence finds that the prevalence of autism spectrum disorders has plateaued; hospitals are ill-equipped to care for dementia patients, but a new effort could change that.

A newer method for calculating low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol is more accurate than the older method that required people fast before blood was drawn.

New analyses focused on how health spending has changed over time, as well as the driving forces behind the spending growth.

Topical analgesics were safe and effective at reducing chronic pain, according to a study that also looked at whether or not a subgroup of patients were able to stop using opioids a few months after treatment. About 50% of patients were able to discontinue use of opioids after 3 or 6 months of treatment with pain-relieving analgesics applied directly to the skin, a study reported.

Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease should be given the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine and influenza vaccines to decrease the risk of exacerbations. However, despite the evidence of vaccine efficacy, improvements are needed in coverage and awareness.

In a new study, published in Arthritis Research & Therapy, a research team led by Soo-Kyung Cho, MD, sought to investigate the incidence of malignancy in early rheumatoid arthritis and found that the use of biologic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs decreased the overall risk of developing malignancies, though it did not affect the risk of developing hematologic malignancies.

A pre-treatment signature of proteins used to predict survival in patients with metastatic melanoma receiving PD-1 inhibitors found that patients deemed sensitive by the test demonstrated significantly better overall survival.

The Trump administration dismissed the remaining members of the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS as it prepares to appoint members to the 2018 council.

FDA approved 46 drugs in 2017, a 21-year high; pilot program tests using home care to reduce emergency department visits; a look at how increasing prices, not increased use of services, has caused American healthcare spending to grow so much faster than peer nations.

New immuno-oncology agents are providing durable survival for some patients, but the cost of these treatments is very high, which is a cause for concern. In a new study in JAMA Oncology, researchers sought to assess how value frameworks defined the efficacy of new immuno-oncology agents.

To drive real innovation in Medicare Advantage—improvements that will result in better health outcomes and reduce costs—CMS should start with doctors.

A small pilot study from the Hollings Cancer Center at the Medical University of South Carolina found that smokers who are willing to use e-cigarettes tend to smoke less and have increased quit attempts.

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is the most common form of acute leukemia and has a poor 5-year survival rate, especially among older people. Cancer researchers have created a model that can predict mortality after AML treatment, so that it can help guide decision-making for patients and providers.

Management of pediatric oncology patients with febrile neutropenia and hospitalization duration currently vary by institution and by provider. A poster presented at the 59th American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting reviewed pediatric hematology/oncology patients who were admitted with febrile neutropenia to determine discharge and release, as well as subsequent readmission within the next 4 days.

Patients with cancer may have more options for oral cancer medications, but high out-of-pocket costs still present a barrier to access, according to a new study in Journal of Clinical Oncology.

This week, the top managed care stories included a road map to develop state-level programs to care for complex populations; the Physician-focused Payment Technical Advisory Committee backed 2 new alternative payment models; a new cancer gene profiling test may open doors to new targeted therapies.

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

Rhode Island and Vermont consider state-level individual insurance mandates; Utahns support full Medicaid expansion; CMS approves a first-of-its-kind 10-year Medicaid waiver for Mississippi.

A look at the most popular articles published in Evidence-Based Oncology™ in 2017.

Patients with atopic dermatitis (AD) have a significantly greater risk for additional atopic diseases, as well as significantly greater healthcare resource utilization and total cost compared with adults without AD. The burden of AD was generally comparable to that of psoriasis, although patients with AD reported increased use of emergency room visits compared with patients with psoriasis.

As 2017 came to close, The American Journal of Managed Care® (AJMC®) asked readers to weigh in on the events they believed had the greatest impact on managed care during the year. As the votes came in, it was clear that what happens in Washington, DC, matters—and that Capitol Hill policy makers will continue to make a difference in 2018.

The FDA has approved the sale of the Dermapace System, the first shock wave device intended to treat diabetic foot ulcers.

A majority of patients—most uninsured—presenting to a public hospital emergency department (ED) after treatment for the same complaint in another local, but private, ED were indirectly referred to the public one without transferring paperwork or records, incurring repeat testing and raising patient anxiety, according to a study published online ahead of print in the January 2018 issue of Academic Emergency Medicine.

A recent study found patients with fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) have a higher rate of co-occurring adult attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Curbs on physician self-referrals in Medicare may have made sense in a fee-for-service environment, but they present significant barriers to payment reform as the nation moves to value-based models.

Poll finds one-third of Americans believe the Affordable Care Act has been repealed; enrollees in Obamacare coverage largely come from states that voted for President Donald Trump; 2 trials find Zika vaccines are safe and effective.

Adapting payment models to reward outcomes is key to making lifestyle change fit into a managed care framework, several articles find.

Checkpoint inhibitors, compared with docetaxel, are associated with significantly prolonged overall survival in second and later lines of treatment for advanced non–small cell lung cancer, according to study findings published in JAMA Oncology.

The authors of a study published in JAMA Cardiology assessed the relationship between growth in Medicaid expenditures and decreased mortality over a 15-year period.

After 14 weeks of treatment, both once-daily doses (15 mg and 30 mg) of upadacitinib met the study’s primary endpoints of low disease activity and ACR20 versus continuing methotrexate therapy.