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What we're reading, November 8, 2016: the US may not have a doctor shortage, it may just have an inefficient health system; there is a gap between the richest and poorest countries when it comes to spending on essential medicines; and scientists start another Zika virus vaccine test.

The findings come as epidemiologists have noted rising rates of liver cancer amid falling rates of cancer generally.

A spokesman for The Obesity Society said that lack of payer coverage for obesity may discourage physicians from recording body mass index and making a formal diagnosis.

Based on a retrospective meta-analysis of clinical trial data, authors of a recent paper in JAMA Oncology concluded that BRAF/MEK and programmed death receptor-1 (PD-1) inhibitors were the most effective treatments that were relatively safe in melanoma.

Patient-centered medical homes may improve the performance of process measures of care for patients with type 2 diabetes, including glycated hemoglobin tests, cholesterol tests, foot examination, dilated eye examination, flu vaccination, and adherence to oral hypoglycemic agents during 1 year of follow-up.

A new study by researchers at the Johns Hopkins University has found that second opinions did not change treatment choice among men diagnosed with low-risk prostate cancer.

What we’re reading, November 7, 2016: caretaker fraud within Medicaid’s Personal Care Services program left patients neglected and abused; a proposal to increase shift limits for first-year residents from 16 to 28 hours draws both support and criticism; CDC has identified 13 locally-acquired cases of antibiotic-resistant Candida auris in the US.

A healthcare economist explains that not all experiments with new payment models need to succeed, because failure can show the system what not to do.

Low rates of vaccination among US adults result in preventable diseases and costs to individuals and society in terms of deaths, disabilities, and economic losses from hospitalizations, lost income, and physician visits.

Treating surgical complications with the best quality care while minimizing costs remains a major challenge for hospitals. Especially when dealing with perioperative complications, hospitals have no unanimous standards for cost and care.

Within the past 3 years, hospital employment and hospital ownership of physician practices has increased in both urban and rural areas, but growth in the number of rural practices owned by hospitals has significantly outpaced that in the urban setting.

As the healthcare industry continues its transition towards alternative payment models (APMs), some providers might feel apprehensive about keeping up with new requirements like those in the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) final rule. However, these providers can use healthcare information technology (IT), data analysis tools, and other resources to adapt to these changes, according to Suzanne Travis, vice president of regulatory strategy at McKesson.

Researchers from Canada’s McGill University have developed a potential tool that can detect early signs of cachexia in cancer patients, which could impact survival.

Last month, the healthcare payment network InstaMed announced that it was the first in the industry to achieve point-to-point encryption (P2PE) v2.0 validation. How important is this level of encryption for healthcare? What will this mean for those who seek better protection of their payment card data?

This week, the top stories in managed care included the new Physicians' Fee Schedule released by CMS, a focus on a ballot question in California regarding drug spending, and Patient-Centered Oncology Care announced keynote speaker Roy Beveridge, MD.

Prices rising for the same drug across multiple pharmaceutical companies might be the result of collusion, according to a letter sent to the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission from Senator Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, and Representative Elijah Cummings, D-Maryland.

Audits, consumer education, and help for states were among the recommendations to force better compliance with the 2008 law, which seeks to ensure that coverage for mental health or substance abuse disorders mirrors other benefits in a health plan.

The study identifies a potential drug target to treat diabetes.

Read on for a breakdown of what to expect from the near-final MACRA rule announced by CMS on October 14, 2016.

What we're reading, November 4, 2016: Public option gains momentum among Democrats; a new Veterans Affairs clinic is dedicated to women's health; and Sutter Health in California attempts to prevent lawsuits.

A new study in the Journal of Oncology Practice has found that the health plan requirement of counseling by certified geneticists could have led to patient access issues in oncology.

Highlights of press coverage of our reports and peer-reviewed research.

The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) has announced that it is collaborating with Innovative Oncology Business Solutions, Inc, on ASCO COME HOME.

The Affordable Care Act called for making it easier for practices to pursue models like collaborative care by allowing physicians to bill for it.

No matter who is elected president, the exchanges created by the Affordable Care Act are in need of a fix.

The program has been shown to reduce by 58% the likelihood of progressing to type 2 diabetes. Reimbursement details are still being worked out, but CMS clarified that Medicare patients will not be subject to cost-sharing.

What we're reading, November 3, 2016: gubernatorial races could expand Medicaid in 3 more states; genetic testing wastes billions of dollars; most popular Facebook posts on the Zika virus contained inaccurate information or conspiracy theories.

Study finds the use of short-acting opioids decreased and the usage of long-acting opioids increased from January 2014 to March 2016.

Read on for a breakdown of what to expect from the near-final MACRA rule announced by CMS on October 14, 2016.

A new study published in JAMA Internal Medicine found that more than 25% of older adults have not engaged in planning for end-of-life care or advance directives.