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Yet another alliance has been formed to help transform healthcare. This time 20 major employers, who represent 4 million employees and family members, have come together to improve how healthcare benefits are purchased.

It is common for persons with mental illness to suffer comorbid conditions.

Many key guidelines regarding Medicaid and CHIP eligibility, enrollment, renewal, and cost-sharing policies have changed and the 14th annual 50-state survey from the Kaiser Family Foundation identified all the major changes that occurred in 2015.

The ads will be targeted at about 7000 "influencers" including lawmakers who could control whether drug prices are regulated. Many have called for Medicare to gain the right to negotiate drug prices.

What we're reading, February 8, 2016: 12.7 million people signed up for Affordable Care Act coverage, but 30 million remain uninsured; HHS plans to continue to encourage Medicaid expansion; and report analyzes the effect of patient-centered medical homes on cost and quality.

Using data gathered from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, the authors of a JAMA Internal Medicine study identified a significant decrease in PSA testing referrals by primary care physicians compared with urologists.

A quirk in California law means the law that Governor Jerry Brown signed with much fanfare last fall hasn't taken effect yet, even though its passage is having ripple effects.

A deeper understanding of the interdependencies among the patients, family caregivers, and service providers revealed that if general practice teams intervene early, they may be more likely meet patients’ needs in the end-of-life care process.

For HIV-positive patients, cost considerations take on added importance because of the expensive antiretroviral prescription medications. As such, assessing premiums alone may not provide an accurate measure of plan affordability for HIV-positive patients.

The authors note that not only are insulin costs making type 1 diabetes deadly in the poorest nations; high costs are the leading reason for diabetic ketoacidosis in the inner cities in the United States.

The top stories in managed care this week included increased insurer concerns over the sustainability of the Affordable Care Act's insurance exchanges, healthy policy experts convened in DC, and 2 warnings for women to heed regarding pregnancy.

Patrick Conway, MD, MSc, deputy administrator for innovation and quality and chief medical officer at CMS, describes the proposed changes to the Medicare Shared Savings Program and how they will assist accountable care organizations transitioning to tracks with more risks.

The novel molecule lipegfilgrastim has been shown to be relatively equivalent to pegfilgrastim in the management of chemotherapy-induced neutropenia among patients with breast cancer.

Scientists at the FDA have provided their recommendation to be submitted to an independent medical advisory panel that will decide the fate of Remsima.

Study finds new opioid use high among adults with COPD, raising safety concerns in this vulnerable population.

What we're reading, February 5, 2016: new legislation could expand the use of telehealth under Medicare; Massachusetts finds its physicians only screen for depression half the time; and Martin Shkreli pleads the Fifth during most of his testimony before Congress.

The latest piece in HHS’ roadmap to move the healthcare industry to value-based payments is the Accountable Health Communities model. Here are 5 things to know about how this model addresses social determinants of health.

The paper in Cancer Medicine finds that cancer has a devastating and age-specific impact on the finances of young adult survivors.

Data from 2 large studies of patients with metastatic disease who underwent myelosuppressive chemotherapy found that febrile neutropenia occurred in approximately 13% to 21% of patients. Associated costs of febrile neutropenia were found to range from $16,000 to $19,000 per episode for most hospitalized patients.

One of the primary drivers of healthcare waste is administrative inefficiency. While the industry implements remedies and solutions with electronic prescriptions and electronic claims transfer and processing, the gorilla in the room that no one mentions is CMS.

The findings are troubling in light of other recent findings that connect obesity during pregnancy with autism.

The annual Clinical Cancer Advances report from the American Society of Clinical Oncology highlights the accomplishments made in the last year in the fight against cancer.

What we're reading, February 4, 2016: President Obama is proposing changes to the widely disliked Cadillac tax; Florida declares a health emergency in 4 counties over Zika virus; and drug makers are pouring money into efforts to improve medication adherence.

Polling finds that most Americans have not had to switch doctors, but past polling has found that being able to see a doctor of their choice is very important to consumers.

On World Cancer Day, The American Journal of Managed Care would like to acknowledge the determination of cancer survivors and the support provided by various organizations to patients and their families.

Another study that suggests sitting is "the new smoking."

This week, the World Health Organization labelled the Zika virus a public health emergency. Here is a look at the evidence of the relationship between the virus and microcephaly.

While the costs of private Medicare Advantage plans are slightly less, on average, than traditional Medicare, broad determinations can be misleading, a new report finds.

Rising drug prices, the effect on the healthcare system, consumer push-back, and possible solutions were debated by the expert panel.

Researchers from the Urban Institute find UnitedHealth's statements about leaving the exchanges at odds with recent actions.