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A higher-than-normal body mass index (BMI) at the time of a diagnosis of Parkinson disease (PD) has a protective effect against cognitive decline and the conversion to dementia, a recent study indicated.

This week, the top managed care news included an effort by the Trump administration to bolster Medicare Advantage; an abortion case from Louisiana reached the Supreme Court; the study of adapting to changing oxygen levels wins the Nobel Prize.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) revised its lead and copper rule to better identify elevated lead levels and undertake issues sooner; physicians given advice on how to monitor vaping-related illnesses in patients; a Government Accountability Office (GAO) study finds CMS approved Medicaid work requirements without considering price.

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

In an effort to educate clinicians about the issue of forcing patients in pain to suddenly halt opioid use, HHS released a guide that emphasizes patient-centered care and recommends against a rapid taper or stopping opioids all at once, while a patient living with chronic pain both welcomed the guide and expressed concern.

Researchers developed a web-based calculator that assists postmenopausal women in determining risk toward conditions like heart attack, stroke, and varying cancers, according to a September study.

FDA clears Dexcom G6 Pro CGM System for use among healthcare professionals; Cleveland Clinic and Oscar expand healthcare coverage to 3 additional Ohio counties; Planned Parenthood announces record-high election spend to support Democratic and pro-abortion candidates.

Previous work has linked psoriasis and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, but this is one of the first studies to tie together the severity of the 2 conditions.

The findings have implications for survivorship care, as more patients are living longer due to the availability of immunotherapies.

Long term e-cigarette impact on humans remains unknown, although studies on mice suggest potentially harmful consequences for users.

In a long-awaited move, HHS announced Tuesday plans to reform federal antikickback statutes and overhaul the so-called Stark Law, which was originally intended as a safeguard against financial incentives that would inappropriately influence physicians’ clinical decisions, in an effort to speed the transition to value-based care.

Pairing a sedative with an antidepressant was shown to be potentially beneficial in patients with suicidal thoughts, chiefly those with severe insomnia, according to a study.

The aim of this study was to assess cytokine levels in patients with refractory chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps and to identify inflammatory markers associated with certain subtypes.

An in-press study detailed the characteristics of 4 asthma endotypes and their association with asthma-related healthcare outcomes and responsiveness to treatment.

The number of Americans diagnosed with a sexually transmitted disease (STD) in 2018 reached a record high; the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review has released its first report on unsupported drug price hikes in the United States; about 2 in 3 women do not receive recommended vaccines during pregnancy.

Once the bill goes into effect in January 2020, pharmacists will be able to provide pre-exposure prophylaxis for at least a 30-day supply and up to a 60-day supply and a complete course of post-exposure prophylaxis without a prescription.

Women who enter menopause before age 50 are substantially more likely to have a nonfatal cardiovascular event before they turn 60, and the risk grows the younger the women are when menstruation ends, according to a recent analysis.

If approved, pemigatinib would be the first targeted therapy for patients with cholangiocarcinoma, a rare cancer that impacts the bile ducts. The disease is often diagnosed at a late or advanced stage.

A study of college students found that better sleep—specifically, higher quality, longer duration, and greater consistency of sleep—was associated with higher scores on quizzes and midterm exams.

E-cigarette manufacturer Juul is being sued by 3 school districts; virus linked as potential cause of acute flaccid myelitis; HIV prevention drugs will be available without prescription in California

More than 2 years after the FDA derailed the trajectory of its novel treatment system for type 2 diabetes (T2D), Intarcia Therapeutics today announced that regulators have accepted a resubmitted new drug application for the mini pump that delivers a continuous dose of exenatide.

JAMA on Tuesday retracted and republished a 2018 study about chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) after the discovery of a programming error in the statistical analysis. The subsequent complete reanalysis by the authors showed that the intervention that was studied showed harm, rather than benefit, to patients.

Noninvasive transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) may help improve cognitive performance in patients with Parkinson disease (PD) and mild cognitive impairment, according to a recent study.

Although minimal residual disease (MRD) is increasingly being used to predict treatment outcomes and as a surrogate marker of progression-free survival, there remains controversy over whether it is ready to be used in treatment decision making.

Use of wrist-worn step trackers were shown to accurately estimate exercise capacity and determine the health status of patients with COPD and cardiovascular diseases, based off research presented at the 2019 European Respiratory Society Congress.

A study last year pointed to empagliflozin as the best choice for patients who have type 2 diabetes and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

US Supreme Court to hear appeals for abortion access in Louisiana; the Trump administration proposes to suspend visas for uninsured immigrants; a temporary ban on flavored vaping products in Oregon.

The mechanism studied affects a broad range of physiological responses and is now the focus of intense study by the pharmaceutical industry.

The 2019 Kaiser Family Foundation Employer Health Benefits Survey results revealed significant rises in annual premiums, setting the context for the role of health insurance reform during the 2020 election cycle.