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The Trump administration will allow small employers to use tax-free health reimbursement accounts (HRAs) to provide health coverage to workers; the number of fatal drug overdoses nationwide has fallen for 6 consecutive months; a pilot study with a small sample size of 8 people discovered that microplastics can make their way into the human gut.

In reponse to rising healthcare prices and emergency department (ED) visits, insurers have implemented policies that apply financial disincentives for ED visits that could presumably be cared for in alternative settings. However, 87.9% of commercially insured ED visits present with the same primary symptoms as visits that result in nonemergent diagnoses.

A recently published cohort study with a register-based follow-up of some individuals from the Danish general population sought to investigate whether smokers are at an increased risk for developing MPNs versus those who have never smoked.

Approximately one-third of all US healthcare payments in 2017 were tied to alternative payment models, with the remaining still tied to fee for service. The findings of the Health Care Payment Learning and Action Network report highlighted that even as payments move to value-based models, more spending in models with risk is needed.

The Trump administration Monday moved to drastically overhaul section 1332 waivers under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), including giving governors the ability to seek more flexibility without legislative approval, and to encourage people to sign up for plans that are not ACA-compliant.

A new study has indicated that long-term treatment with onabotulinumtoxin A is effective, safe, and well-tolerated in the patient population.

The breach comes as the Trump administration hopes to rely more heavily on professionals to assist consumers during open enrollment.

Certain dermatologic/mucosal conditions, use of corticosteroids, and intravenous antibiotics prior to chemotherapy may increase the risk of febrile neutropenia.

The Trump administration is considering narrowly defining gender as a biological, immutable condition determined by genitalia at birth; Medicare for All and single payer healthcare are suddenly popular, but what it means to the politicians embracing the terms are not exactly known; the Trump administration is expected to try to expand religious and moral exemptions for covering birth control in employer health insurance plans.

The EVI1 gene may be single-handedly at fault for acute myeloid leukemia, according to research published in Nature Communications.

A recent study looked to use real-world data to support the value of pathway regimens designed to create high-quality, affordable treatment in breast cancer care.

Neuromuscular blocking agents, or muscle relaxants, are often used in surgery to prevent muscles from moving when a patient is unconscious. A recent study found that the use of neuromuscular blockers during general anesthesia is associated with an increased risk of postoperative pulmonary complications.

The first trial to examine the impact of a self-management behavior-modification program combined with bronchodilator therapy and exercise training on exercise capacity and physical activity in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) showed positive results, according to a recently published study.

Women with HER2-positive early breast cancer with small tumors have similar disease-free survival and lower risk of cardiac toxicity with a 9-week course of adjuvant trastuzumab compared with those treated for 1 year, according to a study presented at the ESMO 2018 Annual Congress. A second study showed that a 6-month course of adjuvant trastuzumab was cost-effective compared to 12 months.

While mental health diagnosis can be associated with an increased use of emergency department (ED) visits, prior patient visit patterns were also associated with higher future ED use.

A review of migraine and cluster headache emphasizes how their shared pathophysiological pathways may be important for identifying future treatments.

Benzodiazepines are typically prescribed to treat chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) symptoms and are also typically prescribed for those with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, a recent study found that long-term use of benzodiazepine medications in patients with both COPD and PTSD may be associated with a greater suicide risk.

A retrospective cohort study by compared different osteoporosis preventative-medications and found that selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERM) had better hip and major fracture risk reductions than alendronate, while strontium ranelate (SR) had poorer hip and major fracture risk reduction than alendronate.

Switchable chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells with a switch directed towards human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) has similar efficacy as conventional HER2 CAR T cells while also having a greater control over treatment toxicities.

Researchers developed and validated a risk score to predict febrile neutropenia in cycles 2 to 6 of chemotherapy.

Health experts are questioning the practice of allowing private insurers to manage public Medicaid contracts; doctors and scientists are urging a halt to a taxpayer-funded, $63 million medical trial based in part on the work of prominent Harvard Medical School scientist Piero Anversa; a Michigan pharmacist who refused to refill a woman’s miscarriage medication because he claimed he was a “good Catholic male” is no longer with Meijer.

With its new FDA approval, Hemlibra (emicizumab-kxwh), a bispecific factor IXa- and factor X-directed antibody, has become the first prophylactic treatment for patients with hemophilia A with or without factor VIII inhibitors.

The October 2018 issue of The American Journal of Managed Care® (AJMC®) includes studies on diabetes outcomes, the effect of feedback reports on physician behavior, accountable care organization performance, and more. Here are 5 findings from the research published in the issue.

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

This week, the top managed care news included the Trump administration unveiling plans to include drug prices in television ads; CMS touted Medicare Advantage at the beginning of open enrollment for Medicare; research found Medicare beneficiaries who live in housing with support services stay out of the hospital.

For chronic sciatica, a recent study said that while gabapentin (GBP) and pregabalin (PGB) are both effective, GBP was found to be superior with fewer and less severe adverse events.

This series of pharmacoeconomics posts will explore the meaning of $100,000/quality-adjusted life year (QALY) and why it might matter to these 4 P’s: patients, payers, providers, and pharma. Part 2 puts ICER into context so it can be applied to decision-making.

An event hosted by the American Enterprise Institute highlighted companies in the private sector that are working on novel ways to transform healthcare and bring better value to patients.