AJMC® in the Press, February 22, 2019

A study published in The American Journal of Managed Care^® (AJMC^®) was highlighted by Policy & Medicine. The study, “A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Over-the-Counter Statins,” found that with proper labeling and consumer education, it is likely that over-the-counter statins would be cost-effective, as they significantly improve population health without large increases in healthcare costs.

The AJMC^® study “Personalized Preventive Care Leads to Significant Reductions in Hospital Utilization” was included in an article from WMC Action News 5. The study assessed the impact of the MDVIP model of personalized preventive care on hospital utilization over a 5-year period and concluded that the model allows the physician to take a more proactive, rather than reactive, approach to patient care, which leads to lower hospitalization and lower healthcare costs.

An AJMC^® contributor article on value-based insurance design (VBID) was mentioned in the National Pharmaceutical Council’s Tuesday CER Daily Newsfeed. The article, “CMS Announces Transformative Updates to the MA VBID Model,” outlines CMS’ recent changes to the current Medicare Advantage VBID model, which will start in 2020 and run through 2024.

Wednesday’s CER Daily Newsfeed included the AJMC^® article “Real-World Study Finds Better Outcomes in MS After Early Intensive Therapy,” which covered a real-world, long-term study that saw more favorable outcomes with early intensive therapy when compared with first-line moderate-efficacy disease modifying therapy. The newsfeed also included this week’s AJMC^® podcast, “Improving Care While Reducing Costs Through ACOs and Other Value-Based Efforts,” which included interviews with 3 experts about how accountable care organization and other value-based mechanisms are improving care and reducing costs.