Iowa Proposes State Changes to ACA
In Iowa, officials are seeking to alter major parts of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). According to The Wall Street Journal, the state would revamp the ACA’s subsidies and offer just 1 type of insurance plan. The White House has already said it is open to state altering how the ACA works within a state’s borders. The Iowa Insurance Commissioner has called the proposal a stopgap that would only remain in place until Republicans in Congress pass a bill to change the ACA at the national level.
Educating Doctors on Drug Costs
A former drug salesman is teaching doctors about high drug costs in an effort to save millions of dollars. He works for Capital District Physicians’ Health Plan (CDPHP) and also educates doctors on the strategies used to sell expensive prescriptions, reported Kaiser Health News. Insurers are also taking other steps to fight back against rising drug costs, such as educating doctors on pill effectiveness or removing high-cost drugs from coverage. CDPHP is working to educate doctors on prices because they are often unaware of the cost of the treatments they order.
FDA Declines Approval of Neulasta Biosimilar
Amgen may have lost its biosimilar case before the Supreme Court regarding Sandoz’s Zarxio, a biosimilar of Amgen’s Neupogen, but it gained a different victory thanks to the FDA. Reuters reported that a biosimilar to Amgen’s Neulasta was not approved by the FDA. Neulasta is used to reduce the risk in patients with cancer of developing febrile neutropenia, a low count of neutrophils, which help the body fight infection. Coherus BioSciences’ biosimilar was not approved as the FDA requested a re-analysis of certain data. Neulasta currently generates about $4.6 billion in sales.
Perioperative Nivolumab Boosts NSCLC Survival: CheckMate 77T Trial
May 16th 2024This interim analysis of the CheckMate 77T trial, outcomes were compared between adult patients receiving neoadjuvant nivolumab plus chemotherapy or neoadjuvant chemotherapy plus placebo for resectable non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
Read More
Decitabine, Venetoclax Combo Boosts Survival in Patients With AML and MDS
May 16th 2024Study findings demonstrate that combining decitabine with venetoclax enhances molecular response rates in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), correlating strongly with improved clinical outcomes and overall survival.
Read More
Frameworks for Advancing Health Equity: Urban Health Outreach
May 9th 2024In the series debut episode of "Frameworks for Advancing Health Equity," Mary Sligh, CRNP, and Chelsea Chappars, of Allegheny Health Network, explain how the Urban Health Outreach program aims to improve health equity for individuals experiencing homelessness.
Listen
Atypical Marker Expression in T-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia/Lymphoma
May 15th 2024Two unique case reports highlight the diagnostic challenges and critical importance of comprehensive immunophenotyping in cases of T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoma that present without typical immaturity markers but with rare γδ T-cell receptor expression.
Read More
After the ACA Expanded Health Care Access, 2024 Elections May See Voters Demand Affordability
May 15th 2024At the spring conference of the New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute, speakers discussed how health policy, affordability, and transparency may play a role in voters’ decisions.
Read More