AJMC Staff

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

House Republicans voted to ban quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) from being used as a drug pricing metric in federal health programs; insurance executives disapproved of newly proposed 2025 Medicare Advantage (MA) rates; patients with long COVID enrolled in an online exercise program said their health improved more than people who received standard care.

The FDA has accepted GSK’s application for priority review for extended use of Arexvy in higher-risk adults aged 50 to 59 years; pharmacy retail chains are finding it harder to draw the next generation of pharmacists; antivaccine activists are falsely downplaying the dangers of measles amid global outbreaks.

States channel billions into housing for the homeless using Medicaid funds; AstraZeneca invests $300 million to discover and develop cell therapies; the CDC highlights dangers of menthol cigarette addiction.

Novo Holdings to acquire Catalent for $11.5 billion; cancer incidence is expected to surge 77% by 2050; Silicon Valley’s county takes a bold step to address the rising loneliness crisis.

Pandemic-era policies that made it easier for patients to receive opioid addiction treatment will continue permanently; the Biden administration is facing pressure from Democrats and reproductive health groups to make sure the first OTC birth control pill is affordable; a FDA expert panel on Friday is set to resume the debate over how to make pulse oximeters more accurate for people with darker skin.

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

CMS released the proposed 2025 Advance Notice for the Medicare Advantage (MA) and Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Programs; there have been 561 deaths related to the use of Philips’ recalled ventilators and machines for treating obstructive sleep apnea since 2021; the FDA warned the public against copycat eye drops due to infection risk.

The group emphasizes the importance of management strategies that consider 5 types, or groups, of pulmonary hypertension (PH), including 4 types secondary to other conditions.

Sickle cell disease (SCD) will be the first focus of the Cell and Gene Therapy (CGT) Access Model; the FTC has challenged the validity of over 100 drug product patents to help increase competition and potentially lower prices; the rate of infectious syphilis cases in the US rose 9% in 2022.

Having multiple readmissions for diabetes ketoacidosis (DKA) was more likely to occur among patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D) with substance use disorder or who previously were incarcerated.

Researchers have retrospectively analyzed data from nearly 60 patients with ocular myasthenia gravis (MG) not adequately responding to oral prednisone, finding that both intravenous (IV) methylprednisolone and tacrolimus monotherapy helped reduce symptoms.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medication packets are found with incorrect pills; CMS data reveal record numbers of providers and beneficiaries participating in accountable care organizations (ACOs); Supreme Court will hear arguments over FDA regulations on abortion medication in March.

Biden administration launches partnership with Instacart; critics raise concerns over pharmaceutical industry influence in negotiations; patients seek alternatives as Novo Nordisk halts insulin production.

The data search of Web of Science Core Collection, spanning 2003 to 2022, identified various prospective directions in myasthenia gravis (MG) research, including in personalized treatment, subtype-based treatment, and novel immunotherapeutic strategies.

US women in low-income regions are experiencing a steep increase in cervical cancer diagnosis and death despite medical improvements; a Senate committee launches an assisted living examination, its first hearing on the industry in 2 decades; the CDC urges health care providers to be alert for patients who have fever, rashes, an traveled abroad following reports of 23 measles cases since December 1.

Pulling data from a US electronic health record–based database, researchers found low rates of complete remission and poor overall survival among 382 patients who had myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) receiving first-line azacytidine (AZA).

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

A record 21.3 million people signed up for health insurance this year using the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplaces; nearly 80% of health care providers think it is important for their hospital to minimize its environmental impact; the FDA noted a potential link between CAR-T products and the development of T-cell cancer.

The data suggest this burden among patients who have myasthenia gravis (MG) is prevalent across insurance types.

Sarepta Therapeutics has started screening participants for a Phase 3 clinical trial to test its gene therapy candidate SRP-9003 in children with limb-girdle muscular dystrophy type 2E; wastewater testing points to a new COVID-19 infection wave fueled by the JN.1 variant; most patients on anti-obesity medications kept at least some weight off up to a year after they stopped taking them.

The study, which pulled self-reported data from online bulletin boards across the US, Canada, and the United Kingdom in 2020, found that the degree of burden varied based on patient disease stage, among other factors.

Pharmaceutical companies required to update prescribing information for chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapies; Texas dashboard reports a 40% increase in pediatric flu cases; a blood test shows high accuracy for Alzheimer disease biomarkers.

Meeting the 2024 deadline for an international agreement on pandemic response may not happen; the Biden administration announces measures to counter restrictive state laws on abortion; cervical cancer incidence declines as more women receive the human papillomavirus vaccine.

The new Innovation in Behavioral Health (IBH) Model is designed to test for improving outcomes for adults with mental health and substance use disorder; patients with long COVID show prolonged activation of the immune system’s complement system after an acute infection; scientists now believe our bodies benefit most when our sleep is consistent, not just long.

CMS has announced new federal rules that require health insurers to streamline requests to cover treatments; nearly 50,000 veterans used the emergency suicide prevention program launched by the Department of Veteran Affairs in 2023; the FDA recently authorized the first artificial intelligence (AI)-powered medical device to help doctors detect the most common forms of skin cancer.

Families with workplace health insurance may have missed out on $125,000 in earnings over the past 3 decades due to rising premiums; so far, there have been about 600 drug price hikes in January; experts worry that minority and low-income people will not have easy access to zuranolone, the first FDA-approved postpartum depression pill.

New program seeks to revitalize struggling rural health care facilities; NIH director advocates for actions to address unaffordable medications; WHO reveals significant drop global tobacco use

Merck’s pembrolizumab (Keytruda) gains expanded approval for advanced cervical cancer; delay of final rules banning menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars; high rates of diagnostic errors lead to harm and deaths, study finds.

Popular weight loss drugs are not linked to suicidal actions, says the FDA; the White House is calling for urgent support amid economic challenges; rising hospitalizations and deaths prompt calls to increase vaccination coverage.