What We're Reading: Fentanyl Prescribing; HHS Title X Grants; Symbolic Drug Price Cuts
August 3rd 2018Researchers at Johns Hopkins University used the Freedom of Information Act to obtain documents showing the FDA did little to intervene in the wider prescribing of fast-acting fentanyl drugs approved for patients with cancer who have high opioid tolerance; HHS said 96 organizations will get funding under Title X, the federal family planning program; drug companies may have reduced some prices in response to President Trump taking to Twitter to complain about costs, but the moves are largely symbolic and won’t have any real effect, analysts said.
What We're Reading: Part D Premiums; US Healthcare Spending; Consequences of Sudden Inactivity
August 1st 2018For the second year in a row, the average basic premium for a Medicare Part D plan will decline; a series of charts in The Wall Street Journal highlights what is driving US healthcare spending; taking a break from exercising can have metabolic consequences that linger for some people even after they return to their normal levels of exercise.
What We're Reading: ACA Insurance Tax; Promising Alzheimer Drug; Healthcare Migration to Google
July 26th 2018The House voted to delay an Affordable Care Act health insurance tax until 2021 and expand Health Savings Accounts; in a large clinical trial, an Alzheimer drug reduced plaques in the brains of patients and slowed the progression of dementia; after leaving high-profile positions in government and at healthcare organizations, more big names in healthcare are ending up at Google's companies instead of universities.
What We're Reading: FDA's Biosimilar Plan; Philly Soda Tax Upheld; Health Subsidy Lawsuit Tossed
July 19th 2018FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, MD, announced the release of the agency’s Biosimilar Action Plan; Philadelphia’s tax on soda and other sweetened beverages has been upheld by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court; a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit by 19 states against the Trump administration over the decision to end cost-sharing subsidies under the Affordable Care Act.
What We're Reading: Catching Medicaid Fraud; An Alternative to PBMs; Treating Fentanyl Overdoses
July 12th 2018A new federal report found that Medicaid insurers have not done a good job in catching fraud or reporting it to states; Blink Health and former officials at Express Scripts have teamed up to create a venture that replaces the “complicated and opaque” pharmacy payment system; CDC is warning that people overdosing on synthetic opioids may need multiple doses of naloxone.