Laura is the vice president of content for The American Journal of Managed Care® (AJMC®) and all its brands, including Population Health, Equity & Outcomes; Evidence-Based Oncology™; and The Center for Biosimilars®. She has been working on AJMC since 2014 and has been with AJMC’s parent company, MJH Life Sciences®, since 2011.
She has an MA in business and economic reporting from New York University. You can connect with Laura on LinkedIn or Twitter.
Mostashari, Gilfillan Highlight the Spillover Effect of ACOs Across the Entire Healthcare System
May 4th 2018Farzad Mostashari, MD, of Aledade, and Richard Gilfillan, MD, of Trinity Health, highlight the successes of accountable care organizations (ACOs) and how they've impacted care across the healthcare system, and offered suggestions for improving the Medicare Shared Savings Program.
Utilizing Artificial Intelligence to Advance Care and Make Meaning of Data
May 3rd 2018Artificial intelligence (AI) and AI-enabled devices are already making their way into the market and should be able to help make meaning of data in order to improve care delivery, said speakers at the 15th Annual World Health Care Congress.
Verma Highlights CMS Initiatives to Empower Patients and Promote Competition
May 1st 2018At the 15th Annual World Health Care Congress, CMS Administrator Seema Verma highlighted new policies and initiatives from CMS to ensure that programs are delivering high-quality care in a sustainable way as healthcare spending continues to grow at a faster rate than the overall US economy.
The US Cannot Afford to Put Off the Move to Value-Based Care Any Longer, Panelists Say
May 1st 2018A shift in care delivery and the availability of data are helping to make value-based care a reality in the United States, but the change has been taking too long, said panelists at the 15th Annual World Health Care Congress.
Hospital at Home Models Can Improve Care Delivery and Reduce Unnecessary ED Care
April 30th 2018Providing advanced home care can help reduce hospital admissions for the elderly, but these programs aren’t easy to get up and running, according to panelists at the spring 2018 conference of the National Association of ACOs.
ONC's Rucker Discusses Solutions to Healthcare's Technology Challenges
April 26th 2018There are 3 major components in the 21st Century Cures Act that will fix the technology challenges facing healthcare and accountable care organizations (ACOs), said Don Rucker, national coordinator of health information technology (IT) in HHS’ Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT, at the spring 2018 conference of the National Association of ACOs.
New Test Could Make Multiple Myeloma Diagnosis as Easy as Drawing a Blood Sample
April 23rd 2018A new blood test could negate the need for bone biopsies to diagnose a variety of cancers, including multiple myeloma. The test uses a small, low-cost plastic chip that delivers the same diagnostic information of a biopsy through a simple blood draw.
Dr Ray Page Discusses the Surprise of the First OCM Results
April 23rd 2018Ray Page, DO, PhD, president and director of research at The Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders and chair-elect of the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s (ASCO) Clinical Practice Committee discusses the first results of the Oncology Care Model (OCM) and ASCO’s top legislative priorities.
Humana Launches Bundled Payment Model to Improve Maternity Outcomes and Cost
April 22nd 2018Humana has launched a new maternity bundled payment model with 5 practices in Indiana, Kansas, Ohio, and Texas to improve quality, outcomes, and cost across the entire perinatal episode of care for women with low- to moderate-risk pregnancies.
Dr Houston Holmes Discusses CAR T Therapy Adoption and Education
April 21st 2018With chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy being so new, there is going to be a learning curve as providers become more educated about the treatments, the manufacturing process, and the toxicities, Houston Holmes, MD, MBA, FACP, a medical oncologist with Texas Oncology, explained at the Community Oncology Alliance’s (COA) 2018 Community Oncology Conference.
Novel Drug Shows Promise in Acute Myeloid Leukemia by Suppressing Two Proteins
April 19th 2018A novel drug that targets MDMX and MDM2, which inhibit a protein that suppresses tumors when they are overexpressed, has tripled the median survival rate in an animal model of human acute myeloid leukemia, according to new research.
Bundled Payments That Include Drug Costs Would Penalize Practices Based on Patient Mix
April 18th 2018An analysis of a hypothetical bundled payment that included drug costs would unfairly penalize practices based on patient mix and could destabilize the cancer care delivery environment, according to research published in the Journal of Oncology Practice.
Survivors of Childhood ALL Have Risk of Neurocognitive Issues Even Before Treatment
April 14th 2018While increased risk of neurocognitive issues, such as long-term problems with attention, is common in survivors of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), the risk may actually begin before treatment, according to a study published in JAMA Oncology.
Panelists Discuss Key Issues in Community Oncology Affecting Patients and Practices
April 13th 2018A panel of providers discussed key advocacy issues that affect patients and practices and could improve access to care and costs during the 2018 Community Oncology Conference, hosted by the Community Oncology Alliance, April 12-13 in National Harbor, Maryland.
Dr Bob Twillman Discusses Opioid Risk Assessment in Cancer Pain and New Opioid Policies
April 13th 2018Typically, cancer pain management is carved out of policies that try to restrict opioid prescribing in an effort to combat the opioid epidemic, but with more and more patients surviving their cancer, there is some uncertainty regarding who is affected by these policies, explained Bob Twillman, PhD, executive director for the Academy of Integrative Pain Management.
Reports Highlight Impact of Taxing Unhealthy Products to Combat Chronic Diseases Worldwide
April 11th 2018Papers from The Lancet's Taskforce of Non-Communicable Diseases analyzed the potential health and economic impact of implementing taxes on soda, alcohol, and tobacco to combat the rising rates of the chronic diseases worldwide.
Progress With Risk-Based Agreements Failing to Keep Pace With Expectations
April 11th 2018The third annual population health survey from Numerof & Associates found that healthcare organizations have not made as much progress to transition to risk-based agreements as they predicted they would 2 years ago.
Surgeon General Calls for More People to Carry Naloxone to Counteract Opioid Overdoses
April 6th 2018Surgeon General Jerome M. Adams, MD, issues a call for more people to carry naloxone to counteract opioid overdoses amid the ongoing national public health emergency; however, it is unclear if increased access to naloxone will combat the opioid epidemic or exacerbate overdoses.