Population Health

Medicaid expansion was associated with a decrease in nonprofit hospitals’ burden of providing uncompensated care, according to a study published in JAMA Network Open. However, hospitals did not redirect this financial relief toward spending on additional community benefits.

There will never be all mandatory payment models or all value-based models, but we can craft a value-based model around just about anything as long as everybody agrees on what the criteria is, said Lili Brillstein, CEO of Brillstein Collaborative Consulting, and former Director for Episodes of Care at Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey.

When deciding which treatments to cover, states and commercial payers must wrestle with opportunity costs as new therapeutics come to market. A panel at Virtual ISPOR 2020 discussed some of the factors that go into those decisions.

At the opening session of this year's Virtual ISPOR 2020 conference, panelists shared their views on what future health care systems can learn from the current pandemic crisis.

The cost of giving birth in the United States can vary by thousands of dollars depending on where the birth takes place. In Arkansas, inpatient birth charges come out to roughly $8300, but that total rises to nearly $20,000 in New York.

Lupin Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Lupin) announced positive results from its phase 3 trial assessing the efficacy and safety of secnidazole (Solosec) in female patients with trichomoniasis. Although trichomoniasis is common in the United States, the risk of being infected with the infection is nearly 10 times higher for African American women compared with non-Hispanic white women.

Northeastern states formed a consortium to purchase personal protective equipment and other supplies to cope with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19); the pandemic highlights public health identitity crisis; President Trump revises US pandemic death toll.

Day 1 of Virtual COA 2020, this year’s Community Oncology Conference, kicked off with the panel discussion, “Top Oncology Issues Now & Looking Ahead,” led by Bo Gamble, director of Strategic Practice Initiatives at the Community Oncology Alliance. Topics covered ran the gamut: from Zoom being everyone’s new middle name to telehealth to caring for patients’ medical and social needs and beyond.

In the United States, heart failure affects a patient population of over 6.5 million. Through medication management, transportation, and emotional support, among the many tasks they assist with, these patients’ caregivers provide services valued at $7.9 billion annually.

In a preview interview for this year’s 2020 Community Oncology Conference, The American Journal of Managed Care® speaks with Anshu Jain, MD—radiation oncologist at Ashland Bellefonte Cancer Center in Ashland, Kentucky; assistant clinical professor at the Yale School of Medicine; and Community Oncology Alliance board member—on how important it is to always strive for excellence in medicine.

“The brunt of COVID-19 will be borne by the poor, elderly, and sick, and it is up to us to ensure they are not left behind” – Former US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy

The number of US adults at high risk for vision loss increased from 2002 to 2017, according to an observational study based on national survey data.

An updated emergency visit classification tool enables managers to make valid inferences about levels of appropriateness of emergency department utilization and healthcare needs within a population.

Co-pay accumulator adjustment programs can have different effects for individuals with varying health plan types or income levels, explained Bruce Sherman, MD, chief medical officer of the National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions.

During the 2018 International AIDS Conference, the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and the Elton John AIDS Foundation revealed initial results from the LGBT Fund, which they launched in 2016. PEPFAR also announced over $360 million in funding over the next 12 months.

Last month, the Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah announced the opening of the Huntsman Center for Health Outcomes and Population Equity (HOPE). The research and clinical center is dedicated to preventing cancer and improving health among underserved populations.

Clinical trials researching cancer therapies should be more inclusive of a broader range of patients, according to the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and Friends of Cancer Research.

A different way to measure population aging takes into account changing life expectancy, with implications for healthcare.

Recent research indicates that patients who are treated within an integrated model of care for their inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have improved outcomes, as they tend to undergo IBD-related surgeries less often and are more likely to receive treatment other than steroids.

Programs like One Great Community aim to engage communities in the process of population health research, which is a key to successful public health initiatives, explained Shauntice Allen, PhD, assistant professor in the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Public Health.

The spread of HIV has stabilized in some areas of the world, but continues to rise in others, said Thomas C. Quinn, MD, director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Global Health.

Community health records have the potential to transform the way stakeholders work to improve health at the community level by aggregating local data on the social and physical determinants of health, according to a recent commentary in the American Journal of Public Health.

A recent study indicated that strategies to promote weight loss or maintenance across an entire population could be more effective in preventing type 2 diabetes than programs specifically targeting obese people at high risk of developing the disease.

Rates of food insecurity remain high in American Indian communities, and a recent study indicates that inadequate food quality and quantity may put these populations at higher risk of diabetes, obesity, and hypertension.

When working with a homeless population, the Camden Coalition has learned that they need to establish open lines of communication, build a sense of trust, and follow through on their promises to patients, according to Renee Murray, associate clinical director of Care Management Initiatives at Camden Coalition. Often times these patients have more urgent priorities or may not believe that the Camden Coalition team is actually dedicated to working with them.

When women are empowered to take control of their own health, the results can be profound: reduced infant mortality, decreased spread of infectious diseases, and increased family and community health. An investment in women’s education truly is an investment in the well-being of society.

Relationships with accountable care organizations and provider organizations can help payers join in a value-based, holistic approach to improving health within a community, said Harold L. Paz, MD, MS, executive vice president and chief medical officer at Aetna.

Researchers evaluated 137 mobile health apps designed to help patients manage their health and found inconsistencies in the apps’ functionalities, privacy policies, and reactions to indications of health danger.

This paper presents a policy proposal to integrate care for Medicare beneficiaries through creation of integrated care organizations and a Medicare home care benefit.

Accountable care organizations all over the country have shown that no single method can work for every system, said Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, MD, MBA, outgoing president and CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.