Latest Conference Articles

In an educational seminar entitled "How Much of the $3 Billion in Star Rating Bonuses Did Your MCO Capture?," David Nau, RPh, PhD, CPHQ, FAPhA, along with his colleagues, discussed Medicare star ratings and how managed care organizations have implemented practices and processes to ensure the delivery of high-quality care to their members.

Mattias Cheung, PhD, FCSHP, FASHP, discusses the ongoing progress of orphan drugs for rare diseases in today's health care environment, and explores their challenges and opportunities in the current managed care landscape.

Matthias Cheung, PhD, FCSHP, FASHP, a principal at Advanced Rx Consulting, LLC, and an adjunct professor of pharmacy practice at the University of the Pacific, Thomas J. Long School of Pharmacy and Health Services, discusses the circumstances and factors that catalyzed the passage of current legislation and regulatory policies for orphan drugs, rare diseases, and ultra-rare diseases.

Debora Sternaman, PharmD, the director of commercial formulary services at Catamaran in Georgetown, TX discusses the Health Insurance Marketplace and how the new model offers a different experience from the current managed care structure.

In a presentation entitled "Hemophilia Management: Collaborating in a New Era to Optimize Cost and Clinical Outcomes in Managed Care," 5 key thought leaders and managed care authorities shared their insights on the changing therapeutic landscape for hemophilia management.

Robert W. Dubois, MD, PhD, the chief science officer of the National Pharmaceutical Council discusses the initial expectations of implementing accountable care organizations (ACOs) and how those expectations have evolved over time.

In a presentation entitled "Accountable Care Organizations: 2013 and Beyond," 4 managed care experts shared their insights and thoughts on the ongoing paradigm shift in managed care towards accountable care organizations, elaborating on current trends, unmet needs, and the future direction of the managed care landscape.

The electronic health record (EHR) has been touted as a tool that has the power to improve the quality of patient care, reduce costs, and improve overall efficiency in healthcare. At this year's American College of Cardiology 62nd Annual Scientific Session and Expo, information was presented from a study challenging that long-held belief.

Frederick Masoudi, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, University of Colorado, says there has been an increase in focus on outcomes. They allow for systems accountability and focus on patient care.

One of the more popular sessions at this year's American College of Cardiology 62nd Annual Scientific Session and Expo featured a discussion on regulatory oversight and the need for better protection of patients' interests.

Peter Berger, MD, Chairman of Cardiology and Co-Director of the Geisinger Heart & Vascular Institute, Director, Cardiovascular Center for Clinical Research at Geisinger Clinic, thinks the biggest challenges that physicians face when treating patients with acute coronary syndrome is individualizing treatment for patients.

Jeffrey Berger, MD, Assistant Professor, NYU Langone Medical Center, says that improving adherence of therapies in patients with acute coronary syndrome is a major goal.

Childhood obesity is an epidemic in the United States, and one that not only endangers the health of children, but also costs our healthcare system a great deal of time, money, and resources when considering the comorbid conditions that often present as a result.

Michael Farkouh, MD, Director of Clinical Trials and Associate Professor of Medicine, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, says that there are many strategies to both prevent and control diabetes mellitus, but he notes that obesity prevention is key.

The American College of Cardiology 62nd Annual Scientific Session & Expo featured a daylong program on advances in pharmacology. One session in particular, "Pharmacologic Considerations with the New Oral Anticoagulants," focused on the importance of individualized therapy when it comes to selecting antithrombotic therapy for atrial fibrillation.

Readmissions are one of the many Achilles' heels of healthcare. Whether it is a failure in communication, problems with medication adherence, or an overall lack of quality healthcare delivery, readmissions cause many headaches within the system. Saturday at the American College of Cardiology 62nd Annual Scientific Session and Expo featured a discussion on successful transitions of care to help prevent readmissions.

Paul Hauptman, MD, Professor of Internal Medicine, Division of Cardiology, Health Management & Policy, School of Public Health, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, says that clinicians tend to focus on non-patient focused outcomes.

The Affordable Care Act has left many healthcare professionals pondering the future of healthcare delivery. This all-encompassing discussion has many layers; however, at the American College of Cardiology 62nd Annual Scientific Session and Expo, a panel of experts discussed some of the specific variables-such as the need for better data and a more prominent role for nurses-as they relate to healthcare delivery in this transitory time.

"There is often a disconnect between research and policy," said Harlan Krumholz, MD, Department of Internal Medicine/Section of Cardiovascular Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT.

To act as a catalyst for ideas, partnerships, and collaboration among all stakeholders to provoke thought, innovation, and action to address the cost, productivity, and quality-of-life impact of diabetes, obesity, and related conditions and comorbidities on our society, Joslin Diabetes Center convened Diabetes Innovation for the first time in 2012. Highlights from Diabetes Innovation, which took place on September 23-25 2012, in Arlington, Virginia, are available in a special report published by The American Journal of Managed Care.

At the 54th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology, John Radford, MD, reported the results of the United Kingdom RAPID trial, in which PET-directed therapy provided an opportunity to avoid involved field radiotherapy, the current standard of care following abbreviated chemotherapy in early stage Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Ralph M. Meyer, MD, Director of Clinical Trials Group, National Cancer Institute of Canada, Queen's University, offers a counterpoint to the thoughts of Richard T. Hoppe, MD, on the role and utility of radiation therapy in patients with early stage Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Vorinostat added to standard chemotherapy before, during, and after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation reduced the cumulative incidence of graft-versus-host disease in a phase I/II trial reported at the 54th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology.

Adrian Wiestner, MD, PhD, Investigator, Laboratory of Lymphoid Malignancies, National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, discusses the patient outcomes that clinical trials have demonstrated regarding the use of targeted kinase inhibitors for the management of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL).

A unique targeted therapy, quizartinib, was able to clear leukemia cells from the bone marrow in more than 33% of patients with an aggressive form of acute myeloid leukemia marked by a mutation in the FLT3 gene.

Elisabeth M. Paietta, PhD, Professor, Department of Medicine (Oncology), Albert Einstein College of Medicine, defines minimum residual disease (MRD) and discusses its clinical significance. She then describes the methodological and therapeutic challenges that face clinical MRD implementation.

An investigational, weekly, oral proteosome inhibitor called MLN9708 achieved excellent response rates when combined with lenalidomide and dexamethasone as up-front treatment of newly diagnosed patients with multiple myeloma, according to results of a phase II trial presented at the 54th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology.

Thomas P. Loughran, Jr, MD, Professor of Medicine, Penn State University, Director, Penn State Hershey Cancer Institute, describes the clinical sequelae of large granular lymphocyte (LGL) leukemia, particularly noting neutropenia and anemia, and discusses the pharmacotherapeutic approach.

Ibrutinib, an investigational Bruton's tyrosine kinase inhibitor, achieved excellent results in clinical trials of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) presented at the 54th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology.

Richard T. Hoppe, MD, Professor of Radiation Oncology - Radiation Therapy, Stanford School of Medicine, discussed the current role and utility of radiation therapy in patients with early stage Hodgkins Lymphoma when compared to conventional chemotherapy.