The Increasing Economic Burden of Major Depressive Disorder
April 3rd 2015The prevalence of major depressive disorder (MDD) grew from a rate of 6.4% in 2005 to 6.8% in 2010 with the cost of MDD to employers increasing 21.5% over the same time period, according to a new study in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.
Read More
The New Bipartisan Consensus for an Individual Mandate
April 3rd 2015Although those opposing the Affordable Care Act have decried the burdensome nature of the individual mandate, a recent proposal developed by Republicans seeks to address the same problem as the ACA's mandate and would impose strong penalties on the uninsured.
Read More
Auditor's Report Reveals Challenges in Kentucky's Healthcare Success Story
April 3rd 2015A 2011 switch to Medicaid managed care, which occurred during a budget crisis, has been blamed for financial challenges at rural hospitals and declining numbers of providers. Auditor Adam Edelen said the plight of Kentucky's rural hospitals is complex but must be addressed.
Read More
Payers and Providers Experiment With Oncology Payment Models
April 2nd 2015With a focus on improving quality while maintaining the cost of care, providers and payers are evaluating various payment models that could improve patient outcomes using evidence-based treatment at lower costs to the healthcare system.
Read More
Next Gen Sequencing: ASCO Supports FDA Initiative
April 2nd 2015While supporting the FDA's standards-based regulatory efforts to explore next generation sequencing tests as diagnostic tools, the American Society of Clinical Oncology warned against misinterpretation or over-interpretation of test results.
Read More
CTCs as First-Line to Screen for Lung Cancer?
April 1st 2015Research published by a team of Italian scientists in the Journal of the National Institute of Cancer shows that a 13-gene panel blood test for microRNAs could be a cost-effective screening tool for lung cancer, compared with low-dose CT, which is expensive.
Read More
Report Suggests Steady Improvements in Cancer Survival
April 1st 2015The annual report was published in the March 30 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. The report was co-authored by experts from the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries, the American Cancer Society, CDC, and the National Cancer Institute.
Read More
Through Partnership, Pancreatic Cancer Patients Gain Access to Personal Treatment Options
April 1st 2015The "Know Your Tumor" initiative of the Pancreatic Cancer Action network refers newly diagnosed patients to Perthera, which provides a unique service to ensure timely tissue collection, molecular diagnostic testing, and a report with recommendations for the oncologist.
Read More
Medicaid Patients Have Harder Time Finding a New Physician
April 1st 2015Physicians were accepting nearly equal amounts of new Medicare and privately insured patients in 2013, but much fewer were accepting new Medicaid patients, according to a new report from the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics.
Read More
CER Currently Has Little Impact on Decision Making, but Remains Important
March 31st 2015Although healthcare stakeholders view comparative effectiveness research (CER) as important to healthcare, respondents to a survey from the National Pharmaceutical Council admitted that they haven't yet seen the impact of CER.
Read More
Hospitals Prefer In-House, Custom-Built Health Apps
March 31st 2015Hospitals like Boston Children's and Penn Medicine think they are better off building in-house apps that are custom-made for their workflow, rather than risk buying those available in the market, which may not necessarily be a perfect fit.
Read More
Workplace Wellness Programs Can Reduce Obesity, Study Finds
March 31st 2015Researchers worked with nearly 3800 individuals to establish workplace programs that focused on healthy eating and increasing physical activity. At the end of the study period, the number of employees in the control site who were overweight/obese increased by about 5%, while the number in the intervention group had decreased by 4%, resulting in a net difference of 9%.
Read More