Health Care Delivery

With few Americans receiving all the preventive services recommended for them, efforts across the full delivery system are needed to increase the use of preventive services, according to a paper published in Health Affairs.

A state judge in Maine ordered Goveror Paul LePage’s administration to stop stalling and implement a Medicaid expansion; the National Institutes of Health reported on a treatment that eradicated cancer from a patient who had untreatable, advanced breast cancer; citing changes to the Affordable Care Act, insurers are proposing double-digit rate hikes for 2019.

A new study published in Health Affairs hopes to provide an explanation of the evidence for the pros and cons of Medicaid expansion as part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) with a systematic literature review, finding that expansion was associated with increases in coverage, service use, quality of care, and Medicaid spending.

A new study analyzed the burden of multiple myeloma around the world, as well as access to effective treatments. From 1990 to 2016, incident cases and deaths from the disease have grown substantially.

A new report from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and the Joint Committee on Taxation outlined health insurance coverage losses between 2018 and 2028 for people under age 65 as a result of changes to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) by the Trump administration, as the percentage of those who are uninsured will rise from 11% in 2018 to 13% by 2028.

Researchers based at the University of Michigan compared patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) in Medicaid expansion states with those in nonexpansion states, focusing on 18 specific conditions identified as severe illnesses that could be avoided through better preventive care.

Terry Kohl, a real estate agent in New Jersey, battled what she thought was indigestion for 6 months and went repeatedly to a gastroenterologist for what she thought was a case of “grumbly gut.” Her "indigestion" led to a coronary artery bypass surgery soon after a trip to Rome left her breathless. Read about how women experience health and healthcare differently as National Women's Health Week draws to a close.

An analysis from the Kaiser Family Foundation of the 2017 financial performance of health insurers found that last year was their best year selling individual-market health insurance since the Affordable Care Act was put into place, even without the cost-sharing subsidies that they lost in the fourth quarter.

Surveys collected as part of the Gallup-Sharecare Well-Being Index found that the uninsured rate increased significantly in 17 states from 2016 to 2017. At the same time, no states reported statistically significant decreases in the uninsured rate. This is the first time since the implementation of the Affordable Care Act that states have reported increases in the uninsured rate.

FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, MD, has embraced the calorie counts at restaurants a year after his agency put them hold on the eve of his arrival. A Nutrition Facts label update is delayed but not scuttled, in contrast with the reversal of school lunch changes from the Obama administration.

Hispanic patients with Medicaid were more likely to be admitted for ambulatory care–sensitive conditions after Nevada’s Medicaid expansion.

Health insurance coverage gains since the enactment of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in 2010 are starting to weaken and reverse, with the uninsured rate among those aged 19 to 64 increasing from 12.7% in 2016 to 15.5% in 2018.

At 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.

Bill Gates is offering $12 million in a push for a universal flu vaccine; the number of people sick from the E. coli outbreak rises to 98; and a Representative is proposing automatically enrolling eligible individuals in Affordable Care Act (ACA) and Medicaid plans.

One study revealed that 40% of residents in the South report financial barriers that prevent them from giving patients long-acting reversible contraception, including lack of insurance coverage and the cost of the device, which prevents it from being stocked.

While use of services at federally qualified health centers has increased particularly since the implementation of the Affordable Care Act, the increasing trend started back in 2002, said M. Kristina Wharton, MPH, of the Department of Global Health Management and Policy at Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine.

An FDA panel recommended approval of a marijuana-derived medicine for the treatment of severe seizures in children with epilepsy; prescriptions for opioid painkillers continued to fall while the number of new monthly prescriptions for medications that treat opioid use disorder nearly doubled over the past 2 years; GOP candidates in midterm races this fall are retreating from calls to further dismantle the Affordable Care Act.

Current policies being employed to limit spending can have serious consequences for patients, but a different benefit design approach could present an alternative strategy.

The Trump administration's proposal to extend the duration of short-term health plans would have a particularly significant impact on patients with cancer and cancer survivors, according to a webcast hosted by the National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship on Thursday.

M. Kristina Wharton, MPH, of the Department of Global Health Management and Policy at Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, talks about the services federally qualified centers provide, specifically how they help patients access medications.

Dan Klein, president and CEO of the Patient Access Network (PAN) Foundation, lists possible policy changes that would strengthen the safety net.

Medicaid work requirements will ultimately harm children’s health if their parents lose health benefits, a new policy report says. The report summarizes how health insurance gains for parents translates into improved healthcare access for children.

Nine in 10 people with non-group health insurance will continue buying coverage despite the repeal of the individual mandate and express worry over future availability and price of health coverage, according to a health tracking poll from Kaiser Family Foundation. The poll also found that for the uninsured, the main reason for not purchasing coverage is that it is too expensive.

The governor of Iowa signed a law allowing health plans that are not compliant with the Affordable Care Act; custom medically designed meals keep patients healthier, a study found; the CDC is probing a teen suicide outbreak in an Ohio county.

Despite having higher rates of insurance coverage and more education, cancer survivors were more likely to report difficulties accessing and affording care than adults with no reported history of cancer.

A new report from the Commonwealth Fund says the Trump administration’s proposed regulations encouraging the sale of various health insurance plans that are noncompliant with the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is likely to leave the marketplaces with a smaller group of enrollees who are sicker, unless states step in to consider “regulatory options” to protect the individual insurance market.

There are racial and socioeconomic disparities evident in whether or not patients with kidney failure complete the transplant process, but the use of a navigator can help increase access for these patients in the long term, according to a study.

As the companies that remain on the market have gained more experience with the individual and small group market risk pools, and have set higher premiums for exchange plans, their gross profit margins have increased. The Council of Economic Advisors said that the fact that premiums continue to rise “is a clear sign of a distorted market that involves larger transfers from taxpayers to insurers.”

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) turns 8 years old today—here's a roundup of 5 things to know about this landmark healthcare law.

ACA insurers posted good results for 2017 after hiking premiums 25%; Virginia inches closer to approving Medicaid expansion as budget talks near; an AIDS researcher is said to be the top candidate to lead the CDC.