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What We're Reading: Co-Op Failures Could Have Been Avoided
What we're reading, December 24, 2015: more than half of Affordable Care Act co-ops will be closed by the end of 2015, but this could have been avoided; 5 senators are pressing CMS for information on containing drug costs; and a task force does not recommend screening all teens and children for high cholesterol.
More than half of the co-ops created by the Affordable Care Act will no longer exist by the end of 2015, but this could have been avoided, according to Modern Healthcare. The co-ops struggled with sick, costly patients who were unfamiliar with health insurance and fewer payments from the federal government than initially promised. However, if Congress had paid out what was promised, the co-ops would not have failed, according to insiders.
Five senators are pressing CMS to provide more information on its efforts to contain prescription drug costs and assist seniors. A letter from the 5 Democrats asks how the agency will improve drug pricing transparency and bring down costs, according to a blog post from the Association of Health Care Journalists. The senators sit on committees that oversee issues related to Medicare, Medicaid, and healthcare costs.
The United States Preventive Services Task Force has determined that there is not enough evidence to recommend screening all children and teens for high cholesterol. The draft recommendation remains unchanged from 2007 as it is unclear if screening before the age of 20 reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease later in life, reported HealthDay. The experts added that potential harms for long-term use of cholesterol-lowering medications is still unknown.
"The Barriers Are Real": Antoine Keller, MD, on Geography and Cardiovascular Health
April 18th 2025Health care disparities are often driven by where patients live, explained Antoine Keller, MD, as he discussed the complex, systematic hurdles that influence the health of rural communities.
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Personalized Care Key as Tirzepatide Use Expands Rapidly
April 15th 2025Using commercial insurance claims data and the US launch of tirzepatide as their dividing point, John Ostrominski, MD, Harvard Medical School, and his team studied trends in the use of both glucose-lowering and weight-lowering medications, comparing outcomes between adults with and without type 2 diabetes.
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Racial Differences in CA-125 Levels Tied to Ovarian Cancer Treatment Delays
April 17th 2025Black and American Indian women with ovarian cancer were less likely to have elevated cancer antigen 125 (CA-125) levels at diagnosis, resulting in delayed chemotherapy initiation and highlighting the need for more inclusive guidelines.
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Empowering Teams Begins With Human Connection: Missy Hopson, PhD
April 16th 2025Missy Hopson, PhD, Ochsner Health, discussed in detail the challenges of strengthening the patient-centered workforce, the power of community reputation for encouraging health care careers, and the influence of empowered workforces on patient outcomes.
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