Trump Administration Cuts Budget for Drug Control
More than $364 million would be cut from the budget of the Office of National Drug Control Policy under a new budget proposal from the White House. The budget cuts to the office of the so-called “drug czar” include programs with bipartisan support, such as the drug-free communities program and the high-intensity drug-trafficking area program, reported AP. The proposal highlights the cuts as a way to streamline the office to make it more effective in addressing drug control issues.
Paid Sick Leave Laws Face Opposition
There are 19 states with sick leave laws that preempt local governments and the business community is starting to fight back against increased regulation for paid leave. The lack of a unified rule is causing administrative headaches and some business groups are working to draft a House Republican proposal to set a floor for the amount of paid sick leave to be offered, according to NPR. Recent polls have shown support for paid sick leave can be as high as 85% depending on the specific policy, and the idea is popular among both parties.
Superbug Emerges in US Hospitals
There have been more than 60 cases of a deadly, hard-to-kill fungus showing up in hospitals, with most cases occurring in New York and New Jersey. According to USA Today, the CDC is warning hospitals across the country to watch out for the fungus, which spreads throughout the body and causes a variety of infections but can be hard to spot. There is a 30% death rate, but with those getting infected already being very sick, the CDC is unsure how much of the death toll can be attributed to the fungus.
Urticaria Diagnosis Challenged by Overlapping Pruritic Skin Conditions
April 23rd 2025Urticaria is complicated to diagnose by its symptomatic overlap with other skin conditions and the frequent misclassification in literature of distinct pathologies like vasculitic urticaria and bullous pemphigus.
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New Research Challenges Assumptions About Hospital-Physician Integration, Medicare Patient Mix
April 22nd 2025On this episode of Managed Care Cast, Brady Post, PhD, lead author of a study published in the April 2025 issue of The American Journal of Managed Care®, challenges the claim that hospital-employed physicians serve a more complex patient mix.
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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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ACOs’ Focus on Rooting Out Fraud Aligns With CMS Vision Under Oz
April 23rd 2025Accountable care organizations (ACOs) are increasingly playing the role of data sleuths as they identify and report trends of anomalous billing in hopes of salvaging their shared savings. This mission dovetails with that of CMS, which under the new administration plans to prioritize rooting out fraud, waste, and abuse.
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