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Making smarter decisions about where to recover after hospitalization

Every year, nearly 2 million people on Medicare — most of them older adults — go to a skilled nursing facility to recover after a hospitalization. But choosing the facility can be daunting, according to an emerging body of research.

11 Apr 2019

Can someone tell me what a PBM does?

It was back-to-school day at the Senate Finance Committee hearing Tuesday morning. In the third of a series of hearings on rising drug prices, the senators seemed focused on getting an answer to one central question: What the heck is a pharmacy benefit manager?

10 Apr 2019

Lethal plans: When seniors turn to suicide in long-term care

When Larry Anders moved into the Bay at Burlington nursing home in late 2017, he wasn't supposed to be there long. At 77, the stoic Wisconsin machinist had just endured the death of his wife of 51 years and a grim new diagnosis: throat cancer, stage 4.

9 Apr 2019

Study finds no statistically significant effect of drug shortages on cancer treatment

For the vast majority of cancer drugs experiencing shortages over a seven-year period, a new USC research study found no statistically significant effect of shortages on chemotherapy treatment.

8 Apr 2019

PET scans could be used to develop best practices for dementia

The application of positron emission tomography (PET) for amyloid plaques could aid clinical decision making for patients with dementia or mild cognitive impairment (MCI).

3 Apr 2019

UCR study: Surgery associated with higher survival of patients with HER2-positive stage 4 breast cancer

A student at the University of California, Riverside, presented research results at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research, or AACR, in Atlanta showing that surgery is associated with higher survival rates for patients with HER2-positive stage 4 breast cancer compared with those who did not undergo surgery.

3 Apr 2019

Amyloid PET associated with changes in clinical management of patients with dementia

Amyloid (abnormal protein) plaques in the brain are a feature of Alzheimer disease and imaging the brain with positron emission tomography can detect them.

3 Apr 2019

Fixing surprise medical bill problem shouldn’t fall to consumers, panel told

One point drew clear agreement Tuesday during a House subcommittee hearing: When it comes to the problem of surprise medical bills, the solution must protect patients — not demand that they be great negotiators.

3 Apr 2019

California hospitals see massive surge in homeless patients

Homeless patients made about 100,000 visits to California hospitals in 2017, marking a 28% rise from two years earlier, according to the most recent state discharge data.

2 Apr 2019

Experts discover new offshoots of old health policy roots

As political leaders debate the future of the U.S. health care system, a pair of health financing experts discovered that all of the current proposals -- from Medicare for All to "repeal and replace" -- have been circulating in various forms since the 1940s.

2 Apr 2019

Networks in Medicare Advantage plans are broad and may be getting broader, study finds

Share of Medicare Advantage plans with broad networks increased from 80.1 percent in 2011 to 82.5 percent in 2015, and enrollment in broad-network plans grew from 54.1 percent to 64.9 percent.

2 Apr 2019

Researchers explore rate of billed ACP conversations with hospitalized, older patients

As the U.S. population ages, hospitals and health systems around the country have been grappling with how to integrate advance care planning into routine practice.

2 Apr 2019

Medicare costs tend to be lower in counties with more forests and shrublands, study finds

A new study finds that Medicare costs tend to be lower in counties with more forests and shrublands than in counties dominated by other types of land cover.

1 Apr 2019

CMS ignores federal judge ruling to approve Medicaid work rules in Utah

Less than 48 hours after a federal judge struck down Medicaid work requirements, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on Friday gave Utah permission to use those mandates.

29 Mar 2019

Federal judge again blocks Medicaid work requirements

For a second time in nine months, the same federal judge has struck down the Trump administration's plan to force some Medicaid recipients to work to maintain benefits.

27 Mar 2019

New rules will ease patients’ access to electronic medical records, Senate panel says

The chairman of the Senate health committee on Tuesday backed new federal regulations to remove roadblocks patients can face in obtaining copies of their electronic medical records.

27 Mar 2019

Impact of legalizing cannabis on the opioid crisis

Legislators believe that the passage of cannabis access laws will play a significant role in addressing the ongoing opioid crisis.

26 Mar 2019

Medicare buy-in option: Alternative approach to achieve wider access to care

Medicare-for-all, a solution that would bring United States healthcare policies more in line with other industrial nations, faces strong opposition and is unlikely to be enacted in the foreseeable future.

26 Mar 2019

Health plans for state employees use Medicare’s hammer on hospital bills

States. They're just as perplexed as the rest of us over the ever-rising cost of health care premiums.

25 Mar 2019

New model more effective in predicting risk of opioid overdose than traditional models

Current approaches to identifying people who are at high risk for overdosing on opioids target many who are not truly at high risk.

22 Mar 2019

Medicare News and Research

Making smarter decisions about where to recover after hospitalization

Can someone tell me what a PBM does?

Lethal plans: When seniors turn to suicide in long-term care

Study finds no statistically significant effect of drug shortages on cancer treatment

PET scans could be used to develop best practices for dementia

UCR study: Surgery associated with higher survival of patients with HER2-positive stage 4 breast cancer

Amyloid PET associated with changes in clinical management of patients with dementia

Fixing surprise medical bill problem shouldn’t fall to consumers, panel told

California hospitals see massive surge in homeless patients

Experts discover new offshoots of old health policy roots

Networks in Medicare Advantage plans are broad and may be getting broader, study finds

Researchers explore rate of billed ACP conversations with hospitalized, older patients

Medicare costs tend to be lower in counties with more forests and shrublands, study finds

CMS ignores federal judge ruling to approve Medicaid work rules in Utah

Federal judge again blocks Medicaid work requirements

New rules will ease patients’ access to electronic medical records, Senate panel says

Impact of legalizing cannabis on the opioid crisis

Medicare buy-in option: Alternative approach to achieve wider access to care

Health plans for state employees use Medicare’s hammer on hospital bills

New model more effective in predicting risk of opioid overdose than traditional models

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