Every week, The American Journal of Managed Care® (AJMC®) recaps the top managed care news of the week, and you can now listen to it on our podcast, Managed Care Cast.

This week, the top managed care news included CDC clarifying its opioid guidelines for chronic pain; pharmacy benefit managers testifying before a Senate committee; Sanofi expanding its insulin savings program starting in June.

Read more about the stories in this podcast:

Oncologists, Hematologists Welcome CDC Clarification on Opioid Therapy for Chronic Pain: https://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/oncologists-hematologists-welcome-cdc-clarification-on-opioid-therapy-for-chronic-pain

PBM Executives Tout Value Before Senate Finance Committee: https://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/pbm-executives-tout-value-before-senate-finance-committee

Sanofi Offer Sets Monthly Price of $99 for Insulin Supply: https://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/sanofi-offers-set-monthly-price-of-99-for-insulin-supply

Doctors More Likely to Overprescribe Antibiotics for Children During Telemedicine Visits: https://www.ajmc.com/focus-of-the-week/doctors-more-likely-to-overprescribe-antibiotics-for-children-during-telemedicine-visits

Diabetes Management: Advances in Treatment and Management to Reduce Cost and Improve Outcomes: https://www.ajmc.com/meetings/ivbm-la-2019-04-17

As a former chief operating officer for a national diabetes supply, education, and support company, Tom Milam created programs for people with diabetes that served more than 100,000 members nationwide. His experience also includes a federal appointment providing advisory service to Medicare. His extensive experience and knowledge within the diabetes space allows Tom to offer us an expert view of CMS’ Competitive Bidding Program.

Every week, The American Journal of Managed Care® (AJMC®) recaps the top managed care news of the week, and you can now listen to it on our podcast, Managed Care Cast.

This week, the top managed care news included courts rejecting multiple health initiatives from the Trump administration; Congress heard more about rising insulin prices; a new agreement seeks standards for reporting social determinants of health.

Read more about the stories in this podcast:

Federal Judge Strikes Down Medicaid Work Rules in Kentucky, Arkansas: https://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/federal-judge-strikes-down-medicaid-work-rules-in-kentucky-arkansas

Judge Rules Trump's DOL Tried to Create "End Run" Around ACA With Association Health Plans: https://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/judge-rules-trumps-dol-tried-to-create-end-run-around-aca-with-association-health-plans

Healthcare Availability, Affordability Most Pressing Worry, Gallup Poll Says: https://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/healthcare-availability-affordability-most-pressing-worry-gallup-poll-says

House Subcommittee Hears About Impact of Rising Insulin Prices: https://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/house-subcommittee-hears-about-impact-of-rising-insulin-prices

House Subcommittee Hears Insulin Concerns as FDA Advances Biosimilar Transition: https://www.centerforbiosimilars.com/news/house-subcommittee-hears-insulin-concerns-as-fda-advances-biosimilar-transition

Senate Committee Discusses the Burden of High Drug Prices and Potential Solutions: https://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/senate-committee-discusses-the-burden-of-high-drug-prices-and-potential-solutions

AMA, UnitedHealthcare Announce Collaboration to Better Identify, Address SDOH Through Data: https://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/ama-unitedhealthcare-announce-collaboration-to-better-identify-address-sdoh-through-data

Louisiana Chooses Asegua to Partner for "Netflix" Subscription Model for HCV Treatment: https://www.ajmc.com/focus-of-the-week/louisiana-chooses-asegua-to-partner-for-netflix-subscription-model-for-hcv-treatment

Evidence-Based Diabetes Management—March 2019: https://www.ajmc.com/journals/evidence-based-diabetes-management/2019/march-2019

Three Years After Advocates Report Flaws, Medicare Diabetes Test Strip Bidding Program Nears Collapse: https://www.ajmc.com/journals/evidence-based-diabetes-management/2019/march-2019/three-years-after-advocates-report-flaws-medicare-diabetes-test-strip-bidding-program-nears-collapse

From the Editor-in-Chief: Halt the Glucose Test Strip Bidding Program Until It Can Be Fixed: https://www.ajmc.com/journals/evidence-based-diabetes-management/2019/march-2019/from-the-editorinchief-halt-the-glucose-test-strip-bidding-program-until-it-can-be-fixed

Dr. Elizabeth Mynatt, the executive director of the Institute for People and Technology and a professor in the College of Computing at the Georgia Institute of Technology discusses an app she and her team developed called MyPath that uses artificial intelligence to help guide a patient’s cancer journey.

Every week, The American Journal of Managed Care® (AJMC®) recaps the top managed care news of the week, and you can now listen to it on our podcast, Managed Care Cast.

This week, the top managed care news included the Department of Justice siding with a federal judge in striking down the Affordable Care Act; FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, MD, calling for stricter oversight of electronic health records; and a study finding that healthy eating in Medicare and Medicaid is cost effective.

Read more about the stories in this podcast:

DOJ Reverses Course, Sides With Judge Striking Down ACA: https://www.ajmc.com/focus-of-the-week/doj-reverses-course-sides-with-judge-striking-down-aca

House Democrats Unveil Bill Aimed at Shoring Up ACA Patient Protections, Affordability: https://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/house-democrats-unveil-bill-aimed-at-shoring-up-aca-patient-protections-affordability

What We're Reading: EHR Oversight; Medicaid Expansion and CRC; Arkansas Work Requirements: https://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/what-were-reading-ehr-oversight-medicaid-expansion-and-crc-arkansas-work-requirements

In Scott Gottlieb's Final Weeks as FDA Commissioner, Tying Up Loose Ends: https://www.ajmc.com/focus-of-the-week/in-scott-gottliebs-final-weeks-as-fda-commissioner-tying-up-loose-ends

Incentivizing Healthy Eating in Medicare, Medicaid Is Cost Effective, Study Finds: https://www.ajmc.com/focus-of-the-week/incentivizing-healthy-eating-in-medicare-medicaid-is-cost-effective-study-finds

PD-L1 Testing "Name of the Game" in First-Line Treatment of NSCLC: https://www.ajmc.com/conferences/nccn-2019/pdl1-testing-name-of-the-game-in-firstline-treatment-of-nsclc

National Comprehensive Cancer Network Annual Conference 2019: https://www.ajmc.com/conferences/nccn-2019

Keeping an Eye on Increasing Competition in the Specialty Drug Pipeline: https://www.ajmc.com/conferences/amcp-2019/keeping-an-eye-on-increasing-competition-in-the-specialty-drug-pipeline

The Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy 2019: https://www.ajmc.com/conferences/amcp-2019

In this week’s bonus podcast, we have a conversation from the Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC) 45th Annual Meeting & Cancer Center Business Summit, which was held March 21-22 in Washington, DC. The meeting marked the end of Tom Gallo’s year as president and the beginning of the yearlong presidency of Ali McBride, PharmD.

At the meeting, Gallo and McBride sat down to discuss how ACCC’s members feel about the state of cancer delivery, as well as recent trends that were highlighted in an annual report and their presidential themes.

Related articles:

Envisioning the Future of Cancer Care: https://www.ajmc.com/conferences/accc-2019/envisioning-the-future-of-cancer-care

Digital Health Lessons From Around the World: https://www.ajmc.com/conferences/accc-2019/digital-health-lessons-from-around-the-world

Different Vantage Points, but Similar Goals of High-Value Care, Patient Satisfaction: https://www.ajmc.com/conferences/accc-2019/different-vantage-points-but-similar-goals-of-highvalue-care-patient-satisfaction

ACCC 2019: On Location Interviews, Day 1: https://www.ajmc.com/onlocation/2019/accc-2019--on-location-interviews

ACCC 2019: On Location Interviews, Day 2: https://www.ajmc.com/onlocation/2019/accc-2019-on-location-interviews-day-2

The presence of loneliness among older patients is significant and has gained the attention of healthcare stakeholders, with some warning that it could become and epidemic. Growing research has pointed to loneliness as a risk factor for adverse health outcomes, and stakeholders around the coutnry have taken on the challenge of addressing the issue. In 2017, CareMore Health introduced their Togetherness Program to focus on these patients’ psychological, social, and physical health. 

During this podcast, we sit down with Sachin Jain, MD, president of CareMore Health, to find out more about the health effects of loneliness and how their togetherness program is impacting seniors.

Related articles:

Efforts to Target Loneliness Reap Health Benefits, CareMore Finds: https://www.ajmc.com/focus-of-the-week/efforts-to-target-loneliness-reap-health-benefits-caremore-finds

CareMore's Prescription for Loneliness Removes Barriers to Togetherness: https://www.ajmc.com/focus-of-the-week/caremores-prescription-for-loneliness-removes-barriers-to-togetherness

CareMore's Togetherness Program Addresses a Symptom of Living With Chronic Illness: Loneliness: https://www.ajmc.com/journals/evidence-based-oncology/2018/august-2018/caremores-togetherness-program-addresses-a-symptom-of-living-with-chronic-illness-loneliness

Every week, The American Journal of Managed Care® recaps the top managed care news of the week, and you can now listen to it on our podcast, Managed Care Cast.

This week, the top managed care news included new primary prevention guidelines that could increase the use of some diabetes drugs; the FDA expanded criteria for which patients can take part in clinical trials; a summit on value-based insurance design showed the need for tough conversations with stakeholders.

Read more about the stories in this podcast:

Cardiovascular Prevention Guidelines Call for Less Aspirin, More SGLT2s, GLP-1s for Type 2 Diabetes: https://www.ajmc.com/conferences/acc-2019/cardiovascular-prevention-guidelines-call-for-less-aspirin-more-sglt2s-glp-1s-for-type-2-diabetes

Giant Study Suggests Apple Watch Accurately Catches Atrial Fibrillation: https://www.ajmc.com/conferences/acc-2019/giant-study-suggests-apple-watch-accurately-catches-afib

DECLARE: Dapagliflozin Offers Benefits for Diabetes Patients With Heart Failure: https://www.ajmc.com/conferences/acc-2019/declare-dapagliflozin-offers-benefits-for-diabetes-patients-with-heart-failure

Amarin's High-Dose Fish Oil Pill Cuts Total CV Event Risk 30% in Study: https://www.ajmc.com/conferences/acc-2019/amarins-highdose-fish-oil-pill-cuts-total-cv-event-risk-30-in-study

American College of Cardiology 2019: https://www.ajmc.com/conferences/acc-2019

FDA Expands Patient Inclusion Criteria for Cancer Clinical Trials: https://www.ajmc.com/focus-of-the-week/fda-expands-patient-inclusion-criteria-for-cancer-clinical-trials-

Dr Janice Mehnert Discusses Including Patients With Comorbidities in Cancer Clinical Trials: https://www.ajmc.com/interviews/dr-janice-mehnert-discusses-including-patients-with-comorbidities-in-cancer-clinical-trials

Reducing Low-Value Care May Mean Tough Conversations With Stakeholders: https://www.ajmc.com/conferences/vbid-summit-2019/reducing-lowvalue-care-may-mean-tough-conversations-with-stakeholders

V-BID Summit 2019: https://www.ajmc.com/conferences/vbid-summit-2019

Participation in Community Groups Found to Increase Awareness of PrEP: https://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/participation-in-community-groups-found-to-increase-awareness-of-prep

Newsletter Signup: https://www.ajmc.com/email-profile

ACCC Annual Meeting & Cancer Center Business Summit: https://www.ajmc.com/conferences/accc-2019

National Comprehensive Cancer Network Annual Conference 2019: https://www.ajmc.com/conferences/nccn-2019

Ensuring Access to Generic Medications by Managed Care Cast

Every week, The American Journal of Managed Care® (AJMC®) recaps the top managed care news of the week, and you can now listen to it on our podcast, Managed Care Cast.

This week, the top managed care news included the 2020 budget plan proposing a mix of healthcare spending cuts and increases; the FDA approving the first immunotherapy regimen for breast cancer; and researchers uncovering how sodium glucose co-transporter-2 inhibitors work.

Read more about the stories in this podcast:

Proposed 2020 White House Budget Includes Block Grants, Medicaid Work Rules, Increased HIV Funding: https://www.ajmc.com/focus-of-the-week/proposed-2020-white-house-budget-includes-block-grants-medicaid-work-rules-increased-hiv-funding

FDA Approves Atezolizumab Combination for Triple-Negative Breast Cancer: https://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/fda-approves-atezolizumab-combination-for-triplenegative-breast-cancer

SGLT2 Inhibitors Work by Inducing Fasting State, Joslin Center Scientist Says: https://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/sglt2-inhibitors-work-by-inducing-fasting-state-joslin-center-scientist-says

e-Cigarettes Boost Heart Attack Risk, Emotional Stress, Findings Show: https://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/ecigarettes-boost-heart-attack-risk-emotional-stress-findings-show