Managed Care Cast

Center for HOPE: Addressing Health Needs and Cancer Disparities Among Underserved Populations by Managed Care Cast

Lowering Costs And Readmission Rates Through a Meal Delivery Program by Managed Care Cast

This Week In Managed Care—Medicare Part A is Running Out and Other Health News by Managed Care Cast

Health literacy in the United States is low to begin with, and health financial literacy is even lower. The changing health insurance system is partly to blame. A few decades ago, health insurance covered everything. Now, patients have a lot more financial responsibility, and they don’t always understand it. In cancer, health financial literacy is particularly important since treatment can be so costly.

This episode of Managed Care Cast includes conversations with a few experts in the field: Yousuf Zafar, MD, MHS, of the Duke Cancer Institute; Clara Lambert, BBA, OPN-CG, chair of the Association of Community Cancer Centers Financial Advocacy Network Advisory Committee; Todd Yezefski, MD, senior fellow in the Clinical Research Division at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and Division of Medical Oncology at the University of Washington; and Michele McCourt, senior director of the CancerCare Co-Payment Assistance Foundation.

Read more:

A Descriptive Study of Patients Receiving Foundational Financial Assistance Through Local Specialty Pharmacies: www.ajmc.com/journals/supplement/2018/the-patient-assistance-safety-net-how-many-need-help-how-many-are-helped/a-descriptive-study-of-patients-receiving-foundational-financial-assistance-through-local-specialty-pharmacies

Impact of Trained Oncology Financial Navigators on Patient Out-of-Pocket Spending: www.ajmc.com/journals/supplement/2018/the-patient-assistance-safety-net-how-many-need-help-how-many-are-helped/impact-of-trained-oncology-financial-navigators-on-patient-outofpocket-spending

Policy Improvement Areas to Reduce Financial Hardship: www.ajmc.com/conferences/pan-2018/policy-improvement-areas-to-reduce-financial-hardship

Addressing Financial Concerns at the Outset to Improve Patient Outcomes: www.ajmc.com/conferences/pan-2018/addressing-financial-concerns-at-the-outset-to-improve-patient-outcomes

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 stories include Senator Bill Cassidy's new plan to lower healthcare costs; policy recommendations from the American Diabetes Association on how to lower insulin prices; and coverage from the American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting.

Read more about the stories in this podcast:

Senator Cassidy Unveils Proposal to Lower Healthcare Costs: www.ajmc.com/newsroom/senator-cassidy-unveils-proposal-to-lower-healthcare-costs

ADA Issues Recommendations Designed to Fix Insulin Pricing, Accessibility Crisis: http://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/ada-issues-recommendations-designed-to-fix-insulin-pricing-accessibility-crisis

Persephone Trial: Cutting Trastuzumab Duration by Half Safer, Efficacious in HER2-Positive Breast Cancer: http://www.ajmc.com/conferences/asco-2018/persephone-trial-cutting-trastuzumab-duration-by-half-safer-efficacious-in-her2positive-breast-cancer-

Remote Monitoring Can Reduce Radiation-Related Symptoms in Head and Neck Cancer: http://www.ajmc.com/conferences/asco-2018/remote-monitoring-can-reduce-radiationrelated-symptoms-in-head-and-neck-cancer

2018 American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting: http://www.ajmc.com/conferences/asco-2018

Pembrolizumab Improved OS, PFS as First-Line Treatment in NSCLC: http://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/pembrolizumab-improved-os-pfs-as-firstline-treatment-in-nsclc

What We're Reading: WellCare–Meridian Deal; Virginia Set to Expand Medicaid; High Court Rebuffs Planned Parenthood: http://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/what-were-reading-wellcarendashmeridian-deal-virginia-set-to-expand-medicaid-high-court-rebuffs-planned-parenthood

Seema S. Sonnad Emerging Leader in Managed Care Research Award: http://www.ajmc.com/about/ajmc/sss-elmcr-award

With healthcare costs in the United States rising, employers have been trying to find a way to get a handle on these costs by improving employee health and well-being. Workplace wellness programs have been around for decades, but they received a boost in 2010 with the Affordable Care Act allowing companies to offer financial incentives to get employees to participate in the programs.

However, the research on these wellness programs has been mixed, to say the least, with more recent research finding that these programs don’t really work. But more than just the unclear health benefits of these programs, there are real data and privacy concerns for employees. In this podcast, Al Lewis, a famed opponent of workplace wellness programs, provides insight on just why he’s so confident these programs don’t work, and Deborah Peel, MD, outlines her privacy concerns in the age of data sharing.

Read more:

Do Wellness Outcomes Reports Systematically and Dramatically Overstate Savings? www.ajmc.com/contributor/al-lewis-jd/2017/01/do-wellness-outcomes-reports-systematically-and-dramatically-overstate-savings

Workplace Wellness Can Be Hazardous to Your Health: www.ajmc.com/contributor/al-lewis-jd/2018/05/workplace-wellness-can-be-hazardous-to-your-health

NBER's Invalidation of Wellness: Behind the Headlines: www.ajmc.com/contributor/al-lewis-jd/2018/03/nbers-invalidation-of-wellness-behind-the-headlines

Boosting Workplace Wellness Programs With Financial Incentives: www.ajmc.com/journals/issue/2017/2017-vol23-n10/boosting-workplace-wellness-programs-with-financial-incentives

​​​​​​​Employer-Sponsored Wellness Programs Attract Already Fit and Healthy Individuals: www.ajmc.com/newsroom/employersponsored-wellness-programs-attract-already-fit-and-healthy-individuals

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 stories include the finding that new guidelines will mean the number of people with hypertension will soar; research finds that most diabetes apps don’t lower glycated hemoglobin; and a health plan announced its plan to fight housing instability.

Read more about the stories in this podcast:

Under 2017 Guideline, More Than 105 Million Americans Have Hypertension: www.ajmc.com/focus-of-the-week/under-2017-guideline-over-105-million-americans-have-hypertension

AHRQ Finds Very Few Diabetes Apps Improve A1C Levels: www.ajmc.com/newsroom/ahrq-finds-very-few-diabetes-apps-improve-a1c-levels

Kaiser Permanente Investing $200 Million to Address Housing Instability, Improve Health: www.ajmc.com/newsroom/kaiser-permanente-investing-200-million-to-adress-housing-instability-improve-health

FDA Expands Indication for PrEP to Reduce Risk of HIV in Adolescents: www.ajmc.com/newsroom/fda-expands-indication-for-prep-to-reduce-risk-of-hiv-in-adolescents

Rucaparib May Have Potential Clinical Benefit for Advanced Pancreatic Cancer: www.ajmc.com/newsroom/rucaparib-may-have-potential-clinical-benefit-for-advanced-pancreatic-cancer

What Is and Is Not in Trump's Drug Pricing Plan: An Interview With Dr Michael Chernew: www.ajmc.com/managed-care-cast/what-is-and-is-not-in-trumps-drug-pricing-plan-an-interview-with-dr-michael-chernew

Creators of President Donald Trump’s blueprint to control drug prices, American Patients First, say it represents real reform. Critics see a pulled punch to the pharmaceutical industry.

Mary Caffrey, the managing editor of The American Journal of Managed Care’s Evidence-Based series, spoke with Harvard healthcare economist Michael E. Chernew, PhD, who is the co-editor in chief of AJMC, to discuss elements of the Trump administration proposal to control drug prices. Chernew is also a former vice chair of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission.

Read more:

Trump Offers Blueprint to Drive Down Prescription Drug Prices; Targets Rebates, "Middlemen": www.ajmc.com/newsroom/-trump-offers-blueprint-to-drive-down-prescription-drug-prices-targets-rebates-middlemen

Azar Stumps for Plan to Hold Down Prescription Drug Costs: www.ajmc.com/focus-of-the-week/azar-stumps-for-plan-to-hold-down-prescription-drug-costs

Trump Targets Drug Prices, Right-to-Try in State of the Union: www.ajmc.com/newsroom/trump-targets-drug-prices-righttotry-in-state-of-the-union

​​​​​​​Will Trump Take Steps to Rein in Drug Prices?: www.ajmc.com/focus-of-the-week/will-trump-take-steps-to-rein-in-drug-prices

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 stories included President Donald Trump's plan to drive down drug prices; the FDA approved the first biosimilar of the year; a study found rapid uptake of PD-1 agents after FDA approval.

Read more about the stories in this podcast:

Trump Offers Blueprint to Drive Down Prescription Drug Prices; Targets Rebates, "Middlemen": www.ajmc.com/newsroom/-trump-offers-blueprint-to-drive-down-prescription-drug-prices-targets-rebates-middlemen

Azar Stumps for Plan to Hold Down Prescription Drug Costs: www.ajmc.com/focus-of-the-week/azar-stumps-for-plan-to-hold-down-prescription-drug-costs

FDA Approves Epoetin Alfa Biosimilar for Anemia: www.ajmc.com/newsroom/fda-approves-epoetin-alfa-biosimilar-for-anemia

Study Finds Rapid Uptake of Anti–PD-1 Agents Following FDA Approval: www.ajmc.com/newsroom/study-finds-rapid-uptake-of-anti8211pd1-agents-following-fda-approval

Researcher Details Microbiome Mysteries Connecting the Gut, Brain: www.ajmc.com/conferences/sobp-2018/researcher-details-microbiome-mysteries-connecting-the-gut-brain

Society of Biological Psychiatry 73rd Annual Scientific Convention: www.ajmc.com/conferences/sobp-2018

American Thoracic Society 2018 International Conference: www.ajmc.com/conferences/ats-2018

ISPOR Annual Conference: http://www.ajmc.com/conferences/ispor-2018

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

The Scope of Physician Burnout: Symptoms, Impacts, and Efforts to Address It by Managed Care Cast