Practice Management

November 01, 2006

Recent studies on diabetes control are wrangling for attention with some confirming the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), which suggests that diabetes control declined through the late 1990s, while others indicate that diabetics are maintaining better control.

November 01, 2006

The emergence of pharmacy benefit management companies (PBMs) as major players in drug benefit design and pricing has generated criticism as well as praise. PBMs previously served as drug benefit administrators for employers and other payers. But as sponsors of Medicare Prescription Drug Plans (PDPs), they now assume risk and design coverage and payment options.

November 01, 2006

Recent data supports the success of Prescription Drug Plans (PDPs) under Part D.

November 01, 2006

Medication therapy management (MTM) has long been a part of the pharmacy lexicon and is based on the premise that the right medication in the right dose gets to the right patient. This is to ensure that optimal outcomes are achieved with the highest safety. Numerous examples of pharmacy programs in diverse settings utilize the skills of the pharmacist to optimize drug therapy and improve outcomes and assure safety. The Veterans Administration, academia, health plans, as well as community pharmacies have all been settings where medication management of the patient has occurred.

November 01, 2006

The deadline draws near for the healthcare industry to comply with one of the final regulations mandated by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) in the ongoing industrywide effort to get all arms on the same electronic page.

November 01, 2006

Washington, D.C.-The anticipated shakeout in Part D plans is not occurring this year. In fact, insurers and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) are offering more drug coverage options at lower costs for seniors.

October 01, 2006

National Reports-New Orleans officials recently announced that they believe the city has reached half of its previous population prior to Hurricane Katrina. Some of the city's hospitals have not reopened, and many doctors and allied health professionals have not returned to the city.

October 01, 2006

National Reports-New Orleans officials recently announced that they believe the city has reached half of its previous population prior to Hurricane Katrina. Some of the city's hospitals have not reopened, and many doctors and allied health professionals have not returned to the city.

October 01, 2006

Doctors' handwriting has always been a source of jokes, but it's not so funny when poorly written prescriptions lead to medication errors. Electronic prescriptions have the potential to save lives by negating errors in deciphering prescriptions and alerting physicians to adverse drug interactions before they write a prescription.

September 01, 2006

All health plans and providers that do business with Medicare, Medicaid and other federally sponsored health programs soon will have to adopt information technology standards and quality-measurement tools. The Medicare Modernization Act of 2003 (MMA) requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish standards for electronic prescription drug prescribing by 2008, and this policy is driving broader efforts to build health IT systems.