News

A Hepatitis C patient is suing Blue Cross because the payer will not cover her Harvoni medication. According to the complaint, filed this week in Los Angeles Superior Court by Shernoff Bidart Echeverria Bentley LLP, Blue Cross has arbitrarily chosen to give the treatment only to those patients suffering from the worst stages of liver damage.

The FDA is warning that the type 2 diabetes medicines canagliflozin, dapagliflozin, and empagliflozin may lead to ketoacidosis, a serious condition where the body produces high levels of blood acids called ketones that may require hospitalization.

A new health rankings report indicates in which states health plans and health executives encounter the most challenges when caring for seniors.

Medicare beneficiaries with diabetes, high blood pressure or high cholesterol may achieve better health outcomes when using pharmacies that are part of performance-based networks, according to early results of a pay-for-performance program conducted by SCAN Health Plan and Express Scripts.

The population of Americans who spend more than $50,000 per year on prescription drugs grew 63% in 2014, largely driven by hepatitis C and cancer therapies, according to an Express Scripts report.

As managed care and hospital organizations increasingly take on the risk for managing patient populations, it is critical to improve patient engagement and awareness of patient care opportunities beyond the acute care setting, according to the results of a new survey.

Global pharmaceutical manufactures need to invest billions of dollars to prevent antibiotic-resistant “superbugs”, according to Jim O’Neill, an economist leading a UK government review into antimicrobial resistance.

FDA has approved sumatriptan and naproxen sodium (Treximet, Pernix Therapeutics) for the treatment of migraines in pediatric patients.

Optum, the UnitedHealthcare subsidiary appointed to fix HealthCare.gov after its troubled launch, will not rebid for a $40 billion contract.

FDA has approved moxifloxacin (Avelox) for the treatment of patients with plague. Avelox has been approved under the Animal Efficacy Rule, because it was not ethical to conduct human trials.

A large international study, published in Nature Genetics, found that the H58 “superbug” version, which is resistant to multiple types of antibiotics, is now a major global health threat affecting many countries, including Asia and Africa, where typhoid is endemic.

Only 5% of Medicaid-enrolled Americans account for 50% of total Medicaid spending, and the top 1% account for almost 25% of spending, according to a new study from the Government Accountability Office.

Two new polls show majority support for the Affordable Care Act (ACA) including the health insurance tax subsidies now under review by the Supreme Court.

Nearly half of American hospitals aren’t taking key steps to prevent Clostridium difficile infection-despite strong evidence that such steps work, according to a new study published online in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology.

Even though e-cigarette smoking is on the rise, wellness programs are not giving smoking cessation nearly enough attention or resources, according to a new HealthMine survey.

Hepatitis C infections are soaring in 4 states because of high rates of opioid abuse, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The non-profit Biosimilars Forum was launched in May 2015 to offer credible, sustained, and unbiased education about biosimilars. The founding members of the Biosimilars Forum represent the majority of companies with the most significant US biosimilars development portfolios.

Even though cancer screenings have become more available because of the Affordable Care Act, the percentage of adults getting certain cancer screenings has not increased significantly since 2010.

Oral therapies are revolutionizing the treatment paradigm of multiple sclerosis (MS), offering enhanced dosing and patient compliance, according to new analysis. Frost & Sullivan’s A Product and Pipeline Analysis of the Multiple Sclerosis Therapeutics Market found that recent therapeutic advancements aim at improving the tolerability of existing products, specifically for interferon beta and glatiramer acetate. Developing anti-inflammatory medications has also been a key area of focus.

Antibiotic resistance has grown at an alarming rate over the last few decades. To prevent a post-antibiotic era in which common infections could become lethal, an estimated 20 novel families of antibiotics must be developed in the next 50 years. Political groups in both the U.S. and Europe are each working to promote new development, but there are concerns the results may not come in time.

New data from a fairly sizable, open-label follow-up trial, presented at the 2015 American Transplant Congress (ATC) in Philadelphia, showed a statistically significant 43% relative risk reduction of death or transplant failure in patients receiving the belatacept (Nulojix) FDA-approved dosing regimen.

FDA’s approval of generic versions of Abilify (aripiprazole), an antipsychotic drug approved to treat schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, from 4 different generic manufacturers, has industry insiders pondering the generic drug market.

Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) patients have many unmet healthcare needs and support solutions need to be implemented, according to a study published in the May, 2015 issue of the Journal of Advanced Nursing.

A new healthcare cost transparency law in New York State created to protect consumers requires insurers to publish clear information about health plan rules.

Naloxone is a lifesaving antidote for reversing opioid overdose symptoms and the pharmacist’s role has quickly expanded in managing this population. NALOXONE ACCESS: A Practical Guideline for Pharmacists is designed to educate pharmacists on naloxone use and administration with the goal of providing increased patient access to this life-saving medication for opioid overdose.

An innovative payment model created as a pilot project by the Affordable Care Act generated more than $384 million in savings for Medicare in its first two years, according to an independent evaluation report conducted by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Total global spending on oncology medicines – including therapeutic treatments and supportive care – reached the $100 billion threshold in 2014, while spending on oncology drugs in the U.S. increased 5.3 percent compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) in 2014 to reach $42.4 billion, according to a new report.

Wellness programs are a strategy to control rising healthcare costs, but according to a recent survey, many wellness incentives are meaningless to participants.