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NATIONAL REPORTS-For chronically ill patients, increased cost sharing can be associated with lower rates of drug treatment, less adherence among existing users and more frequent d iscontinuation of therapy, according to research published in a recent issue of the Journal of the American Medical Assn.

WASHINGTON, D.C.-As expected, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has proposed a nearly 10% reduction in Medicare physician fees for 2008. The cut reflects the physician payment formula approved by Congress in 1998 that has long been the subject of criticism and debate.

Get your Power Point ready because the annual season of strategic planning is upon us. There are quite a few givens that we know we'll have to work with for 2008 in spite of the fact that the year still has several good months left in it.

A significant barrier to the productivity of physicians and other clinicians is gaining access to the information needed to administer patient care. In many cases, the process of granting access to information starts on the day a caregiver is credentialed with the organization and could drag on up to two months.

First-time generic drug approval: amlodipine/benazepril capsules

A review of agents in late-stage development for the treatment of asthma (July 2007).

In a nested case-control study, the use of low-to-moderate doses of aspirin (ASA) in women was associated with a significant reduction in all-cause mortality.

New research presented at the Digestive Disease Week 2007 regarding the effect of statins on hepatitis C infection.

In the Avoiding Cardiovascular Events Through Combination Therapy in Patients Living with Systolic Hypertension (ACCOMPLISH) study, initial treatment of hypertension with a fixed-dose, dual-drug combination demonstrated "unprecedented" levels of control at 18 months.

In a randomized, controlled trial, telmisartan demonstrated a greater antiproteinuric effect than losartan in hypertensive patients with type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease.

Rituximab, which is currently FDA-approved for the treatment of certain B-cell lymphomas and moderate-to-severe rheumatoid arthritis, demonstrated benefit in the treatment of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) in 2 early-phase experimental trials.

Hemostatic treatment with recombinant activated factor vIIa (rFVIIa) failed to reduce death or disability in a phase 3 trial of patients with intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), according to results presented during the AAN 59th annual meeting.

Immediate initiation of interferon beta-1b in patients with a first event suggestive of multiple sclerosis (MS) significantly reduces the risk of permanent neurologic impairment compared with delayed initiation, according to findings from the BENEFIT study presented during the AAN's 59th annual meeting.

In a large cohort study, aprotinin was not associated with an increased risk of cerebrovascular events or myocardial infarction (MI) in patients undergoing cardiothoracic surgery.

Chronic hepatitis B is a common disease worldwide with significant morbidity and mortality. Early diagnosis is essential but difficult, as most patients with chronic hepatitis B do not have specific symptoms until the symptoms of advanced disease occur. The main goal of therapy is to prevent cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma by suppressing hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA levels. The decision to treat and the choice of therapy require careful consideration of both patient and drug characteristics, as stated in both an expert panel consensus recommendation and the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD) treatment guidelines. Lamivudine, once the mainstay of oral antiviral treatment, has been supplanted by newer agents such as adefovir, entecavir, and telbivudine, which produce less drug resistance overall; these oral agents often require long-term treatment. Pegylated interferon alfa-2a, which has a predefined treatment course but is often poorly tolerated, is now the main option in..

Briefs of FDA actions/approvals of drugs, doses, and indications

First-time generic drug approval: amlodipine/benazepril capsules

The latest FDA action (through July 2007) related to tramadol (Labopharm), SPD465 (Shire), continuous erythropoiesis receptor activator (Roche), fosaprepitant (Merck), ACAM2000 smallpox vaccine (Acambis), repository corticotropin injection (Questcor), rimonabant (Sanofi-Aventis), tamibarotene (Innovive), mycophenolate (Aspreva), romidepsin (Gloucester), aripiprazole (Otsuka/Bristol-Myers Squibb), AMT 011 (Amsterdam Molecular Therapeutics), aminolevulinic acid (Dusa), cyclosporine A (Novagali), and ARD-07 (Ardana)

Temsirolimus is now approved by FDA as an antineoplastic agent for the treatment of advanced renal cell carcinoma.

Rotigotine transdermal system is now approved by FDA as a nonergoline dopamine agonist for the treatment of for the treatment of signs and symptoms of early-stage idiopathic Parkinson disease.

Doxorubicin liposome injection, an anthracycline topoisomerase inhibitor, is approved by FDA in combination with bortezomib for the treatment of multiple myeloma

A new formulation/dosing regimen for levonorgestrel 90 mcg/ethinyl estradiol 20 mcg, a continuous-use combination oral contraceptive approved by FDA for the prevention of pregnancy.

Medical Professionals are taking to heart the old saying that necessity is the mother of invention. Now more than ever, they're putting their knowledge and experience to work in developing IT innovation.

As the concern about the long-term fiscal viability of Medicare continues to grow, so has the recognition that some of the services ordered by physicians-and subsequently billed to Medicare-might not be warranted.

If managed care executives can't get accurate information and honest opinions, they can't make the right decisions, according to Allan Baumgarten, author of annual state managed care reviews and an independent research consultant in policy, finance and local market strategies.

Healthcare organizations must begin leveraging the value of the products they deliver and infuse customer service into every interaction to remain competitive in this changing market.

Washington, D.C.-Despite earlier promises that consumer-directed healthcare (CDHC) programs would reduce healthcare spending by encouraging more efficient purchase of health services, consumer confusion and higher out-of-pocket costs seem to be slowing enthusiasm for these plans.

Ann Arbor, Mich.- In the past, plans provided electronic explanation of benefits to consumers, which reflected a major customer service innovation. Today, innovations involve enabling consumers to connect their physicians and other care providers with a comprehensive information repository enriched by the data managed by the plan-including medical and drug claims, lab results, and health risk information, industry experts say.