Second mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine in Primary Series Can Be Extended to 8 Weeks for Some Individuals
February 25th 2022This guidance discusses that individuals 12 years and older can receive the second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine 3-8 weeks after the first. Additionally, the interval for those 18 years and older for Moderna is 4-8 weeks.
Read More
CVS Caremark Chief: Moderate Drug Spend Increase Shows PBM Is Doing Its Job
February 25th 2022In discussing company’s drug spend report, CVS Caremark President Alan Lotvin, M.D., bats away criticism of the pharmacy benefits management (PBM) industry, blames drugmakers for high drug prices, and says independent pharmacies are doing well because of participation in “humongous buying groups.”
Read More
The Rising Trend of Consumer Choice and What Members Want More Out of Their Plans
February 24th 2022Most Health plans and much of healthcare, overall, have had their feet on the gas when it comes to more patient-centered care or consumer choice services. COVID-19 has clearly made it all about the consumer in many ways, but more specifically, in making care much more accessible.
Read More
Replenishing a Depleted Workforce: How to Support Healthcare Workers Through COVID-19
February 24th 2022With the COVID-19 pandemic ongoing and alarming levels of healthcare workers still experiencing stress, burnout, and other negative feelings surrounding their work, it's time to return the favors they've given countless others.
Read More
CDC Study Shows mRNA Vaccination During Pregnancy Protects Infants From COVID-19
February 21st 2022The CDC released the first real world data February 15 in a Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) that infants younger than 6 months were overall 61% less likely to be hospitalized from COVID-19 if their mothers were vaccinated during pregnancy through completion of a 2-dose primary mRNA COVID-19 vaccine series with either Pfizer-BioNTech (Comirnaty) or Moderna (Spikevax).
Read More
Addressing Ransomware in Healthcare
February 19th 2022There have been an alarming increase of ransomware attacks on healthcare systems in 2021—with more than 65 reported ransomware attacks on healthcare organizations in the third quarter alone and two-thirds of organization reporting that they had been targeted by ransomware strikes—a trend that is likely to continue in 2022.
Read More
A Devastating Toll of the Healthcare Affordability Crisis on U.S. Workers is Revealed
February 18th 2022The healthcare affordability crisis is having a detrimental impact on overall financial wellbeing and behaviors. In a recent Centivo survey, nearly three in five (59%) respondents say they had to make financial sacrifices due to significant medical expenses over the past two years.
Read More
Bayer Receives FDA Fast-Track Designation for Next-Generation Anticoagulant
February 18th 2022Asundexian is an oral factor XIa inhibitor currently under phase 2 trials for potential secondary thrombosis prevention in patients with non-cardioembolic ischemic stroke, atrial fibrillation, or recent myocardial infarction.
Read More
The Department of Health and Human Services, through the Health Resources and Services Administration, awarded nearly $55 million to 29 HRSA-funded health centers to increase healthcare access and quality for underserved populations through virtual care such as telehealth, remote patient monitoring, digital patient tools, and health information technology platforms.
Read More
Nurses Are Healthcare’s Frontlines. Now They Are Also Its Inventors.
February 16th 2022Main Line Health in suburban Philadelphia has solicited ideas for inventions from nurses. Barbara Wadsworth, the healthcare system’s chief operating officer with 35 years experience as a nurse, has invented a device for cushioning patient falls in the bathroom.
Read More
FDA Delays Controversial COVID-19 Vaccine Decision for Young Children
February 15th 2022The FDA is postponing its Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee meeting originally scheduled for February 15. Pfizer notified the agency about new data from its ongoing clinical trial.
Read More
Medicare’s Independence at Home Program Posts Disappointing Results
February 14th 2022In the sixth year of Medicare’s Independence at Home Demonstration program, the initiative saved $41 per member per month, an amount that CMS says was not statistically significant and was lower than the savings the program produced in earlier years.
Read More
Johns Hopkins Program Saves Money
February 14th 2022The Community Aging in Place—Advancing Better Living for Elders (CAPABLE) program developed at the university’s nursing school is designed to keep older people who are frail, have chronic medical conditions or can’t complete activities of daily living in their homes by providing care and help from conventional healthcare professionals — nurses, occupational therapists — but also from people who can do minor house repairs.
Read More