Providers are using artificial intelligence and virtual reality to experience healthcare from a patient’s perspective. AI-based training is allowing physicians to witness family dynamics through the patients’ eyes first hand and helping them improve their interactions with patient during difficult discussions. (The Wall Street Journal)
Walmart and other employers are using data from their employees’ health plans and public records to rate physicians on results. Walmart also is covering travel costs for its employees to see select doctors at top hospitals for surgeries. (The Wall Street Journal)
A recent Lancet Child & Adolescent Health report suggests using BMI alone may under or overestimate disease severity and health risks in obese children. Canadian researchers recommend using the more comprehensive Edmonton Obesity Staging System for Pediatrics to assess risk and inform treatment. (The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health)
A new program through Express Scripts, a pharmacy benefit management unit of Cigna, limits 30-day out-of-pocket insulin costs to $25 per patient. The price ceiling applies to deductibles, copays or coinsurance in non-governmental funded pharmacy plans. Cigna’s 30-day out-of-pocket insulin costs averaged $41.50 in 2018. (Cigna)
Pat Basu has been appointed president and CEO of Cancer Treatment Centers of America Global, Inc. He recently served as a partner at Chicago Pacific Founders Private Equity and Pritzker Group Venture Capital. Basu previously worked at Optum as senior vice president. (Cancer Treatment Centers of America)
Two national surveys show adults’ opinions on vaping compared with regular cigarette smoking changed between 2012 and 2017. Over time, a significantly smaller proportion of adults believed e-cigarettes to be safer than smoking. Many more now feel vaping is as harmful or more harmful than cigarettes. (JAMA)
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently announcedit will hold a public hearing to discuss developing regulations for the use of CBD in food, beverages and other consumer products. The hearing is scheduled for May 31. (U.S. Food and Drug Administration)
The federal government’s proposed interoperability rules may soon eliminate gag clauses. These clauses make sharing even screenshots without real patient data potentially illegal without vendor permission. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ newly proposed rules will help make electronic records safer and more user-friendly. (WBUR)
One in three hospitals ration drugs and four in five pharmacists hoard scarce meds, according to a recent study published in JAMA Internal Medicine. Researchers obtained their data by questioning 719 pharmacists across the U.S. in both large and small hospitals. Thirty-three percent of pharmacists admitted having no hospital procedures in place to address the shortages. (Reuters)
Dueling policy proposals have contributed to a 10 percent drop in the S&P 500 Managed Care index since late February. Unsettled investors fault the wide political division between Democrats’ “Medicare for All” and the U.S. Department of Justice’s support for a judge’s ruling invalidating the Affordable Care Act. (Bloomberg)