Public Policy & Medical Economics

Primary care physicians (PCPs) infrequently use billing codes for prevention and coordination services, despite having eligible patients and providing code-appropriate services to some of those patients, according to a study published online June 28 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.... Read more

New research from Boston Medical Center (BMC) shows that parents desire easy access to financial services in places they trust that build upon their own efforts to create a better economic future for themselves and their children. Medical settings can meet these needs by embedding financial services within clinics and... Read more

While those in health care strive to "do no harm," unfortunately, for many people, the care they receive in a clinic or hospital may be different or inadequate to meet their needs.... Read more

A cross-sectional time-series analysis found that disparities in life expectancy compared to White Americans have increased for Black and Hispanic Americans. The authors report that life expectancy remains lowest for Black Americans in almost every state. The findings are published in Annals of Internal Medicine.... Read more

Medicare could waste up to $605 million per year on the controversial Alzheimer's drug aducanumab if it is eventually approved for widespread use because it is supplied in vials containing fixed doses that may not be appropriate for all patients–resulting in the trashing of large volumes of unused drug, new... Read more

The prevalence of anemia during pregnancy, identified using the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Participant and Program Characteristics (PC) data, increased from 2008 to 2018, according to research published in the June 24 issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Morbidity and... Read more

A new study by a University of South Florida researcher found important revelations that could provide chain-operated nursing homes with crucial implications for operational goals and strategic findings that carry over to other service industries.... Read more

On January 1, 2021, the federal government began requiring U.S. hospitals to maintain clear, accessible online price lists for 300 common services. Yet only 32% of hospital websites sampled a year later were fully compliant with transparency in pricing about knee and hip replacement, according to a study in Clinical... Read more

A World Trade Organization deal on patents is not the intellectual property waiver that campaigners hoped to see.... Read more

For patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD), ranibizumab with a port delivery system (PDS) with one refill costs more than intravitreal ranibizumab or aflibercept injections if about 11 or 10 injections, respectively, or fewer are needed within the first year, according to a study published online June 16 in... Read more

To ensure that all kinds of patients get drugs and devices that are safe and effective for them, they need to be represented in clinical trials, but a new study shows that representation of women in key disease areas continues to lag.... Read more

If health care facilities such as hospitals and nursing homes don't follow patient safety rules set by The Joint Commission (TJC)—the independent organization responsible for accrediting health care facilities—they may lose their accreditation, and consequently, lose patients and millions of dollars every year in funding.... Read more

Patients with low socioeconomic status who have undergone mechanical aortic valve replacement, AVR, have a higher risk of bleeding complications, such as fatal intracranial hemorrhage, shows a study done by researchers at Karolinska Institutet. The study is now published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, JACC.... Read more

Globally, millions of deaths every year can be attributed to bad diets, and these numbers are rising. These deaths are preventable, and one strategy to encourage consumers to make healthier choices is through fiscal policy, such as subsidies or taxes. Examples include taxes on products known to be bad for... Read more

From delayed home improvement projects to the sudden scarcity of baby formula, supply chain shortages caused or exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic have become a common answer to why we currently cannot have something right away and at a sensible price. However, the baby formula shortage is just the most... Read more