About pharma
Early data show Regeneron's antibody cocktail cuts viral load, eases COVID-19 symptoms:”Regeneron Pharmaceuticals said Tuesday that adding REGN-COV2 to standard-of-care reduced viral load as well as the time to symptom alleviation in non-hospitalised patients with COVID-19. The company noted that first data from an ongoing adaptive Phase I/II/III trial of its investigational dual antibody cocktail also showed "positive trends" in reducing medical visits. Regeneron indicated that it plans "rapidly" to discuss these results with regulatory authorities.”
7 former FDA commissioners: The Trump administration is undermining the credibility of the FDA:The headline speaks for itself. Read the article for details.
UnitedHealth has acquired DivvyDose, a competitor to Amazon’s PillPack:”UnitedHealth Group… has acquired DivvyDose, a start-up that helps patients with chronic illness get their medicines delivered in pre-sorted packages, according to a person familiar with the deal.
The deal price was just over $300 million, the person said…
Many of the largest retailers and health plans are snapping up start-ups in the online pharmacy space, which aim to make it easier for patients to take their medicines. Amazon acquired PillPack, a competitor to DivvyDose in 2018, and Walmart recently scooped up medication management technology from CareZone.”
6 recent drug, device recalls: Read not just the specifics but for the types of problems.
About health insurance
As insurers move this week to stop waiving telehealth copays, patients may have to pay more for virtual care: “Starting Oct. 1, several private health insurers will no longer fully pay for virtual visits under certain circumstances…” UnitedHealthcare is particularly singled out for this policy change.
Insurers offered new benefits in response to COVID-19. Where do they stand 6 months later?: In addition to the telemedicine benefits mentioned above are early medication renewals and diagnostic COVID-19 testing.
Reasons for Being Uninsured Among Adults Aged 18–64 in the United States, 2019: From the CDC- The problem of the uninsured was already an important issue before COVID-19. Here is a summary of the CDC’s findings:
“In 2019, 14.5% of adults aged 18–64 were uninsured in the United States.
Among uninsured adults aged 18–64, the most common reason for being currently uninsured was that coverage was not affordable.
The percentage of uninsured adults who were uninsured because coverage was not affordable increased with age, from 66.8% among those aged 18–29 to 80.9% among those aged 50–64.
Hispanic adults (30.4%) were more likely than non-Hispanic white adults (22.3%) to indicate that they were uninsured due to ineligibility.
Men (26.8%) were more likely than women (14.6%) to indicate that they were uninsured because coverage was not needed or wanted.”
About the public’s health
The first presidential debate: 7 healthcare takeaways: This article is a nice, brief summary of the healthcare points in last night’s debate. See, also: Fact-checking the first Trump-Biden presidential debate.
Is Your State Doing Enough Coronavirus Testing?: An update from the NY Times tracking- 33 states are below target for testing.
HHS ad blitz sputters as celebrities back away: “The health department’s $300 million-plus, taxpayer-funded vehicle to boost confidence in President Donald Trump’s response to the pandemic is sputtering. Celebrities are refusing to participate, and staff are arraying against it. Some complain of the unstated aim of helping Trump’s re-election. Others point to an ill-prepared video team and a 22-year-old political appointee who has repeatedly asserted control despite having no public health expertise, according to six people with close knowledge of the campaign and documents related to its operations.”
CDC director overruled on cruise ship ban:”Robert Redfield, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, was overruled when he pushed to extend a ‘no-sail order’ on passenger cruises into next year, according to two sources with direct knowledge of the conversation today in the White House Situation Room…
Vice President Mike Pence, who chaired today's meeting, told Redfield that they would be proceeding with a different plan, according to two task force members.”
About healthcare IT
HHS Announces Funding for Health Information Exchanges to Support Public Health Agencies – STAR HIE Program Funds Five Organizations to Improve Interoperability of Health Data:”The HHS Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) is administering $2.5 million in funding from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Acts (CARES Act) signed by President Trump on March 27, 2020. The funding will support local health information exchanges (HIEs) under the Strengthening the Technical Advancement and Readiness of Public Health Agencies via Health Information Exchange (STAR HIE) Program.
Each of the five recipients will work to improve HIE services so that public health agencies can better access, share, and use health information during public health emergencies. These efforts will also support communities that are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19.”
Read the announcement for more details about the five recipients.
Anthem to pay $39M to state AGs to settle landmark 2015 data breach:”The insurance giant has reached a settlement with a group of State Attorney Generals [sic] over the historic 2015 hack into its computer network.
Anthem will pay a $39.5 million settlement in connection with the state AGs' investigation.”
Trump administration may push back info blocking rule again due to COVID-19 pandemic: “The Trump administration is planning to delay the compliance deadlines for healthcare information blocking and interoperability regulations for a second time due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) sent the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) an interim final rule on September 17 that revises the timelines.”