About health insurance
Biden: 1M sign up for health care during special enrollment: “President Joe Biden said Tuesday that 1 million Americans had signed up for health insurance under ‘Obamacare’ during a special enrollment period for those needing coverage during the coronavirus pandemic.
Biden reopened the HealthCare.gov insurance markets in February for a special six-month sign-up opportunity that will go through Aug. 15. His coronavirus relief package also boosted taxpayer subsidies, making the coverage a much better deal for new and current customers.”
Neidorff says Centene-Magellan deal nearing finish line: “Centene Corporation CEO Michael Neidorff said the insurer is on track to close its acquisition of Magellan Health in short order.
Neidorff said during an appearance at CNBC's Healthy Returns Summit on Tuesday that the $2.2 billion deal has cleared review from the Department of Justice and is awaiting approval in two more states soon.”
Adverse Selection in Medicaid: Evidence from Discontinuous Program Rules: “In this paper, we exploit a discontinuous premium increase at the federal poverty level in Michigan’s Medicaid expansion program to test low-income individuals’ sensitivity to premiums using linked enrollment and claims data. At the cutoff, average premiums increase by $3.15 and the probability of disenrollment increases by 2.3 percentage points. Increased disenrollment occurs among those with fewer documented medical needs at baseline, but not among those with greater medical needs. These results suggest healthier low-income individuals may be sensitive to even modest health insurance premiums, and that premiums may induce adverse selection in Medicaid plans.”
Nothing new as far as behavioral outcomes; the study does show exquisite quantitative sensitivity.
32 hospitals sue HHS over reimbursement for low-income patients: “Thirty-two hospitals that operate in states that didn't expand Medicaid sued HHS in an attempt to adjust their Medicare disproportionate share hospital payments, according to court documents.
The plaintiff hospitals, in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Texas, South Carolina, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Missouri, argue that the "collateral refusal" to recognize these patients as eligible for Medicaid made them receive far less than expansion states that treated an equivalent proportion of low-income patients.”
About Covid-19
WHO and global leaders could have averted Covid calamity, experts say: “A swift international response could have stopped the 2019 Covid-19 outbreak in China becoming a global catastrophe in 2020, according to a scathing report on the response of world leaders and the World Health Organization to the pandemic. An expert review by the Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response, commissioned by the WHO, sets out lessons for preventing future pandemics and makes dozens of recommendations for reform, including more surveillance power for the WHO.”
To summarize from the report [emphases are in the original]:
”There is a need for:
Stronger leadership and better coordination at national,
regional and international level, including a more focused and independent WHO, a Pandemic Treaty, and a senior Global Health Threats Council.investment in preparedness now, and not when the next crisis hits, more accurate measurement of it, and accountability mechanisms to spur action;
an improved system for surveillance and alert at a speed that can combat viruses like SARS-CoV-2, and authority given to WHO to publish information and to dispatch expert missions immediately;
a pre-negotiated platform able to produce vaccines, diagnostics, therapeutics and supplies and secure their rapid and equitable delivery as essential global common goods;
access to financial resources, both for investments in preparedness and to be able to inject funds immediately at the onset of a potential pandemic.”
Uber, Lyft to Provide Free Rides to Covid-19 Vaccine Sites Until July 4: “Ride-sharing companies Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc. will make all rides to and from vaccination sites free until July 4 under a new partnership with the White House.”
States won't get Johnson & Johnson vaccines next week: “White House officials told governors on a private call Tuesday that new supply of the J&J shot wasn't immediately available for ordering, POLITICO has learned. It wasn’t immediately clear whether the federal government would ship out J&J doses through federal distribution channels, such as those for pharmacy chains and community health centers.”
Biden health official says COVID-19 vaccine booster shots will be free: “David Kessler, the chief science officer for the White House's COVID-19 response team, told senators at a hearing on Tuesday that the federal government has funding to purchase the next round of vaccines, so individuals won't have to pay.”
WHO labels a Covid strain in India as a ‘variant of concern’ — here’s what we know: “The World Health Organization named the B.1.617 strain as one of the ‘variants of concern’ …
Early studies that have yet to be peer reviewed suggest increased transmissibility and reduced neutralization, the UN health agency said.”
New Vaccine Blocks COVID-19 and Variants, Plus Other Coronaviruses: “A potential new vaccine developed by members of the Duke Human Vaccine Institute has proven effective in protecting monkeys and mice from a variety of coronavirus infections -- including SARS-CoV-2 as well as the original SARS-CoV-1 and related bat coronaviruses that could potentially cause the next pandemic.
The new vaccine, called a pan-coronavirus vaccine, triggers neutralizing antibodies via a nanoparticle. The nanoparticle is composed of the coronavirus part that allows it to bind to the body’s cell receptors, and is formulated with a chemical booster called an adjuvant. Success in primates is highly relevant to humans.”
About healthcare quality and safety
Top 10 Patient Safety Concerns 2021: From ECRI. Racial and ethnic disparities top this year’s list. The items and order vary from year to year. For example, in 2018, diagnostic errors headed the list and disparities was not mentioned.
About pharma
Rescission of Trump-Era Insulin, Epinephrine Rule Moves Forward: “The HHS is proposing to a rescind a Trump administration drug rule that required community health centers to pass on all their insulin and epinephrine discount savings to patients.
The proposal to retract the rule is under review at the White House Office of Management and Budget. Once it clears, the Department of Health and Human Services can publish it at any time.”
FTC Distributes Nearly $60 Million From Suboxone Settlements: “The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is mailing almost $60 million to 51,875 victims of alleged schemes by Reckitt Benckiser and its former subsidiary Indivior to block generic competitors from producing lower-cost versions of the opioid abuse medication Suboxone (buprenorphine-naloxone).
The FTC reached a $50 million-settlement with Reckitt Benckiser in July 2019 and a $10 million-settlement with Indivior in July 2020.”
CVS offering same-day pharmacy delivery through CarePass program: “CarePass members can now receive eligible prescriptions within hours through new free same-day deliver options, CVS Pharmacy said in an announcement. Program participants can also add other items to their prescription delivery orders, including vitamins, first aid, pain relief and grocery, CVS said.
Same-day delivery in partnership with Shipt is currently available at 8,000 CVS stores across 47 states.”
Pelosi drug price plan threatened by centrist defections: “House Democrats’ push to tack a sweeping drug price negotiation bill to President Joe Biden’s infrastructure package was always going to face a fight in the evenly divided Senate. But the legislation is also hitting troubled waters in the House.
At least 10 caucus moderates are signaling opposition to Democrats’ drug pricing negotiation bill — more than enough to potentially force House Speaker Nancy Pelosi into dropping the reforms from infrastructure legislation Democrats hope to pass along party lines. Pelosi can only spare two Democratic defections on partisan legislation because of the party’s slim House majority.”
FDA Approves First T Cell Progenitor to Enter Human Trials: “The FDA has approved Smart Immune’s investigational new drug (IND) application for ProTcell, a T cell progenitor-based biotherapy candidate, marking the first time the agency has cleared a product of its kind to enter clinical trials.
Paris, France-based Smart Immune said ProTcell will enter a U.S. phase 1/2 trial by fall, where it will be evaluated as a treatment for acute lymphocytic leukemia and acute myelocytic leukemia.”
Sanofi hit with charges of 'widespread' email deletion in legal saga stemming from Zantac recalls: “In a new filing from lawyers representing more than 70,000 former patients, Sanofi is accused of "widespread" destruction of employee emails tied to its 2019 recall of the drug, which preceded the FDA's outright ban in 2020. The company and many others face lawsuits alleging they concealed cancer risks from the drug, and the new filing outlines alleged roadblocks the drugmakers have put up to delay the legal process, the plaintiffs' lawyers say.”
How Big Pharma Finds Sick Users on Facebook: “The social media giant, through its power to target users based on their interests, is especially attractive to pharmaceutical companies looking to sell drugs to potential patients. The Washington Post reported last year that health and pharmaceutical companies spent almost $1 billion on just Facebook mobile ads in 2019. The draw? Unlike a traditional TV or radio ad, Facebook’s ad categories help those companies target their drug ads at users who likely suffer from a specific illness the drug treats.”
About healthcare professionals
2021 SURVEY OF FINAL-YEAR MEDICAL RESIDENTS: Among the highlights:
—”86% of final-year residents received 11 or more recruitment offers during their training, suggesting job opportunities are still available for most medical residents.” But the number of offers is down.
—”Geographic location is the most important factor residents consider when examining a job opportunity, followed by adequate personal time and lifestyle considerations.
—More medical residents (45%) would prefer hospital employment as their first practice setting than any other type of setting.
—21% of medical residents said they would not choose medicine again if they had their education and training to do over.”
Baptist Health System offers $20K sign-on bonuses to nurses, care associates: “Baptist Health System in San Antonio is offering new nurses, as well as patient care and lab associates, up to $20,000 sign-on bonuses…”
About healthcare IT
Teladoc Health Launches “myStrength Complete” As First Unified Mental Health Care Experience: “Teladoc Health, Inc… announced the launch of myStrength Complete, an integrated mental health service providing personalized, targeted care to consumers in a single, comprehensive experience. The announcement comes as more than half of people with mental health concerns report that they do not know where to start when getting care, highlighting the importance of the digital front door myStrength Complete will provide.”
Huma rakes in $200M to grow the digital health ecosystem surrounding its remote care platform: “After a turbo-charged 2020 that saw Huma launch a variety of remote monitoring and clinical trial partnerships to track and treat COVID-19, resulting in its being named Europe’s fastest-growing healthcare company, the London-based startup is doubling down on that growth…
Huma—originally founded in 2011 as Medopad—will receive $130 million up front from a group of investors led by Leaps by Bayer and Hitachi Ventures. The group also includes Samsung Next, Sony Innovation Fund, Unilever Ventures and HAT Technology & Innovation Fund.”