About Covid-19
Association of Symptoms After COVID-19 Vaccination With Anti–SARS-CoV-2 Antibody Response in the Framingham Heart Study “In a sample of twice-vaccinated, older, community-dwelling US adults, self-reported systemic symptoms after SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccination were associated with greater antibody response vs local-only or no symptoms. These results agree with a previous report6 in US health care workers that showed higher postvaccination antibody measurements among those with significant symptoms after an mRNA vaccine.”
About health insurance/insurers
Express Scripts Announces Strategic Partnership with Centene to Unlock Greater Prescription Drug Savings “Beginning in January 2024, Express Scripts will manage pharmacy benefits for approximately 20 million Centene members. In addition to greater savings on prescription drugs, Centene customers will also have access to Express Scripts' extensive national network of retail pharmacies. Centene selected Express Scripts to administer pharmacy benefits after a competitive bidding process.”
Centene posts $738M in profit for Q3 as Medicare, Medicaid overperform “Its profit for the quarter was up from the $584 million it reported in the third quarter of 2021. Through the first three quarters of this year, Centene has earned $1.5 billion in profit, up from $748 million through three quarters in 2021, according to its earnings report released Tuesday morning.
Centene also beat the Street on revenue with $35.9 billion, up from $32.4 billion in the prior-year quarter. Through the first three quarters of 2022, Centene has brought in $109 billion in revenue, an increase from $93.4 billion through the first nine months of 2021….
Centene said its Medicare membership increased by 22%.”
About hospitals and healthcare systems
Healthgrades Award Recipient Hospitals FYI, the latest lists by state and specialities.
About pharma
Amoxicillin Oral Presentations Information about the national Amoxicillin shortage.
About the public’s health
Estimating the Prevalence of Dementia and Mild Cognitive Impairment in the US “Question What was the prevalence of dementia and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in the US in 2016?
Findings This nationally representative cross-sectional study found that approximately one-third of 3496 individuals 65 years and older had dementia or MCI. Prevalence rates were similar by sex but varied by age, education, and race and ethnicity.”
About healthcare IT
Association of Video Gaming With Cognitive Performance Among Children “As part of the national Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development study and after controlling for confounding effects, results of this case-control study of 2217 children showed enhanced cognitive performance in children who played video games vs those who did not. Clear blood oxygen level–dependent signal differences were associated with video gaming in task-related brain regions during inhibition control and working memory.”
About health technology
23andMe betting big on its genomic health service that integrates genetics with primary care “The company, which went public a year ago, has since amassed a huge database of genetic data based on its 13 million users. 23andMe has pivoted its strategy to leverage its trove of data for research and to make and sell its own therapies. The company also is expanding its core consumer genetic testing into a new business line called its genomic health service.
Last October, the company announced plans to buy Lemonaid Health, a virtual care and pharmacy provider, to integrate its personalized genetics service more deeply into primary care. The strategy is to use that acquisition as a foundation for 23andMe's genomic health service, where customers can access their genetic information for preventive and personalized care, executives said a year ago.
The key is to leverage Lemonaid Health's virtual care and online pharmacy capabilities to build out genetically driven telehealth and pharmacogenomic services.”
FDA clears Philips AI for making CT-like images from head and neck MRI scans “Philips has received clearance from the FDA for its artificial-intelligence-powered MRI platform geared toward head and neck cancers.
Dubbed MRCAT, for MR for Calculating ATtenuation, the application allows physicians to skip CT scans and use MRI machines as the primary or only imaging modality for planning radiotherapy in soft tissue tumors of the head and neck.
The AI software—which creates images with CT-like density information derived from a single, high-resolution MR scan taking less than three minutes—can also be used to help treat cancers within the brain, pelvis and prostate by assisting with patient positioning and radiation dose calculations.”