About Covid-19
U.S. CDC expects Omicron COVID boosters for kids by mid-October “The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention expects COVID-19 vaccine boosters targeting circulating variants of the virus to be available for children aged 5-11 years by mid-October.
The CDC said in a document released on Tuesday that it expects to make a recommendation in early- to mid-October on the use of the new bivalent vaccines in the group, if they are authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).”
Pfizer to Supply Global Fund Up to 6 Million PAXLOVID™ Treatment Courses for Low-and-Middle-Income Countries “Treatment courses will be available for procurement by 132 Global Fund-eligible low-and-middle-income countries in all regions of the world beginning in 2022, subject to local regulatory approval or authorization.”
FDA Repeatedly Adapted Emergency Use Authorization Policies To Address the Need for COVID-19 Testing From the HHS OIG: “FDA's decision to accept all EUA requests resulted in a record number of submissions-often low-quality and from developers lacking experience with FDA's processes. In response, FDA took steps to support developers and ease its workload, which included issuing EUA guidance, updating templates (submission guides for developers requesting EUA), and adjusting its EUA review process, among others. Some developers still reported being frustrated and confused.”
See the report for recommendations to correct the problems.
About health insurance/insurers
Impending changes to the methodology used to calculate Medicare Advantage Star ratings could make it difficult for highly rated plans to retain those ratings in 2023 and 2024 A good review of the changes Medicare is making to its Star system.
About hospitals and healthcare systems
Biden vows to crack down on poorest-performing nursing homes “The White House on Monday announced plans to boost nursing home staffing and oversight, blaming some of the 200,000-plus covid deaths of nursing home residents and staff during the pandemic on inadequate conditions.
Officials said the plan would set minimum staffing levels, reduce the use of shared rooms and crack down on the poorest-performing nursing homes to reduce the risk of residents contracting infectious diseases. The White House also said it planned to scrutinize the role of private equity firms, citing data that their ownership was linked with worse outcomes and higher costs.”
About pharma
Aetna: Aduhelm is medically necessary “The payer will require pre-authorization for all providers and members covered under plans where the new policy applies.
Under the new policy, the drug must also be prescribed by or in consultation with a gerontologist, neurologist, psychiatrist or neuropsychiatrist.
The move follows CMS' decision in April to only cover Aduhelm for Medicare members participating in clinical trials. In May, UnitedHealthcare deemed it "unproven and not medically necessary" and said it would only cover the drug for members in clinical trials who have received prior authorization.”
About the public’s health
AACR CANCER PROGRESS REPORT 2022 An excellent update of the progress in cancer research and treatment.
Most Global Deaths Are From Preventable Noncommunicable Diseases “A new global report by the World Health Organization finds noncommunicable diseases now outnumber infectious diseases as the top killers globally. Each year, it says 17 million people under age 70 die prematurely from noncommunicable diseases or NCD. The biggest killers are cardiovascular diseases, followed by cancers, chronic respiratory diseases, and diabetes.”
About healthcare IT
Receipt of Out-of-State Telemedicine Visits Among Medicare Beneficiaries During the COVID-19 Pandemic “ In this cross-sectional study of telemedicine visits in the first half of 2021 among patients with Medicare, 422 547 patients had an out-of-state telemedicine visit; these visits were most common among those who lived near a state border and were largely for primary care and mental health treatment. In 62.6% of all out-of-state visits, a prior in-person visit occurred between the same patient and clinician.
Meaning Limitations on out-of-state telemedicine care may disrupt many existing patient-clinician relationships in primary care and mental health treatment.”
Exploring EHR Satisfaction by Provider Specialty “Physicians and advanced practice providers who are very satisfied with the EHR are almost five times more likely to report plans to stay at their organization, compared to peers who are very dissatisfied…” See the chart for data by specialty.