HealthcareInsights.MD will be on vacation and return Monday, January 27, 2025.
More than 15,000 doctors urge Senate to reject RFK Jr. as Health secretary “More than 15,000 doctors across the country signed an open letter urging senators to vote against President-elect Trump’s nominee for secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS): Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
In the letter, physicians say they are ‘appalled’ by Trump’s ‘reckless’ appointment of Kennedy, arguing he would be ‘dangerous’ if confirmed to the top public health post.”
About health insurance/insurers
Health plan member experience in 2024 “Key member experience insights for 2024
Patient experience and health plan quality ratings are closely linked. Patients who rate safety and privacy poorly in post-care PCP surveys typically award health plans 1 star for ‘rating of health care quality’ and ‘getting needed care’ in Medicare CAHPS surveys.
Primary care engagement is essential, but specialist engagement is the differentiator. High-performing plans (4+ stars) engage a larger proportion of members with specialists.
Access to care remains a challenge. Patients who have positive experiences with scheduling and contacting their provider tend to give higher ratings to health plans.
Tailored strategies are key to improvement. Medicare plans significantly outperform commercial plans in NPS, with a 47-point difference.
Prescription drug coverage is vital to member experience and quality of care, but it's not the only factor. Simplifying processes like prior authorizations and mail-order can significantly improve member satisfaction.
Addressing inequities in care is essential. Nearly 5% of Medicare members report experiencing insensitive or unfair treatment from healthcare providers—a figure that doubles for historically disadvantaged populations.”
About pharma
Walgreens stock jumps 27% after earnings surpass estimates. Analysts see early signs of recovery “Walgreens shares jumped Friday, despite a $265 million loss in the latest quarter, as the drugstore chain also posted better sales and adjusted profits than analysts expected.
The company is executing a turnaround plan to improve its financial performance that includes closing 1,200 stores, controlling operating costs and addressing reimbursement models.”
About the public’s health
Cardiorespiratory fitness [CRF], body mass index and mortality: a systematic review and meta-analysis “CRF is a strong predictor of CVD and all- cause mortality and attenuates risks associated with overweight and obesity.”
Snack quality and snack timing are associated with cardiometabolic blood markers: the ZOE PREDICT study “Contrary to public perception, we find that the act of snacking, in terms of both frequency and quantity of energy from snacks, was not associated with unfavourable cardiometabolic blood or anthropometric markers. Instead, we observed that snack quality matters and is associated with favourable lipemic and insulinemic responses, as well as decreased hunger. Frequent high-quality snack intake was also associated with favourable weight and BMI compared to non-snackers and frequent low-quality snackers.”
COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy Among Black Women in the US “In this qualitative study of 54 Black women, 3 main themes emerged as being associated with vaccine hesitancy: mistrust in health care and government, concerns over vaccine safety and long-term effects, and ineffective and coercive vaccine communication and promotion. Participants expressed deep-rooted skepticism stemming from past medical exploitation, fears about rapid vaccine development, and frustration with inadequate and coercive vaccine messaging.”
About healthcare IT
Health Care AI, Intended To Save Money, Turns Out To Require a Lot of Expensive Humans The gist of this interesting article is: “Artificial intelligence systems require consistent monitoring and staffing to put in place and to keep them working well.
In essence: You need people, and more machines, to make sure the new tools don’t mess up.”
Health system ransomware attacks surge in '24 “Health system ransomware attacks nearly doubled in 2024, affecting more than 1,000 U.S. hospitals, cybersecurity firm Emsisoft reported.”
About healthcare personnel
Medical schools see record-high enrollment as applications fall: 10 takeaways “While the total number of applications declined in the 2024-to-2025 academic year, enrollment in U.S. medical schools reached a new high, according to data released Jan. 9 by the Association of American Medical Colleges.”