Little progress has been made in eliminating health care–associated infections (HAIs), according to the 2009 National Healthcare Quality Report and the National Healthcare Disparities Report recently issued by the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ).1 More »
Along with the release of revised guidelines, several pharmacological therapies have become available or are under investigation to help improve outcomes in patients with osteoporosis. More »
Several months have passed since the publication of the latest US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) breast cancer screening guidelines. The initial, sharp outcry, mainly over the task force’s recommendation against routine screening mammography for women aged 40 to 49 years, has somewhat subsided, but the overall significance of the group’s decision remains undetermined. More »
As publicly funded health care payment programs have grown over decades because of demographic shifts and expansion of coverage, comparative effectiveness research (CER) has emerged to address value in health care. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2008 (ARRA) included $1.1 billion for CER initiatives, and the new health care legislation created the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, which will be funded with $500 million or more annually. In these efforts exist the... More »
The use of bisphosphonates, which are commonly taken to prevent and treat osteoporosis, may lower the risk of breast cancer, according to the results of a recent study led by Polly A. Newcomb, PhD, MPH, a researcher at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle. More »
The episode-of-care project is the first program in which a payer has partnered with the oncology community to reduce costs while paying for the demanding and complex cognitive work of the medical oncologist. The episode-of-care payment system seems to be working smoothly and we have not experienced the same erosion of our income that we have seen with other payers.
In the first of what will become an annual review process, the nations largest cancer-care payer has added three new formularies to its drug coverage policy, giving oncologists even greater ability to prescribe off -label cancer drugs.
In the first of what will become an annual review process, the nations largest cancer-care payer has added three new formularies to its drug coverage policy, giving oncologists even greater ability to prescribe off -label cancer drugs.
Erythropoiesis Stimulating Agents ( ESAs) in Cancer and Related Neoplastic Conditions I. ... remittance reason code 05 , These are non-covered services because this is not deemed a medical necessity ' by the payer, for medical necessity denials of
