Health Care Cost
Payment reform, burnout and behavioral health: Five articles for National Primary Care Week
The 23rd annual National Primary Care Week is underway, highlighting the field’s strengths and urgent needs.
HHS: Specialty drug costs up more than $300 billion since 2016
HHS has released two new reports that it said not only “illustrate the urgency of addressing skyrocketing prescription drug costs in America,” but also highlight the potential positive impact of the Inflation Reduction Act.
Lower costs with ambulatory fludrocortisone suppression test vs. in-patient testing
Ambulatory fludrocortisone suppression testing for primary aldosteronism has similar accuracy compared with in-patient fludrocortisone suppression testing but with significantly lower health care costs, according to study data.
‘Better Health — Now’ campaign aims to transform primary care
The Primary Care Collaborative has launched a campaign to help advance the field through payment reform and increased investment.
Patients with AKI treated with dialysis show higher health care utilization, costs
Patients with acute kidney injury treated with dialysis showed higher post-discharge health care utilization and costs compared with hospitalized control patients.
Invasive mechanical ventilation improves survival among patients hospitalized with dementia, pneumonia
Invasive mechanical ventilation improved 30-day survival in patients with advanced dementia hospitalized with pneumonia compared with noninvasive ventilation, despite lack of 1-year survival benefit and higher health care costs.
Data show HF readmissions after TAVR ‘remain steady’ across centers
A database analysis of hospital readmissions after transcatheter aortic valve replacement show HF readmissions have remained steady over 3 years across low- and high-volume TAVR centers, despite an overall decline in all-cause readmissions.
Lifetime medical costs of sickle cell disease total $1.7 million
Privately insured individuals with sickle cell disease spend about $1.7 million on disease-related medical expenses during their lifetime, according to study results published in Blood Advances.
Nearly half of formulary exclusions offer ’questionable‘ clinical, economic benefit
Some formulary exclusions force patients to pay more for preferred drugs and use medications with dubious benefits for their needs, according to data published in the Health Science Journal.
HF ‘most expensive’ comorbidity, exceeding $22 billion per year
An additional $22.3 billion is spent nationally on HF-related medical services each year, with the total annual expenditure for adults with HF approaching $180 billion, according to an analysis of Medical Expenditure Panel Survey data.