CDC: 56% Of Antibiotic Prescriptions From Hospitals Were Inappropriate

Modern Healthcare: Hospital Antibiotic Stewardship Programs Falling Short On Quality Goals
Hospitals are falling short of meeting national targets to reduce inappropriate antibiotic prescribing despite efforts in recent years to bolster stewardship, according to new research. An evaluation of antibiotic use in hospitals conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found 56% of antibiotic prescriptions were inappropriate in terms of the type of drug used, the duration they were prescribed, or the medical conditions for which they were given. (Ross Johnson, 3/18)

Stat: Hospital Antibiotic Stewardship Is Improving, But New Goals Are Still Needed
Amid increasing concern over antibiotic resistance, a new analysis found that nearly 56% of the prescriptions written in hospitals in 2015 for these treatments were inappropriate, underscoring the need to provide added guidance to physicians and other health care providers. The mistakes varied, but included instances where the wrong antibiotic was prescribed, an antibiotic was prescribed for an unnecessarily long period of time, or there was a lack of evidence to indicate a patient had an infection, according to the analysis, which was published in JAMA Network Open and authored by dozens of public health officials around the U.S. (Silverman, 3/18)

In other health care industry news —

NBC News: Covid Package, Federal Program Offer Lifeline And Herald Change For Ambulances Services
During the height of the pandemic, a quiet financial crisis was brewing for ambulance companies. As hospitals became overwhelmed and patients begged not to be taken to crowded emergency rooms for fear of potential infection, paramedics and emergency medical technicians began treating patients where they met them — outside homes, alongside roadways, in parking lots. The trouble is that ambulance companies are only paid to transport people, not for treating them. (McCausland, 3/18)

Modern Healthcare: Two-Thirds Of Insurers In 32 States Now Have Copay Accumulators, Study Says
Most health plans across the country now include an opaque policy that prevents drug manufacturer coupons and copay assistance from counting against a plan's deductible or out-of-pocket limit, a trend patient advocates say is alarming and limits access to treatment. "The money that is covered by copay assistance is still money that is being paid out and kept by the insurer for the plan," said Stephanie Hengst, manager of policy and research at The AIDS Institute. (Tepper, 3/18)

Stat: How The Wave Of Telehealth SPACs Could Create A 'Perfect Storm'
In little more than a year, telehealth has gone from a backwater of American health care to a booming business. Billion-dollar valuations, once a rarity, are now common as companies seize on a dramatic increase in demand to raise money and enter the public markets during the coronavirus pandemic. But the overnight change in fortunes for the industry is also raising alarms of a bubble, especially as more telehealth providers merge with shell companies known as SPACs — special purpose acquisition corporations — that offer a faster and easier road to going public. (Ross, 3/19)

Modern Healthcare: Competition Heats Up For Advanced Practice Practitioners
Competition for clinical staff is heating up as healthcare companies bolster their primary-care offerings, but industry observers expect the growing supply of nurse practitioners and physician assistants to meet the ballooning demand for advanced practice clinicians. Payers, providers, tech companies and private-equity backed ventures are building out primary-care oriented services, which rely on a steady supply of advanced practice practitioners. (Kacik, 3/18)

Stat: SEC Charges Co-Founders Of UBiome With $60 Million Fraud
Federal authorities on Thursday charged two co-founders of uBiome, a microbiome startup that rose to Silicon Valley prominence in 2018, with defrauding investors of $60 million. The Securities and Exchange Commission complaint alleges that Jessica Richman, uBiome’s former chief executive officer, and Zachary Apte, its former chief scientific officer, misled investors by peddling uBiome as a startup with a track record of success. (Brodwin, 3/18)

In obituaries —

The New York Times: Carola Eisenberg Dies At 103; Helped Start Physicians For Human Rights 
Dr. Carola Eisenberg, who broke gender barriers as a dean at both the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard Medical School and helped found Physicians for Human Rights, whose campaign against anti-personnel landmines led to a Nobel Peace Prize in 1997, died on March 11 in Lincoln, Mass. She was 103. Her death, in a nursing home, was confirmed by her son Alan Guttmacher. (Roberts, 3/18)