Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Research Roundup: Labor Force Participation After The ACA; Childhood Firearm Injuries
Health Affairs: Medicare Competitive Bidding Program Realized Price Savings For Durable Medical Equipment Purchases
In 2011 the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) implemented a competitive bidding program to reduce spending on durable medical equipment and similar items. Previously, CMS had used prices in an administrative fee schedule to reimburse for these items. ... Our results suggest that the initial years of the program produced prices comparable to those obtained, on average, by large commercial insurers—sophisticated purchasers that presumably were able to negotiate prices with suppliers of durable medical equipment and similar items. (Newman, Barrette and McGraves-Lloyd, 8/1)
JAMA Internal Medicine: Inclusion of Demographic-Specific Information in FDA Studies of High-Risk Medical Devices
Women, the elderly, and minorities have been underrepresented in clinical trials. Risks and benefits of medical therapies, however, can vary based on these patient characteristics. ... Although the 2014 FDA Action Plan4 calls for examination of results by age, race and/or ethnicity, and sex, such analyses infrequently occur—fewer than 20% of all studies for original PMAs approved in 2015. (Dhruva et al., 7/24)
JAMA Psychiatry: Impact Of Reward Prediction Errors In Major Depression
In a neuroimaging study, depression was not associated with a reduced neural impact of reward prediction errors in a nonlearning context. Depression also was not associated with a reduced emotional impact of reward prediction errors in a laboratory behavioral study and in a smartphone study with 1833 participants. Meaning: In moderate major depression, impacts of reward prediction errors that are linked to dopamine, known to be attenuated in a learning context, are intact in nonlearning tasks. (Rutledge et al., 7/5)
The National Bureau of Economic Research: The Effects Of The Affordable Care Act On Health Insurance Coverage And Labor Market Outcomes
Our findings indicate that the majority of the increase in health insurance coverage since 2013 is due to the ACA. ... While labor market outcomes in the aggregate were not significantly affected, our results indicate that labor force participation reductions in areas with higher potential exchange enrollment were offset by increases in labor force participation in areas with higher potential Medicaid enrollment. (Duggan, Goda and Jackson, 7/1)
Pediatrics: Childhood Firearm Injuries in the United States
Fatal injuries were examined by using data from the National Vital Statistics System and nonfatal injuries by using data from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System. ... Firearm-related deaths are the third leading cause of death overall among US children aged 1 to 17 years, surpassing the number of deaths from pediatric congenital anomalies, heart disease, influenza and/or pneumonia, chronic lower respiratory disease, and cerebrovascular causes. (Fowler et al., 7/1)
