Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Research Roundup: Smoking Cessation, Trends In Infectious Diseases
Annals Of Internal Medicine: Association Of E-Cigarette Use With Smoking Cessation After Hospitalization
During 3 months after hospital discharge, more than a quarter of smokers attempting to quit used e-cigarettes, mostly to aid cessation, but few used them regularly. This pattern of use was associated with less tobacco abstinence at 6 months than among smokers who did not use e-cigarettes. (Rigotti, Chang, Tindle, et. al., 3/27)
JAMA: Trends And Patterns Of Differences In Infectious Disease Mortality Among US Counties, 1980-2014
What are the spatial and temporal trends in mortality due to lower respiratory infections, diarrheal diseases, HIV/AIDS, meningitis, hepatitis, and tuberculosis among US counties from 1980 to 2014? ...Between 1980 and 2014, there were declines in mortality from most categories of infectious disease, but an increase in mortality for diarrheal diseases; however, there were large differences among US counties. (Bcheraoui, Mokdad, Dwyer-Lindgren, et. al., 3/27)
JAMA Internal Medicine: Alcohol-Related Nurse Care Management In Primary Care: A Randomized Clinical Trial
In this randomized clinical trial of 304 participants, patient-centered alcohol care management did not decrease heavy drinking or alcohol-related problems at 12 months even though more patients engaged in alcohol-related care, including medications for alcohol use disorders. (Bradley, Bobb, Ludman, et. al., 3/26)
Health Affairs: Quality Of Breast Cancer Care In The US Territories: Insights From Medicare
Residents of the US territories were less likely to receive recommended care (24 percent lower odds of receiving diagnostic needle biopsy and 34 percent lower odds of receiving adjuvant RT) and to receive timely care (45 percent lower odds of receiving surgery and 82 percent lower odds of receiving adjuvant RT, both within three months). (Layne, Aminawung, Soulos, et. al., 3/1)
Health Affairs: Using Outcomes-Based Pricing For Medical Devices To Improve Cardiovascular Disease Treatment Value
Insurers are increasingly tying health service payments to clinical outcomes to improve care value and quality. Outcomes-based pricing—setting treatment reimbursements to reflect their prospectively determined value to patients and the health care system—is a promising alternative payment model for promoting higher-value care. While use of outcomes-based pricing agreements (OBAs) for pharmaceuticals has increased, to date there has been little focus on using OBAs to promote shared clinical and financial accountability for medical devices. (Blumenthal et al, 3/29)
JAMA Internal Medicine: Alcohol-Related Nurse Care Management In Primary Care: A Randomized Clinical Trial
In this randomized clinical trial of 304 participants, patient-centered alcohol care management did not decrease heavy drinking or alcohol-related problems at 12 months even though more patients engaged in alcohol-related care, including medications for alcohol use disorders. (Bradley et al, 3/26)
The Commonwealth Fund: Do Medicare Advantage Plans Respond To Payment Changes?
While spending per beneficiary in traditional Medicare rose 5.0 percent between 2009 and 2014, MA payment benchmarks rose 1.5 percent and payment to plans decreased by 0.7 percent. Plans’ expected per enrollee costs grew 2.6 percent. Plans where payment rates decreased generally had slower growth in their expected costs. HMOs, which saw their payments decline the most, had the slowest expected cost growth. (Guterman, Skopec and Zuckerman, 3/14)
Health Affairs: Antibiotic-Resistant Infection Treatment Costs Have Doubled Since 2002, Now Exceeding $2 Billion Annually
Antibiotic-resistant infections are a global health care concern. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 23,000 Americans with these infections die each year. Rising infection rates add to the costs of health care and compromise the quality of medical and surgical procedures provided. Little is known about the national health care costs attributable to treating the infections. Using data from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, we estimated the incremental health care costs of treating a resistant infection as well as the total national costs of treating such infections. To our knowledge, this is the first national estimate of the costs for treating the infections. We found that antibiotic resistance added $1,383 to the cost of treating a patient with a bacterial infection. Using our estimate of the number of such infections in 2014, this amounts to a national cost of $2.2 billion annually. The need for innovative new infection prevention programs, antibiotics, and vaccines to prevent and treat antibiotic-resistant infections is an international priority. (Thorpe, Joski and Johnston, 3/21)
