Some States Seek To Cushion Patients’ Out-Of-Pocket Costs For Drugs
The move by a handful of states comes as increasing numbers of expensive specialty drugs arrive on the market, according to Stateline. In other news, The Washington Post examines navigators who help cancer patients and the changes in lifestyle that some people are making to fight Alzheimer's. Also, The New York Times looks at the growing field of concussion medicine and concerns that much of the science around it is "sketchy."
Stateline:
States Limiting Patient Costs For High-Priced Drugs
As more expensive specialty drugs come on the market to treat some of the most serious chronic diseases, more states are stepping in to cushion the financial pain for patients who need medicine that can cost up to hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. At least seven states — Delaware, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Montana, New York and Vermont — limit the out-of-pocket payments of patients in private health plans. Montana, for instance, caps the amount that patients pay at $250 per prescription per month. Delaware, Maryland and Louisiana set the monthly limit at $150 and Vermont at $100. Maine sets an annual limit of $3,500 per drug. (Ollove, 7/2)
Los Angeles Times:
Patients Swamped With Medical Bills Find A Solution In Crowd-Funding
When a young couple from Florida couldn't get their insurance company to pay for in-vitro fertilization, they turned to the Internet for help. Using a crowd-funding website called Indiegogo, they set up a campaign to raise $5,000. Online contributions of more than $8,000 ultimately rolled in from friends, family and strangers. And now they have a baby. That's the power of a crowd, says Slava Rubin, CEO of Indiegogo, based in San Francisco. Crowd-funding has grown along with the Internet as people increasingly band together to support charities, raise money for movies and other projects — and now seek money to pay medical bills. (Zamosky, 7/3)
The Washington Post:
‘Navigators’ For Cancer Patients: A Nice Perk Or Something More?
In the 71 days since she first saw her doctor about a suspicious lump in her right breast, Ricki Harvey has had 40 appointments about her medical care. ... At Harvey’s side every step of the way were “patient navigators,” in her case nurses, whose job is to help guide cancer patients through a system that has become so complex and fragmented that it is beyond the ken of many people, especially at such a vulnerable time. (Bernstein, 7/3)
The New York Times:
Effective Concussion Treatment Remains Frustratingly Elusive, Despite A Booming Industry
The search for ways to treat and prevent concussions has spawned screening tools, helmet sensors, electronic mouthpieces, diagnostic blood tests and brain imaging devices. ... But as the industry booms, medical experts are raising concerns that it is a business where much of the science is sketchy, belief frequently outruns fact, and claims of technological breakthroughs evaporate soon after they are made. (Meier and Ivory, 7/3)
The Washington Post:
Alzheimer’s Spurs The Fearful To Change Their Lives To Delay It
When Jamie Tyrone found out that she carries a gene that gives her a 91 percent chance of developing Alzheimer’s disease beginning around age 65, she sank into a depression so deep that at times she wanted to end her life. Then she decided to fight back. She exercised. She changed her diet. She began taking nutritional supplements .... Perhaps the only thing as bad as Alzheimer’s disease is the fear among a growing number of older Americans that they may be at risk of the neurodegenerative disorder, which robs memory and cognitive ability and is the leading cause of dementia. (Kunkle, 7/4)
Cincinnati Enquirer/USA Today:
Checking On Your Doctor? Fed's Database Flawed
A federal database meant to help patients learn more about physicians is full of massively flawed data — and no one seems able to explain why. The errors highlight a disturbing reality: Not only do average people have trouble getting accurate information about doctors, but so does the federal government. Even worse, the mistakes appear to open the door for less-scrupulous doctors to distance themselves from pasts that include medical board actions, lawsuits or even criminal charges, according to data and health care experts interviewed by The Enquirer. (Hunt, 7/3)
