Weekly Roundup: Health care news and notes
November 20, 2015 · NCQA
Every Friday NCQA gives a rundown of some of the health care news stories from the past week. Here are some of our picks for this week:
- High deductibles that make care unaffordable may explain why some are dropping ACA coverage. [New York Times]
- Consumer groups, unions & the AMA want to block the Anthem/Cigna & Aetna/Humana mergers. [New York Times]
- Harvard Pilgrim agreement with Amgen will help to contain costs and improve care. [Yahoo Finance]
- Obama, Congress and insurers are all ramping up efforts to address high drug prices. [Wall Street Journal]
- Financial incentives for both patients & physicians work better than either alone in reducing LDL. [JAMA]
- CMS awarded 16, two-year Special Innovation Projects to 10 QIOs. [CMS]
- Women get optimal heart attack care 8% less often than men and have a 23 percent higher 3-year death risk. [Health Day]
- Smoking rates fell to 16.8 percent overall, but are higher for uninsured (27.9 percent) & Medicaid enrollees (29.1 percent). [American Pharmacists Association]
- Smoking would be prohibited in public housing homes nationwide under a proposed federal rule. [New York Times]
- Just 30% of adults taking antipsychotics got diabetes screenings. [Physician’s Briefing]
- Obesity rates overall rose to 38 percent in 2014, but not those under age 20. [New York Times]
