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Government Poised to Pay Bulk of US Health Care Tab

By 2012, federal and state programs will pay slightly more than half of the nation’s health care costs whether or not any health care reform measures are passed, according to a recent report by the Office of the Actuary of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.1 As expected, the shift to a government-dominated health care sector is approaching faster than expected because of an economy in recession and because of the aging of the baby boomers, millions of whom will soon start signing up for Medicare.

Cancer Care Is Jeopardized by Medicare Reimbursement

Changes to Medicare’s reimbursement plans have inadvertently cut payments to cancer specialists, causing many cancer care centers to lose money and possibly close, according to results of a study commissioned by the Community Oncology Alliance (COA), an advocacy group for oncologists who practice outside of large hospital centers.1

Patients With HDHPs Have Unmet Medical and Prescription Needs

Adults aged 18 to 64 years enrolled in high-deductible health plans (HDHPs) with or without a flexible spending account (FSA) may be less likely to have their medical and prescription drug needs met because of cost than those adults with traditional health plans and consumer-directed health plans (CDHPs)

Disaster-relief Pediatrics in Haiti

Consultant For Pediatricians Editorial Board member Wm. Lane W. Robson, MD of The Childrens Clinic in Calgary, Alberta, reports on his time in 2 Haitian cities severely damaged by the January earthquake. He describes the significant challenges he faced and stresses the need for ongoing volunteer efforts.  

Health Care Reform: The Final Countdown?

In the days before a vote is expected, the near-final version of the health care reform bill seems to have taken shape. Before they fine-tune the bill, however, Democrats must wait for the cost assessment from the Congressional Budget Office.

A Look at Medco's Therapeutic Resource Centers

The editors of Drug Benefit Trends interviewed Peter Juhn, MD, MPH, president of the Therapeutic Resource Centers division at Medco Health Solutions, Inc. Click below to hear him discuss the TRC program, launched in 2007, which monitors prescription drug use in patients with specific chronic conditions and is designed to close gaps in care.

Update on the Therapy for Sporotrichosis

Sporotrichosis is a fungal infection that typically results in cutaneous or lymphocutaneous disease, although other, more severe, life-threatening manifestations do occur. This article reviews updated treatment guidelines, which state that itraconazole has become the preferred therapy for most forms of infection. Amphotericin B remains the mainstay of treatment for severe cases, but lipid formulations are now preferred because of their more favorable toxicity profile. Also, fluconazole has been shown to be less effective than itraconazole and is no longer recommended except as an alternative for cutaneous and lymphocutaneous disease. [Drug Benefit Trends. 2010;22:49-52]

US Spending Is Frozen on HIV Programs in Africa

The US decision to freeze spending on HIV programs in several African countries has caused concern that some of the progress made in the global AIDS epidemic will be reversed.

Top Lobbyist for PhRMA to Step Down

Amidst the Democrats floundering to pass their health care reform bill after the balance of power shifted when a Republican won the Massachusetts Senate race, WJ “Billy” Tauzin, a Democrat turned Republican, announced that he will step down in June as head of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA).

Scurvy, Pellagra, and Beri Beri

A 38-year-old woman presented with bruising and pain of the lower extremities and dyspnea on exertion. She had had these symptoms for 3 weeks. She denied hematuria, melena, hematemesis, fever, or abdominal pain. Results of routine blood work showed a hemoglobin level of 6.4 g/dL (19 months earlier, this level was 15.8 g/dL).