The Payment Reform Landscape: Public-Private Alignment Is Critical
In the past few years, a growing number of state health agencies have formed partnerships with large, private employers and/or commercial health plans to realign efforts and resources and change how we pay for health care. The ultimate goal of these partnerships is to shift from volume-based health care payment models to value-based models to improve the quality and cost of care.
Public-private alignment is important for a number of reasons. Alignment allows both state and commercial payers to send clear messages to providers about the expectations they have in moving to a more value-based health care payment and delivery ...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - June 12, 2015 Category: Health Management Authors: Suzanne Delbanco Tags: Featured Payment Policy Arkansas employers public-private partnership South Carolina State Innovation Model Tennessee Walmart Source Type: blogs
Reducing Inappropriate Psychotropic Prescribing For Children And Youth In Foster Care
There is currently a much-needed national spotlight on the high rates of psychotropic medication use among children and youth in foster care, most of whom receive health coverage through Medicaid.
This high-risk population is far more likely to receive psychotropic medications, including antipsychotics---a class of medication with serious side effects---than the Medicaid child population overall. While there are certainly some children and youth who should receive these medications, states must have oversight and monitoring mechanisms to determine when this is---or is not---the case.
Many of these children and youth exp...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - April 17, 2015 Category: Health Management Authors: Kamala Allen Tags: Equity and Disparities Medicaid and CHIP Access Children drugs foster care Pharma Source Type: blogs
Read it and weep - then get angry!
The Deadly Corruption of Clinical TrialsUpdate (4/3/2015): After nearly 11 years of obfuscation and denial surrounding the tragic death of Dan Markingson, the University of Minnesota has suspended enrollment in psychiatric drug trials. This comes in response to a blistering report issued by the Minnesota State Legislative Auditor that cites "serious ethical issues" and vindicates much of the reporting in the story below. Read more from Carl Elliott about the fallout from the report here.IT'S NOT EASY TO WORK UP a good feeling about the institution that destroyed your life, which may be why Mary Weiss i...
Source: PharmaGossip - April 4, 2015 Category: Pharmaceuticals Authors: insider Source Type: blogs
Read it and weep - then get angry!
The Deadly Corruption of Clinical TrialsUpdate (4/3/2015): After nearly 11 years of obfuscation and denial surrounding the tragic death of Dan Markingson, the University of Minnesota has suspended enrollment in psychiatric drug trials. This comes in response to a blistering report issued by the Minnesota State Legislative Auditor that cites "serious ethical issues" and vindicates much of the reporting in the story below. Read more from Carl Elliott about the fallout from the report here.IT'S NOT EASY TO WORK UP a good feeling about the institution that destroyed your life, which may be why Mary Weiss i...
Source: PharmaGossip - April 3, 2015 Category: Pharmaceuticals Authors: insider Source Type: blogs
Johnson and Johnson Continues to Pay For Risperdal
In August of 2012, Johnson & Johnson paid a $181 million multi-state consumer protection settlement to resolve charges that the company marketed its antipsychotic drug Risperdal for off-label uses. In November of 2013, J&J paid $2.2 billion to resolve False Claims Act allegations related to misbranding of a number of drugs, including Risperdal. In the past month, the company faced two further blows related to Risperdal. A Philadelphia jury awarded $2.5 million to the plaintiff over J&J’s “failure to warn” about Risperdal side effects. This was the first such case to be heard by a jury, though hundreds of cases ar...
Source: Policy and Medicine - March 18, 2015 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan Source Type: blogs
The Federal Trade Commission orders Focus Education to stop making unsubstantiated brain training claims
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Makers of Jungle Rangers Computer Game for Kids Settle FTC Charges that They Deceived Consumers with Baseless “Brain Training” Claims (Federal Trade Commission):
“A Texas company and its officers must stop making unsubstantiated claims that their computer game, Jungle Rangers, permanently improves children’s focus, memory, attention, behavior, and school performance, including for children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), under a Federal Trade Commission settlement…
The FTC’s administrative complaint states that Focus Education, its chief executive officer, Michael Apstein, and its chief ...
Source: SharpBrains - January 22, 2015 Category: Neurologists Authors: SharpBrains Tags: Health & Wellness Technology adhd attention deficit hyperactivity disorder brain training claims Brain-Training Federal Trade Commission Focus Education FTC infomercials Jungle Rangers Source Type: blogs
Pediatric EHR Selection Checklist for Small & Mid-sized Clinics
Replacing your Pediatric EMR?
If you are thinking of replacing your existing EMR system for your pediatric health care practice, you’re not alone: an increasing number of pediatric practices are replacing their existing Pediatric EHR due to a multitude of reasons. For today’s pediatric practices, the concern with selection of a new replacement Pediatric EHR is twofold: streamlining operations for increased efficiency and enhanced ability to meet the specific needs of pediatric patients.
But not all pediatric EHRs are created equally. The Certification Commission for Health Information Technology, which evaluates comp...
Source: EMR EHR Blog for Physicians - January 19, 2015 Category: Technology Consultants Authors: Alok Prasad Tags: Specialty EHR Software Pediatric EMR Software Source Type: blogs
Is a Sock Drug Paraphernalia?
Jeffrey Miron
Yes, according to the attorney general. And the “crime” of possessing drug paraphernalia is serious enough to warrant deportation of a legal permanent resident:
At the U. S. Supreme Court Wednesday, the question before the justices boiled down to whether a sock can be considered drug paraphernalia.
Each year 30-35,000 people are deported for drug crimes. But federal law does not treat all drug crimes equally. The question before the justices was whether the government can deport legal permanent residents for minor drug offenses.
Moones Mellouli came to the U.S. on a student visa from Tunisia in...
Source: Cato-at-liberty - January 16, 2015 Category: American Health Authors: Jeffrey Miron Source Type: blogs
How do diuretics lower blood pressure?
Brief Review
Diuretics lower blood pressure by lowering the intravascular volume and sodium content.1 It is mentioned that thiazide diuretics reduce the extracellular volume by about two litres and plasma volume by three hundred milliliters by about two days of usage. But some of these effects on volume contraction get compensated on long term usage due to compensatory mechanisms. Moreover, if volume loss was the main reason for lowering blood pressure with diuretics, loop diuretics which produce more of volume loss should have been more powerful anti hypertensives than thiazide diuretics. But the fact is the reverse, ex...
Source: Cardiophile MD - December 22, 2014 Category: Cardiology Authors: Prof. Dr. Johnson Francis, MD, DM, FACC, FRCP Edin, FRCP London Tags: General Cardiology Source Type: blogs
BC NDP Health Critic Judy Darcy’s Great Speech on ADHD In The BC Legislature. Her Son Has ADHD
BC NDP Health Critic Judy Darcy’s Great Speech on ADHD In The BC Legislature. Her Son Has ADHDPost from: Adult ADD Strengths
Cross posted to BC ADHD.
I was very happy to watch the BC NDP’s Health Critic Judy Darcy’s @DarcyJudy her Facebook great speech on ADHD in the BC Legislature on the BC Leg live stream Tuesday October 23rd 2014. And tweet excerpts from it throughout the day. It was even more powerful when she mentioned her son had ADHD. Here’s some background on her from her BC Legislature bio.
In 2003, Judy was honoured with the Council of Canadians Activist of the Year award, ...
Source: Adult ADD Strengths - November 1, 2014 Category: Psychiatrists and Psychologists Authors: Pete Quily Tags: ADD / ADHD Awareness Politics ADHD related Source Type: blogs
Preventing Prescription Drug Abuse: Are You Doing Your Part?
Do you know what your teen is up to when you’re not looking? What about your spouse, your parents and your friends? Hopefully they aren’t rummaging through your medicine cabinet to find something they can take to get high. Many of us would never think to use a prescription drug for something other than its intended purpose, or to take something that wasn’t prescribed for us and absolutely necessary.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of other people who not only consider this, but act on the impulse to misuse and abuse prescription drugs. Sometimes they work the system and see a doctor, or multiple doctors, and get...
Source: Disruptive Women in Health Care - October 21, 2014 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: dw at disruptivewomen.net Tags: Policy Publc Health Rx Young Adults Source Type: blogs
Should we use antipsychotics to treat ADHD?
Polypharmacy, or use of multiple psychiatric drugs, for treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is on the rise. A recent study compared treatment with basic therapy (stimulants plus parent training) with augmented therapy (those two plus risperidone, an atypical antipsychotic). The study concluded that treatment with risperidone was superior.
When children show dramatic improvements in behavior on risperidone, now being prescribed with increasing frequency for ADHD and a range of other disorders that represent difficulty with emotional regulation, we need to ask ourselves one question. Does this ch...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - October 19, 2014 Category: Journals (General) Authors: Claudia M. Gold, MD Tags: Conditions Pediatrics Psychiatry Source Type: blogs
CADDAC 6th Annual ADHD Conference In Vancouver, Nov 1st & 2nd Dr. Russell Barkley, Dr. Adele Diamond, Gina Pera & More
CADDAC 6th Annual ADHD Conference In Vancouver, Nov 1st & 2nd Dr. Russell Barkley, Dr. Adele Diamond, Gina Pera & MorePost from: Adult ADD Strengths
Cross posted to BCADHD
CADDAC, The Center for ADHD Awareness, Canada will have it’s 6th annual conference in Vancouver, BC November 1st & 2nd.
Early bird deadline is in 2 days October 14th, don’t wait.
It’s pretty rare to get ADHD conferences in Vancouver, CADDAC is a Toronto based Canadian ADHD organization so it’s meetings are usually down east in Toronto or Montreal, so you might want to check it out because you may not see another on...
Source: Adult ADD Strengths - October 12, 2014 Category: Psychiatrists and Psychologists Authors: Pete Quily Tags: ADD / ADHD Conferences and Workshops Vancouver Source Type: blogs
Medicines or Poisons?—Why Cannabinoids Can Both Help and Hurt You
This is the final post of a 3-part series on the science of medical marijuana. Check out Part 1: What’s Wrong with “Medical Marijuana”? and Part 2: Making Medicine from Marijuana.
People who write about the health benefits of marijuana sometimes think it’s ironic that a plant containing compounds that could treat disease (like THC or CBD) is banned by the government for being unsafe. But in fact many effective, FDA-approved medicines are closely related to illegal, harmful drugs and are sometimes even made from the same sources.
That’s because there’s a fine (and sometimes fuzzy) line between chemicals that are...
Source: NIDA Drugs and Health Blog - September 22, 2014 Category: Addiction Authors: The NIDA Blog Team Source Type: blogs
Arkansas Payment Improvement Initiative: The First Year
TweetEditor’s note: This post is part of a periodic Health Affairs Blog series, which will run over the next year, looking at payment and delivery reforms in Arkansas and Oregon. The posts will be based on evaluations of these reforms performed with the support of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The authors of this post are part of the team evaluating the Arkansas model.
Arkansas payers and providers actively participated in the design of both the episodic payment and patient-centered medical home (PCMH) models the state has recently implemented. We’ve written about each of these components of the multi-payer Arkan...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - August 25, 2014 Category: Health Management Authors: William Golden, Joseph W. Thompson, Michael Motley, Mark Fendrick, Christopher Mathis, and Michael Chernew Tags: All Categories Medicaid Payment Reform States Source Type: blogs
