Category: prescription drugs

A Small Group of Patients Account for a Whole Lot of Spending

You have heard about the 5% of the population responsible for 50% of spending. Meet the 1.3%–persistent high spenders with very complex medical needs responsible for 20%. Drew Altman discusses this and possible ways to help them, read the Axios column.

Must-Reads Of The Week From Brianna Labuskes

Newsletter editor Brianna Labuskes wades through hundreds of health care policy stories each week, so you don’t have to.

GOP Senators Distance Themselves From Grassley And Trump’s Efforts To Cut Drug Prices

Even some Republicans who supported a sweeping bipartisan bill to rein in drug costs may not back it in the Senate vote.

A Conservative Group Paints Trump’s Drug-Pricing Experiment As ‘Socialist.’ Is It?

The Americans for Tax Reform commercial takes too broad a brush against an initiative under consideration by the administration that would be part of the president’s promise to curb high drug prices.

Must-Reads Of The Week From Brianna Labuskes

Newsletter editor Brianna Labuskes wades through hundreds of health care policy stories each week, so you don’t have to.

KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: Biden Doubles Down On Obamacare

Presidential candidate Joe Biden unveiled a health plan intended to provide a more moderate alternative to his competitors’ “Medicare for All” plans. It would build on the Affordable Care Act but would go much further. Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Joanne Kenen of Politico and Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss this, plus Planned Parenthood’s very bad week, the U.S. House vote to repeal the health law’s “Cadillac tax” on generous health plans, and the reduction in deaths from opioids.

Common Medications Can Masquerade As Dementia In Seniors

A wide variety of medications used to treat allergies, insomnia, leaky bladders, diarrhea, dizziness, motion sickness, asthma, Parkinson’s disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and psychiatric disorders can interfere with cognition in older patients.

Public Opinion on Prescription Drugs and Their Prices

This slideshow draws on recent Kaiser Family Foundation poll findings to provide an in-depth look at the public’s attitudes toward prescription drugs and their prices. Results include Americans’ opinions on drug affordability, pharmaceutical companies,…

Even When HIV Prevention Drug Is Covered, Other Costs Block Treatment

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommended that people who are at high risk of contracting HIV take PrEP, a preventive treatment. The decision means most health plans will be required to cover the drugs without charging patients. But the recommendation doesn’t apply to the other clinical and lab services people need.

Must-Reads Of The Week From Brianna Labuskes

Newsletter editor Brianna Labuskes wades through hundreds of health care policy stories each week, so you don’t have to.