The Long Overdue Rise of Gender-Affirming Care
There has been much written recently about the increasing demand for gender-affirming services; specifically, surgical procedures. However, transgender and gender diverse people have always existed. So to then have the need for gender-affirming care. For a long time, this need refused to be seen or acknowledged. Medicine as a field and society as a whole […]
Opinion | The Truth About What Health Information Exchanges Can and Cannot Do
Turbow is a primary care physician and health services researcher. Ali is a family physician and vice chair of research. Most people think their doctor has access to all their health information, no matter where they were seen. You’ve probably experienced this firsthand: a patient arrives for an appointment, only for you to lack access […]
Q&A: Talking Prior Authorization With Rep. Suzan DelBene
Although the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a final rule on prior authorization, there is more that can be done to ease clinician burdens in this area, according to Rep. Suzan DelBene (D-Wash.). DelBene sponsored the Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act, which would, among other provisions, require affected plans to […]
Inequitable Treatment Persists Across Pediatric Specialties, Review Shows
Children in racial and ethnic minority groups received poorer healthcare services compared with white kids, a review of quantitative studies showed. Inequitable treatment persisted across pediatric specialties, including neonatology, primary care, emergency medicine, inpatient and critical care, surgery, developmental disabilities, mental health care, endocrinology, and palliative care, reported Nia Heard-Garris, MD, of Northwestern University’s Feinberg […]
Opinion | Would You Switch a Patient’s Medication If You Knew the Cost?
Sloan is a primary care physician and health services researcher. Goss is an associate professor of emergency medicine and clinical informatics. Sinaiko is a researcher and assistant professor of health economics and policy. Put yourself into your patients’ shoes for a moment. Imagine you are visiting your primary care provider (PCP) today to follow up […]
Americans Struggling With Addiction, Mental Health, SAMHSA Survey Shows
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) released the results of its 2022 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) on Tuesday, which showed that nearly one in five Americans ages 12 and older reported having a substance use disorder in the past year, and roughly one in four adults reported having […]
CMS Facing Challenges Attracting Practices to Value-Based Payment Models
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) continues to face a string of challenges in trying to attract more fee-for-service medical practices to Medicare’s accountable care organizations (ACOs) and other value-based purchasing arrangements. “Value-based purchasing programs link provider payments to improved performance by healthcare providers. This form of payment holds healthcare providers accountable for […]
Medicare to Start Taking Applications Next Month for a New Primary-Care Focused ACO
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will begin accepting applications next month for a new type of accountable care organization (ACO) that is aimed at attracting primary care physicians who have not participated in an ACO before. “Access to high-quality primary care is associated with better health outcomes and equity for people and […]
CMS Proposes 3.4% Cut in Medicare Physician Fees for 2024
WASHINGTON — The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is proposing a 3.4% cut to the “conversion factor” used to set the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule for 2024, and physician groups are none too happy about it. “The proposed 2024 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) raises significant concerns for medical groups related to its […]
Scientists build a healthy dietary pattern using ultra-processed foods
Scientists at the USDA Agricultural Research Service’s (ARS) Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center led a studythat demonstrates it is possible to build a healthy diet with 91 percent of the calories coming from ultra-processed foods (as classified using the NOVA scale) while still following the recommendations from the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA). […]