When it comes to drug innovations, many would argue that pharmaceutical companies serve the public less well than hoped for. When it comes to marketing innovations or initiatives that drive greater...
Diane Archer
Hospices misleading patients, overbilling Medicare
A new report by the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) reveals that some hospices are misleading patients and defrauding Medicare. Hospices did not inform patients as required that when they elect...
Drug companies must now disclose most clinical trial results
For years, drug and medical device companies have been able to conduct clinical trials and then, depending upon results, determine which ones to make public. They were not required to let the public...
33 Senators call for Medicare-like option for all Americans
Last Thursday, 27 United States senators called for a Medicare-like option in the state health exchanges. Senators Bernie Sanders, Jeff Merkley, Patty Murray, Dick Durbin and Chuck Schumer, along...
Many older adults not taking blood pressure drugs as prescribed
A new CDC report reveals that some seven out of ten older adults have high blood pressure. And, half of them do not have their blood pressure under control. Five million older adults are not...
Why should drug companies have extra monopolies?
In a Health Affairs article, Alfred Engelberg explains that over the course of the last 35 years, Congress has extended the monopoly power of pharmaceutical companies in five different ways. These...
As population ages, need for more caregivers
Today, about one in 12 people over 20, nearly 18 million people, provide care for an older family member with health issues. A new report, Families Caring for an Aging America, by the National...
Risk to older adults of underuse of prescription drugs
A paper in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology reports on the risks of underuse of prescription drugs for older adults living in the community. The older adults studied were all over 80...
Student housing in a Dutch retirement home
Here’s an innovation. With few resources to keep residents active in a Dutch retirement home, the CEO decided to open up rooms to six students. In exchange for free student housing, the young...
Clinton proposes plan to rein in some drug prices
Recognizing that government intervention is needed to rein in some drug prices, Hillary Clinton has proposed a plan to help ensure people in the U.S. can afford their life-saving medications, if...