Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Physician Bias Against People With Disabilities Or Obesity Gains Attention
A new survey of U.S. doctors finds that more than 80% believe people with a significant disability have a worse quality of life than those who are not disabled, underscoring how physicians’ perceptions across specialties could negatively influence the care of the more than 61 million Americans with disabilities. (Sohn, 2/1)
Alyssa McCord would rather not see a doctor at all. The upstate New York native who now lives in Jacksonville with her husband and daughter attributes some of her reluctance to upbringing. Her parents only went to the doctor when absolutely necessary, she said. The other part of that reluctance, says the 38 year old, is how providers react to her weight. (Engel-Smith, 2/2)
In other health care industry news —
Humana Inc. has agreed to join a purchasing group run by rival Cigna Corp. in a move that the health insurer says will help drive down its drug costs for its commercial members. Beginning April 1, Humana will join a Cigna purchasing organization called Ascent Health Services to give it access to greater discounts from drugmakers, the companies confirmed to Bloomberg News. Ascent manages commercial rebates, the payments that drugmakers make to health plans. The agreement covers drug contracting and negotiations for Humana’s commercial business. (Tozzi, 2/1)
Humana has partnered with in-home service provider DispatchHealth to offer in-home emergency and acute care to its 8.4 million Medicare members, as demand for out-of-office treatment rises during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly among those living with chronic conditions. The Louisville, Ken.-based insurer will immediately roll out DispatchHealth's services to enrollees in Denver, Colo. and Tacoma, Wash., with plans to expand to cities in Texas, Arizona, and Nevada by the end of the year. The Denver, Colo.-based home healthcare provider offers patients 24/7 remote monitoring by an internal medicine physician specialized in ER training, a physician's assistant and a nurse practitioner, along with daily visits from providers, including bedside nursing. (Tepper, 2/1)
When Monica Smith was badly hurt in a car accident, she assumed Medicaid would cover the medical bills. Ms. Smith, 45, made sure to show her insurance card after an ambulance took her to Parkview Regional Medical Center in Fort Wayne, Ind. She spent three days in the hospital and weeks in a neck brace. But the hospital never sent her bills to Medicaid, which would have paid for the care in full, and the hospital refused requests to do so. Instead, it pursued an amount five times higher from Ms. Smith directly by placing a lien on her accident settlement. (Kliff and Silver-Greenberg, 2/1)
In what is being described as an unusual move, a Pennsylvania county is openly blaming pharmacy benefit managers for high prices in the opaque pharmaceutical pricing system, a move that suggests more local officials may start scrutinizing these controversial middlemen. (Silverman, 2/1)
For years, AI researchers have focused their energy on developing algorithms capable of sharpening or rapidly replicating a doctor’s own judgment. When it comes to pain, though, patients’ own judgement can be just as important, if not more so, in understanding a condition. (Brodwin, 2/2)
