Progression of Emphysema and Small Airways Disease in Cigarette Smokers.

BACKGROUND: Little is known about factors associated with emphysema progression in cigarette smokers. We evaluated factors associated with change in emphysema and forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) in participants with and without chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). METHODS: This retrospective study included individuals participating in the COPD Genetic Epidemiology study who completed the 5-year follow-up, including inspiratory and expiratory computed tomography (CT) and spirometry. All paired CT scans were analyzed using micro-mapping, which classifies individual voxels as emphysema or functional small airway disease (fSAD). Presence and progression of emphysema and FEV1 were determined based on comparison to nonsmoker values. Logistic regression analyses were used to identify clinical parameters associated with disease progression. RESULTS: A total of 3088 participants were included with a mean ± SD age of 60.7±8.9 years, including 72 nonsmokers. In all Global initiative for chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) stages, the presence of emphysema at baseline was associated with emphysema progression (odds ratio [OR]: GOLD 0: 4.32; preserved ratio-impaired spirometry [PRISm]; 5.73; GOLD 1: 5.16; GOLD 2: 5.69; GOLD 3/4: 5.55; all p ≤0.01). If there was no emphysema at baseline, the amount of fSAD at baseline was associated with emphysema progression (OR for 1% increase: GOLD 0: 1.06; PRISm: 1.20; GOLD 1: 1.7; GOLD 3/4: 1.08; all p ≤ 0.03).In 1735 participants without spirometric COPD, progression in emphysema occurred in 105 (6.1%) participants and only 21 (1.2%) had progression in both emphysema and FEV1. CONCLUSIONS: The presence of emphysema is an important predictor of emphysema progression. In patients without emphysema, fSAD is associated with the development of emphysema. In participants without spirometric COPD, emphysema progression occurred independently of FEV1 decline.

Lower Copays Sweeten Outcomes-based Deal for Brilinta.

UPMC Health Plan gets a discount if a patient on Brilinta has a heart attack or stroke. The novel sweetener is that UPMC will lower the monthly copay for Brilinta from $45 to $10, which means the patient cost will be about the same as it is for generic Plavix.

Once-a-day HIV Treatment: Pricey But Perhaps Worth It.

The annual pharmacy costs for single tablet regimens were $6,100 less compared with regimens involving multiple pills, at least among HIV patients who were taking the medicines as intended, according to an Express Scripts analysis. On average, the company found that health plans could save about $4,160 per patient per year.

Backlash Against Copay Accumulators.

With accumulators, the value of any copay assistance cards or coupons does not count toward out-of-pocket medicine costs that are applied toward deductibles. It's a cost-shifting tool that's facing pushback from patients, providers, and others saying that accumulators will hurt public health.

Moving Beyond Collaboration: A Model for Enhancing Social Work's Organizational Empathy.

Many first-year field students and new practitioners enter the "fog of practice" seeking a strong mentor who will teach them to survive and thrive in the practice world. They are armed with much social work-related ideology but perhaps too little organizational knowledge and savvy. This challenge may be traced back to another historical professional debate: the imbalance between micro and macro social work education and training. This article addresses the challenge by introducing the overarching competency of organizational empathy, defined as an understanding of the practice environment one occupies. The major objective of this article is to help bridge an academe-practice knowledge gap, thereby giving the social work practitioner enhanced opportunities for broader organizational influence, collaboration, and leadership.

Nevada Pushes For Transparency On Diabetes Drug Prices.

A state senator who describes insulin prices as "outrageous" introduced a transparency bill that requires drugmakers to report pricing, costs, and rebates. Other states might make similar moves, and the pharmaceutical industry is suddenly on edge, with PhRMA and BIO fighting the law in court.

Kymriah: A Sign of More Difficult Decisions To Come.

The CAR-T therapy may pass ICER cost-effectiveness muster, but can the health care system afford more drugs like it?

CVS and the $100,000 QALY.

The PBM unit of the health giant CVS decided that any new drug exceeding $100,000 per quality-adjusted life year (QALY) may be excluded from the formularies that are maintained by its clients. Patient groups (with the backing of pharma) say that the measure is discriminatory.

Congress Puts 'Shadow' Pricing Of MS Drugs in the Spotlight.

Lawmakers asked seven companies to explain not only "skyrocketing prices," but a practice known as shadow pricing in which a drugmaker increases the price of an existing medicine to match the price hike or higher price set for a new drug launched by another company.

Outcomes-based Pricing Program Puts Money in Beneficiaries' Pockets.

Harvard Pilgrim's program gives rebates to beneficiaries if Repatha doesn't help them avoid a heart attack or stroke. It's just the latest in a growing number of outcomes-based pricing agreements in which an insurer can get a discount from a drugmaker if a drug doesn't help patients as much as expected.

No Price Pressure On Orphan Drugs (Yet).

Sales of orphan drugs are forecast to grow 11% over the next five years, to $209 billion. That growth rate is twice as fast as the expected increase in sales of all other prescription medicines. They may account for more than 21% of brand-name prescription drug sales by 2022.

Biosimilar Makers Hope Court Starts 6-Month Wait Sooner.

The dispute centers on dueling interpretations of the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act, which says a company seeking to sell a biosimilar must give the maker of the brand-name biologic at least a 180-day notice before selling its drug.

Plans Favor Product Preferencing To Tame Spending on Biologics.

Historically, it's rare for commercial payers to have drug formularies for medical benefits, but that's changing. In effect, health plans are, in some ways, choosing drugs they prefer, based on their judgments about safety and efficacy, as well as availability, lowest net cost, and how a drug is administered.

Value Tools Not in The Insurer Toolkit-Yet.

Current versions by ASCO, and others may not be right for insurers, but they are eyeing new ways to crunch the numbers for cost and outcomes.