Stakeholder-informed positivity thresholds for disease markers and risk scores: a methodological framework and an application in obstructive lung disease.

OBJECTIVE: A positivity threshold is often applied to markers or predicted risks to guide disease management. These rules are often decided exclusively by clinical experts despite being sensitive to the preferences of patients and general public as ultimate stakeholders. STUDY DESIGN AND SETTING: We propose an analytical framework for quantifying the net benefit of an evidence-based positivity threshold based on combining preference-sensitive (e.g., how individuals weight benefits and harms of treatment) and preference-agnostic (e.g., the magnitude of benefit and the risk of harm) parameters. We propose parsimonious choice experiments to elicit preference-sensitive parameters from stakeholders, and evidence synthesis to quantify the value of preference-agnostic parameters. We apply this framework to maintenance azithromycin therapy for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) using a discrete choice experiment (DCE) to estimate preference weights for attribute level associated with treatment. We identify the positivity threshold on 12-month moderate or severe exacerbation risk that would maximize the net benefit of treatment in terms of severe exacerbations avoided. RESULTS: In the case study, the prevention of moderate and severe exacerbations (benefits) and the risk of hearing loss and gastrointestinal symptoms (harms) emerged as important attributes. 477 respondents completed the DCE survey. Relative to each percent risk of severe exacerbation, preference weights for each percent risk of moderate exacerbation, hearing loss, and gastrointestinal symptoms were 0.395 (95%CI 0.338-0.456), 1.180 (95%CI 1.071-1.201) and 0.253 (95%CI 0.207-0.299), respectively. The optimal threshold that maximized net benefit was to treat patients with a 12-month risk of moderate or severe exacerbations ≥12%. CONCLUSION: The proposed methodology can be applied to many contexts where the objective is to devise positivity thresholds that need to incorporate stakeholder preferences. Applying this framework to COPD pharmacotherapy resulted in a stakeholder-informed treatment threshold that was substantially lower than the implicit thresholds in contemporary guidelines.

Decision Aid-Led Tapering of Biologic and Targeted Synthetic DMARDs in Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Qualitative Study.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the experiences and perspectives of patients and rheumatologists on decision aid-led tapering of advanced therapy in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). METHODS: Semi-structured interviews were completed with patients and rheumatologists, embedded within a pilot study of decision aid-led tapering (i.e. dose reduction) of biologic and targeted synthetic (b/ts) DMARDs in RA. All patients were in sustained (>= 6 months) remission and had chosen to reduce their therapy after a decision aid-led shared decision with their rheumatologist. The rheumatologists included those participating in the pilot (n=4), and those who were not. Reflexive thematic analysis of audiotaped and transcribed interviews identified themes in the group experiences. RESULTS: Patients (n=10; 6 female) unanimously found the decision aid easy to understand and felt confident in shared decision-making about treatment tapering and managing flares. Rheumatologists' (n=12; 5 female) perspectives on tapering b/ts DMARDs varied widely, from very supportive to completely opposed, and influenced their views on the decision aid. Rheumatologists expressed concerns about patient comprehension, destabilizing a stable situation, risks of flare, and extending appointment times. Despite their initial reservations about sending the decision aid to all eligible patients ahead of appointments, three of four participating rheumatologists adopted this approach during the pilot, which had the benefit of facilitating patient-led conversations. CONCLUSION: A decision aid-led strategy for tapering advanced therapy in RA was acceptable to patients and feasible in practice. Sending patients a decision aid ahead of their appointment facilitated patient-led conversations about tapering.

Patterns of Infliximab Biosimilar Uptake for Medicare, Medicaid, and Private Insurance from 2016 to 2022.

OBJECTIVE: Biosimilars have the potential to reduce spending on biologic drugs, yet uptake has been slower than anticipated. We investigated how successive introductions of infliximab biosimilars influenced their adoption by major US insurance providers. METHODS: Data came from the Rheumatology Informatics System for Effectiveness, a national registry with electronic health records from more than 1,100 US rheumatologists. All infliximab administrations (bio-originator or biosimilar) to patients aged ≥18 years from April 2016 to September 2022 were included. We used an interrupted time series to model the effect of each infliximab biosimilar release (infliximab-dyyb, November 2016; infliximab-adba, July 2017; and infliximab-axxq, July 2020) on uptake across Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurers. RESULTS: With the first and second biosimilar releases, biosimilar uptake rose slowly, with average annual increases of ≤5% from 2016 to June 2020 (Medicare 3.2%, Medicaid 5.2%, and private insurance 1.8%). With the third biosimilar release in July 2020, the average annual increase reached 13% for Medicaid and 16.4% for private insurance but remained low for Medicare (5.6%). By September 2022, uptake was higher for Medicaid (43.8%) and private insurance (38.5%) than for Medicare (24%). CONCLUSION: Our results have two key findings for policy makers. First, our results suggest that one or two biosimilars may not generate enough competition to speed adoption rates for biosimilars. Second, Medicare, which covers most patients receiving biologics nationally, had slow adoption rates even after the third biosimilar was introduced. Policy levers to speed adoption among Medicare beneficiaries are needed.

Client preferences for the design and delivery of injectable opioid agonist treatment services: Results from a best-worst scaling task.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Clinical trials support injectable opioid agonist treatment (iOAT) for individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD) for whom other pharmacological management approaches are not well-suited. However, despite substantial research indicating that person-centered care improves engagement, retention and health outcomes for individuals with OUD, structural requirements (e.g. drug policies) often dictate how iOAT must be delivered, regardless of client preferences. This study aimed to quantify clients' iOAT delivery preferences to improve client engagement and retention. DESIGN: Cross-sectional preference elicitation survey. SETTING: Metro Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. PARTICIPANTS: 124 current and former iOAT clients. MEASUREMENTS: Participants completed a demographic questionnaire package and an interviewer-led preference elicitation survey (case 2 best-worst scaling task). Latent class analysis was used to identify distinct preference groups and explore demographic differences between preference groups. FINDINGS: Most participants (n = 100; 81%) were current iOAT clients. Latent class analysis identified two distinct groups of client preferences: (1) autonomous decision-makers (n = 73; 59%) and (2) shared decision-makers (n = 51; 41%). These groups had different preferences for how medication type and dosage were selected. Both groups prioritized access to take-home medication (i.e. carries), the ability to set their own schedule, receiving iOAT in a space they like and having other services available at iOAT clinics. Compared with shared decision-makers, fewer autonomous decision-makers identified as a cis-male/man and reported flexible preferences. CONCLUSIONS: Injectable opioid agonist treatment (iOAT) clients surveyed in Vancouver, Canada, appear to prefer greater autonomy than they currently have in choosing OAT medication type, dosage and treatment schedule.

Where there is no genetic counselor: An online decision-aid supports the majority of parents' diagnostic genomic testing choices for their children.

PURPOSE: We evaluated DECIDE, an online pretest decision-support tool for diagnostic genomic testing, in nongenetics specialty clinics where there are no genetic counselors (GCs). METHODS: Families of children offered genomic testing were eligible to participate. Fifty-six parents/guardians completed DECIDE at home, at their convenience. DECIDE includes an integrated knowledge quiz and decisional conflict screen. Six months later, parents were offered follow-up questionnaires and interviews about their experiences. RESULTS: Forty parents (71%) had sufficient knowledge and no decisional conflict surrounding their testing decision, but 6 of this group had residual questions. These 6, plus 16 with decisional conflict or insufficient knowledge, saw a GC. At follow-up, little-to-no decisional regret and few negative emotions were identified in any parents. Most chose testing and described their decision as easy, yet stressful, and described many motivations for sequencing. Parents appreciated the simple comprehensive information DECIDE provided and the ability to view it in a low-stress environment. CONCLUSION: DECIDE provides adequate decision-support to enable most parents to make value-consistent choices about genetic testing for their child. Parents reported that DECIDE helped to clarify motivations for pursuing (or declining) testing. DECIDE is a timely, well-tested, and accessible tool in clinical settings without GCs.

Can prediction models for hospital readmission be improved by incorporating patient-reported outcome measures? A systematic review and narrative synthesis.

PURPOSE: To investigate the roles, challenges, and implications of using patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) in predicting the risk of hospital readmissions. METHODS: We systematically searched four bibliometric databases for peer-reviewed studies published in English between 1 January 2000 and 15 June 2023 and used validated PROMs to predict readmission risks for adult populations. Reported studies were analysed and narratively synthesised in accordance with the CHARMS and PRISMA guidelines. RESULTS: Of the 2858 abstracts reviewed, 23 studies met predefined eligibility criteria, representing diverse geographic regions and medical specialties. Among those, 19 identified the positive contributions of PROMs in predicting readmission risks. Seven studies utilised generic PROMs exclusively, eleven used generic and condition-specific PROMs, while 5 focussed solely on condition-specific PROMs. Logistic regression was the most used modelling approach, with 13 studies aiming at predicting 30-day all-cause readmission risks. The c-statistic, ranging from 0.54 to 0.84, was reported in 22/23 studies as a measure of model discrimination. Nine studies reported model calibration in addition to c-statistic. Thirteen studies detailed their approaches to dealing with missing data. CONCLUSION: Our study highlights the potential of PROMs to enhance predictive accuracy in readmission models, while acknowledging the diversity in data collection methods, readmission definitions, and model evaluation approaches. Recognizing that PROMs serve various purposes beyond readmission reduction, our study supports routine data collection and strategic integration of PROMs in healthcare practices to improve patient outcomes. To facilitate comparative analysis and broaden the use of PROMs in the prediction framework, it is imperative to consider the methodological aspects involved.

A scoping review of triage approaches for the referral of patients with suspected inflammatory arthritis, from primary to rheumatology care.

We aimed to (1) identify existing triage approaches for referral of patients with suspected inflammatory arthritis (IA) from primary care physicians (PCP) to rheumatologists, (2) describe their characteristics and methodologies for clinical use, and (3) report their level of validation for use in a publicly funded healthcare system. The comprehensive search strategy of multiple databases up to October 2023 identified relevant literature and focussed on approaches applied at the PCP-Rheumatologist referral stage. Primary, quantitative studies, reported in English were included. Triage approaches were grouped into patient conditions as defined by the authors of the reports, including IA, its subtypes and combinations. 13952 records were identified, 425 full text reviewed and 55 reports of 53 unique studies were included. Heterogeneity in disease nomenclature and study sample pretest probability was found. The number of published studies rapidly increased after 2012. Studies were mostly from Europe and North America, in IA and Axial Spondyloarthritis (AxSpa). We found tools ranging the continuum of development with those best performing, indicated by the area under the receiver operating curve (AUC) >0.8), requiring only patient-reported questions. There were AUCs for some tools reported from multiple studies, these were in the outstanding to excellent range for the Early IA Questionnaire (EIAQ) (0.88 to 0.92), acceptable for the Case Finding AxSpa (CaFaSpa) (0.70 to 0.75), and poor to outstanding for the Psoriasis Epidemiology Screening Tool (PEST) (0.61 to 0.91). Given the clinical urgency to improve rheumatology referrals and considering the good.

Quality of life of the Canadian population using the VR-12: population norms for health utility values, summary component scores and domain scores.

OBJECTIVES: To estimate Canadian population norms (health utility values, summary component scores and domain scores) for the VR-12. METHODS: English and French speaking Canadians aged 18 and older completed an online survey that included sociodemographic questions and standardized health status instruments, including the VR-12. Responses to the VR-12 were summarized as: (i) a health utility value; (ii) mental and physical component summary scores (MCS and PCS, respectively), and (iii) eight domain scores. Norms were calculated for the full sample and by gender, age group, and province/territory (univariate), and for several multivariate stratifications (e.g., age group and gender). Results were summarized using descriptive statistics, including number of respondents, mean and standard deviation (SD), median and percentiles (25th and 75th), and minimum and maximum. RESULTS: A total of 6761 people who clicked on the survey link completed the survey (83.4% completion rate), of whom 6741 (99.7%) were included in the analysis. The mean health utility score was 0.698 (SD = 0.216). Mean health utility scores tended to be higher in older age groups, ranging from 0.661 (SD = 0.214) in those aged 18-29 to 0.728 (SD = 0.310) in those aged 80+. Average MCS scores were higher in older age groups, while PCS scores were lower. Females consistently reported lower mean health utility values, summary component scores and domain scores compared with males. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study to present Canadian norms for the VR-12. Health utility norms can serve as a valuable input for Canadian economic models, while summary component and domain norms can help interpret routinely-collected data.

The Association of Rheumatologist Supply and Multidisciplinary Care With Timely Patient Access to Rheumatologists: Evidence From British Columbia, Canada.

OBJECTIVE: The objective was to understand how the expansion of rheumatology supply and the introduction of multidisciplinary care was associated with access to rheumatology services. METHODS: We accessed Population Data BC, a longitudinal database with de-identified individual-level health data on all residents of British Columbia, Canada, to analyze physician visits and prescribing from 2010-2011 to 2019-2020. We calculated access as the time from referral to first rheumatologist visit and, for people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), time to first disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD). Associations between lag time, patient characteristics, and system variables were explored using quantile regression. RESULTS: Over the study period, there were 149,902 new rheumatologist visits, with 31% more visits in 2019-2020 than in 2010-2011. The proportion of first visits for patients with inflammatory arthritis increased from 28% to 51%. The median time from referral to first visit decreased by 22 days (35%) from 63 days (interquartile range 21-120 days) in 2010-2011. For people with RA, time from referral to DMARD decreased by 4 days (6%) to 62 days. Male sex, living in metropolitan areas, and having a rheumatologist who used a multidisciplinary care assessment code were associated with shorter times from referral to first DMARD. CONCLUSION: Access to rheumatology care improved, and the increased proportion of patients with IA in the first visits case-mix indicates that rheumatologist supply and incentives for multidisciplinary care may have improved referral patterns. However, time to DMARDs for people with RA remained long, and we found signals of unequal access for female patients and people living outside of metropolitan areas.

The Complexity of Transferring Remote Monitoring and Virtual Care Technology Between Countries: Lessons From an International Workshop.

International deployment of remote monitoring and virtual care (RMVC) technologies would efficiently harness their positive impact on outcomes. Since Canada and the United Kingdom have similar populations, health care systems, and digital health landscapes, transferring digital health innovations between them should be relatively straightforward. Yet examples of successful attempts are scarce. In a workshop, we identified 6 differences that may complicate RMVC transfer between Canada and the United Kingdom and provided recommendations for addressing them. These key differences include (1) minority groups, (2) physical geography, (3) clinical pathways, (4) value propositions, (5) governmental priorities and support for digital innovation, and (6) regulatory pathways. We detail 4 broad recommendations to plan for sustainability, including the need to formally consider how highlighted country-specific recommendations may impact RMVC and contingency planning to overcome challenges; the need to map which pathways are available as an innovator to support cross-country transfer; the need to report on and apply learnings from regulatory barriers and facilitators so that everyone may benefit; and the need to explore existing guidance to successfully transfer digital health solutions while developing further guidance (eg, extending the nonadoption, abandonment, scale-up, spread, sustainability framework for cross-country transfer). Finally, we present an ecosystem readiness checklist. Considering these recommendations will contribute to successful international deployment and an increased positive impact of RMVC technologies. Future directions should consider characterizing additional complexities associated with global transfer.

What influences decisions to donate plasma? A rapid review of the literature.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Plasma has become an essential ingredient for various medical treatments. Many blood collection agencies rely on voluntary non-remunerated donation when collecting plasma, but at present many do not collect sufficient plasma to meet domestic demands. This rapid review sought to explore the factors that have been found to influence people's decisions to donate plasma to inform future research. METHODS: Searches were conducted in PubMed, PsycINFO, Social Sciences Citation Index and CINAHL for peer-reviewed journal articles that discussed plasma donation and the factors associated with donor behaviour. Pertinent information from included articles was extracted and arranged in themes. RESULTS: In total, 33 articles were included in this review. Three main themes were identified by the authors. The first focused on site-level factors related to blood collection agencies' engagement with plasma donors and their influence on plasma donation experiences. The second theme considered how individual characteristics and experiences influence willingness to donate plasma. The third theme examined social and cultural-level factors, such as how social networks and community shape perceptions and experiences with donation. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that the current understanding of plasma donation is focused mainly on converting whole blood donors and also centres on individual-level factors to donation. Further research must examine what factors attract non-whole blood donors to become plasma donors, focusing on broader social-level influences. This review will inform policies and interventions for blood collection agencies to increase plasma donors.

Understanding what patients and physicians need to improve their decision-making about antenatal corticosteroids in late preterm gestation: a qualitative framework analysis.

BACKGROUND: It is unclear whether the benefits of administration of antenatal corticosteroids in late preterm gestation outweigh its harms. We sought to understand whether patients and physicians need increased support to decide whether to administer antenatal corticosteroids in late preterm gestation, and their informational needs and preferences for decision-making roles related to this intervention; we also wanted to know if creation of a decision-support tool would be useful. METHODS: We conducted individual, semistructured interviews with pregnant people, obstetricians and pediatricians in Vancouver, Canada, in 2019. Using a qualitative framework analysis method, we coded, charted and interpreted interview transcripts into categories that formed an analytical framework. RESULTS: We included 20 pregnant participants, 10 obstetricians and 10 pediatricians. We organized codes into the following categories: informational needs to decide whether to administer antenatal corticosteroids; preferences for decision-making roles regarding this treatment; the need for support to make this treatment decision; and the preferred format and content of a decision-support tool. Pregnant participants wanted to be involved in decision-making about antenatal corticosteroids in late preterm gestation. They wanted information on the medication, respiratory distress, hypoglycemia, parent-neonate bonding and long-term neurodevelopment. There was variation in physician counselling practices, and in how patients and physicians perceived the balance of treatment harms and benefits. Responses suggested a decision-support tool may be useful. Participants desired clear descriptions of risk magnitude and uncertainty. INTERPRETATION: Pregnant people and physicians would likely benefit from increased support to consider the harms and benefits of antenatal corticosteroids in late preterm gestation. Creation of a decision-support tool may be useful.

Patient decision support interventions for candidates considering elective surgeries: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: The increase in elective surgeries and varied postoperative patient outcomes has boosted the use of patient decision support interventions (PDSIs). However, evidence on the effectiveness of PDSIs are not updated. This systematic review aims to summarize the effects of PDSIs for surgical candidates considering elective surgeries and to identify their moderators with an emphasis on the type of targeted surgery. DESIGN: Systematic review and meta-analysis. METHODS: We searched eight electronic databases for randomized controlled trials evaluating PDSIs among elective surgical candidates. We documented the effects on invasive treatment choice, decision-making-related outcomes, patient-reported outcomes, and healthcare resource use. The Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool version 2 and Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluations were adopted to rate the risk of bias of individual trials and certainty of evidence, respectively. STATA 16 software was used to conduct the meta-analysis. RESULTS: Fifty-eight trials comprising 14 981 adults from 11 countries were included. Overall, PDSIs had no effect on invasive treatment choice (risk ratio=0.97; 95% CI: 0.90, 1.04), consultation time (mean difference=0.04 min; 95% CI: -0.17, 0.24), or patient-reported outcomes, but had a beneficial effect on decisional conflict (Hedges' g =-0.29; 95% CI: -0.41, -0.16), disease and treatment knowledge (Hedges' g =0.32; 95% CI: 0.15, 0.49), decision-making preparedness (Hedges' g =0.22; 95% CI: 0.09, 0.34), and decision quality (risk ratio=1.98; 95% CI: 1.15, 3.39). Treatment choice varied with surgery type and self-guided PDSIs had a greater effect on disease and treatment knowledge enhancement than clinician-delivered PDSIs. CONCLUSIONS: This review has demonstrated that PDSIs targeting individuals considering elective surgeries had benefited their decision-making by reducing decisional conflict and increasing disease and treatment knowledge, decision-making preparedness, and decision quality. These findings may be used to guide the development and evaluation of new PDSIs for elective surgical care.

The Cascade of Care for Hepatitis C Treatment in Rwanda: A Retrospective Cohort Study of the 2017-2019 Mass Screening and Treatment Campaign.

Access to hepatitis C (HCV) testing and treatment is still limited globally. To address this, the Government of Rwanda launched a voluntary mass screening and treatment campaign in 2017. We studied the progression of patients through the cascade of HCV care during this campaign. We conducted a retrospective cohort study and included all patients screened at 46 hospitals between April 2017 and October 2019. We used hierarchical logistic regression to assess factors associated with HCV positivity, gaps in care, and treatment failure. A total of 860,801 people attended the mass screening during the study period. Some 5.7% tested positive for anti-HCV, and 2.9% were confirmed positive. Of those who were confirmed positive, 52% initiated treatment, and 72% of those initiated treatment, completed treatment and returned for assessment 12 weeks afterward. The cure rate was 88%. HCV positivity was associated with age, socio-economic status, sex, marital status, and HIV coinfection. Treatment failure was associated with cirrhosis, baseline viral load, and a family history of HCV. Our results suggest that future HCV screening and testing interventions in Rwanda and other similar settings should target high-risk groups. High dropout rates suggest that more effort should be put into patient follow-up to increase adherence to care.

Using a patient-centred composite endpoint in a secondary analysis of the Control of Hypertension in Pregnancy Study (CHIPS) Trial.

BACKGROUND: Clinical trials commonly use multiple endpoints to measure the impact of an intervention. While this improves the comprehensiveness of outcomes, it can make trial results difficult to interpret. We examined the impact of integrating patient weights into a composite endpoint on the interpretation of Control of Hypertension in Pregnancy Study (CHIPS) Trial results. METHODS: Outcome weights were extracted from a previous patient preferences study in pregnancy hypertension (N = 183 women) which identified (i) seven outcomes most important to women (taking medication, severe hypertension, pre-eclampsia, blood transfusion, Caesarean, delivery < 34 weeks, and baby born smaller-than-expected) and (ii) three preference subgroups: (1) 'equal prioritizers', 62%; (2) 'early delivery avoiders', 23%; and (3) 'medication minimizers', 14%. Outcome weights from the preference subgroups were integrated with CHIPS data for the seven outcomes identified in the preference study. A weighted composite score was derived for each participant by multiplying the preference weight for each outcome by the binary outcome if it occurred. Analyses considered equal weights and those from the preference subgroups. The mean composite scores were compared between trial arms (t-tests). RESULTS: Composite scores were similar between trial arms with the use of equal weights or those of subgroup (1) (95% confidence intervals [CIs]: - 0.03, 0.02; p > 0.50 for each). 'Tight' control was superior when using subgroup (2) weights (95% CIs: 0.002, 0.07; p = 0.03), and 'less-tight' control was superior when using subgroup (3) weights (95% CIs: - 0.11, - 0.04; p < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Evidence-based recommendations for 'tight' control are consistent with most women's preferences, but for a sixth of women, 'less-tight' control is more preference consistent. Depending on patient preferences, a single trial may support different interventions. Future trials should specify component weights to improve interpretation. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01192412.

Uptake and Spending on Biosimilar Infliximab and Etanercept After New Start and Switching Policies in Canada: An Interrupted Time Series Analysis.

OBJECTIVE: Uptake of biosimilars has been suboptimal in North America. This study was undertaken to quantify the impact of various policy interventions (namely, new start and switching policies) on uptake and spending on biosimilar infliximab and etanercept in British Columbia (BC), Canada. METHODS: We used administrative claims data to identify BC residents ≥18 years of age with rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis, and/or plaque psoriasis who qualified for public drug coverage from January 2013 to November 2020. Using interrupted time series analysis, we studied the change in proportion spent on and prescriptions dispensed of biosimilar infliximab and etanercept out of the total amount per agent after new start and biosimilar switching policies were implemented. RESULTS: Our study included 208,984 individuals living with rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, plaque psoriasis, and/or psoriatic arthritis, corresponding to 5,884 patients taking infliximab and etanercept. After the new start policy, we detected a small gradual increase in the proportion of dispensed biosimilar etanercept prescriptions of 0.65% per month (95% confidence interval [95% CI] 0.44, 0.85). The trend related to the proportion of total spending on biosimilar etanercept also increased (0.51% [95% CI 0.28, 0.73]). After the switching policy, there was a sustained increase in the proportion of dispensed biosimilar etanercept and infliximab prescriptions of 76.98% (95% CI 75.56, 78.41) and 58.43% (95% CI 52.11, 64.75), respectively. Similarly, there was a persistent increase in monthly spending on biosimilar etanercept and infliximab of 78.22% (95% CI 76.65, 79.79) and 71.23% (95% CI 66.82, 75.65), respectively. CONCLUSION: We found that mandatory switching policies were much more effective than new starting policies for increasing the use of biosimilar medications.

Preferences for COVID-19 Vaccination in People With Chronic Immune-Mediated Inflammatory Diseases.

OBJECTIVE: To understand how people with chronic immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs) trade off the benefits and risks of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine options. METHODS: We conducted an online discrete-choice experiment in people with IMIDs to quantify the relative importance (RI) of attributes relevant to COVID-19 vaccination. Participants were recruited between May and August 2021 through patient groups and clinics in Canada, and completed 10 choices where they selected 1 of 2 hypothetical vaccine options or no vaccine. The RI of each attribute was estimated and heterogeneity was explored through latent class analysis. RESULTS: The survey was completed by 551 people (89% female, mean age 46 yrs) with a range of IMIDs (inflammatory bowel disease [48%], rheumatoid arthritis [38%], systemic lupus erythematosus [16%]). Most had received 1 (94%) or 2 (64%) COVID-19 vaccinations. Across the ranges of levels considered, vaccine effectiveness was most important (RI = 66%), followed by disease flare (21%), rare but serious risks (9%), and number/timing of injections (4%). Patients would accept a risk of disease flare requiring a treatment change of ≤ 8.8% for a vaccine with a small absolute increase in effectiveness (10%). Of the 3 latent classes, the group with the greatest aversion to disease flare were more likely to be male and have lower incomes, but this group still valued effectiveness higher than other attributes. CONCLUSION: Patients perceived the benefits of COVID-19 vaccination to outweigh rare serious risks and disease flare. This supports COVID-19 vaccine strategies that maximize effectiveness, while recognizing the heterogeneity in preferences that exists.

Patient-reported Differences in Obstructive Sleep Apnea Care between Jurisdictions with and without Government Funding for Continuous Positive Airway Pressure.

Rationale: Funding for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) treatment may impact how patients access care, wait times, and costs of care. Objectives: The aim of this study was to compare differences in diagnosis and treatment of OSA between Canadian jurisdictions with and without public funding for continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP). Methods: We administered an anonymous internet survey to Canadian adults reporting a physician diagnosis of OSA. Responses were categorized on the basis of whether the respondent's province provided full or partial funding for CPAP therapy for all patients. We assessed wait times for diagnosis and treatment, patient-borne costs, and model of care delivery compared between jurisdictions with and without universal CPAP funding. Results: We received 600 responses representing all Canadian provinces and territories. The median (interquartile range) age was 59 (49-66) years; 57% were male, and 21% were from rural settings. Patients living in provinces without public CPAP funding (n = 419) were more likely to be diagnosed using home sleep apnea testing (69% vs. 20%; P = 0.00019). Wait times were similar after adjustment for demographics, disease characteristics, and model of care. Although patient-borne costs of care were similar between jurisdictions, patients from regions without CPAP funding reported that cost had a greater influence on the choice of therapy. Sleep specialists were more commonly involved in OSA care in regions with CPAP funding. There was no difference in the current use of therapy between jurisdictions with and without public funding. Conclusions: This survey study demonstrates that public funding for CPAP therapy impacts how Canadians access OSA care but is not associated with differences in wait times or costs. Future research is required to determine the impact of different funding models for OSA care on clinical outcomes.