Despite decreasing rates of alcohol and tobacco use during pregnancy, the use of cannabis use during pregnancy is on the rise. According to data collected from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, the use of cannabis in pregnant women aged 18 to 44 years rose from 2.37% in 2002 to 3.85% in 2014… Read More »
The Food and Drug Administration is proposing recommendations on how to better design studies to assess pregnancy outcomes in women exposed to FDA-regulated drugs and biological products. The new guidance includes sections on obtaining information from databases and electronic health records systems. According to the agency, its recommendations replace 2002 guidance issued to industry—which has… Read More »
Use of prescription opioids such as OxyContin or Vicodin fell at a record rate last year as the U.S. government continues to crackdown on the pharmacists and drugmakers that dispense the sometimes lethal painkillers, according to a new report published Thursday.
Health insurers are establishing innovative ways to provide better care and improve the overall patient experience, according to America’s Health Insurance Plans. That’s why insurers are investing in patient portals, mobile apps, telehealth and other personalized tools, like those that focus on social determinants of health, says Cathryn Donaldson, director of communications at AHIP. The… Read More »
Dive Brief: In 2017, 94% of U.S. hospitals used their EHR data in ways that inform clinical practice, up from 87% in 2015 and equal to 2016 usage, new data released by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology shows. The most frequent use of EHR data was to support quality improvement (82%), followed… Read More »
CareSource will implement a new integrated pharmacy benefits management approach called CareSource RxInnovations, managed by Cigna’s Express Scripts. Dayton, Ohio-based CareSource, a nonprofit multi-state health plan serving government-sponsored programs, will let its current PBM contract with CVS Caremark expire at the end of 2019 and commence the new contract with Express Scripts on Jan. 1,… Read More »