The gene therapy pipeline contains several drugs that are likely to cost the health care system billions of dollars in the near future, according to an a new CVS white paper.
The big picture: Drugmakers are already having to come up with creative ways to get paid for high-cost drugs, the Wall Street Journal reported yesterday, and that's before these new gene therapies hit the market.
The Affordable Care Act’s insurance market has not been materially affected by the elimination of the individual mandate penalty — undercutting a key argument in the lawsuit urging the courts to strike down the health care law.
The big picture: Healthy enrollees have not left the market in droves, premiums have not spiked and there has been no market death spiral.
The share of Americans who say it's important to vaccinate children has fallen from 94% to 84% since 2001, according to a new Gallup survey.
The big picture: Misinformation about vaccines is still rampant — 46% of those polled said they weren't sure whether vaccines cause autism, despite numerous studies showing no apparent link.
Hospitals acknowledged to investors at this year's J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference that their industry is contributing to patients' financial turmoil.
Yes, but: Hospitals reassured those same investors that they were focused on growing their revenue, with no real details about how that would save patients money.
A mysterious virus discovered in Wuhan, China, is believed to have played a role in the death of a patient, while another case has been reported by a person who traveled from Wuhan to Thailand, the World Health Organization confirmed Monday.
The latest: Chinese officials said Sunday that one out of 41 confirmed patients has died, but cautioned that they had underlying health issues. A public health official said the U.S. is not overly concerned the virus might spread here.
A venture capitalist is launching a company today to create new drugs that mimic the effects of blockbuster drugs, and then sell them to insurers and hospital systems at a lower price, STAT reports.
Between the lines: The key question is whether insurers and hospitals will buy these new drugs over their competitors.
As hospital prices rise and much of the sector continues to rake in cash, rural hospitals continue to shutter.
Why it matters: There's no way to address U.S. health care spending without cutting hospital costs. But blanket cuts could hurt hospitals that are already struggling to keep their doors open, leaving vulnerable patients without access to care.
