Biologic High Out of Pocket Costs for Medicare Patients

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Specialty tier drugs, including biologics, accounts for nearly half of all medication spending by Medicare Part D patients. High out-of-pocket costs for these patients is a major concern. 

Pain Drives the Use of Medical Marijuana

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A report from the University of Michigan examined state-wide medical marijuana showing most of it is used for chronic pain.

Compounded Pain Creams - Expensive Placebos?

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The Annals of Internal Medicine reports that the growth and use of compounded pain creams is unwarranted as they were no better than placebo in a randomized controlled trial, suggesting their higher costs are unjustifiable compared to other topical commercially available agents (lidocain

Obesity Needs to be Treated in Psoriatic Arthritis

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Obese patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) who followed a short-term, very low-energy diet showed improvements in multiple aspects of disease activity, a prospective study found.

2019: the Year of Price Hikes

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In 2019 there have been numerous reports of higher drug pricing for many drugs.  Yesterday it was reported that the price of insulin drugs have more than doubled from 2012 to 2016.

Febuxostat Gets Reprieve from FDA Advisory Panel

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On January 11, 2019 the FDA convened two advisory panels (the Arthritis Advisory Committee [AAC] and the Drug Safety and Risk Management Advisory Committee [DSaRM]) to consider the cardiovascular safety of febuxostat (Uloric) based on the 2018 “Cardiovascular Safety of Febuxostat and Allopurinol

Assessing the Performance of Aging Physicians

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A JAMA Viewpoint article examines the performance of aging surgeons and notes that the effects of aging affects physicians variably and that physician competency should be based on functional age (and abilities) rather than chronologic age. This argues against a mandatory retirement age for surgeons.

RheumNow Podcast – Gout Spot Light (1.11.19)

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Dr. Jack Cush discusses the highlights from the past week on RheumNow.com:

Price of Drug Promotion Skyrockets

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JAMA reports that health care advertising costs in the U.S. have almost doubled over the past two decades, surging from $17.7 billion in 1997 to at least $29.9 billion in 2016.

BMS Buyout of Celgene for $74 Billion

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Reuters reports that Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) has announced its intention to buy Celgene Corp for nearly $74 billion in a cash-and-stock deal.

2018 Rheumatology Year In Review

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This annual appraisal of hallmark moments, news and research articles from 2018 are gleaned from that published in RheumNow during the last year and filtered by other news sources and literature review.  The top 10 list herein is rooted in what rheumatologists should know and what will likel

Uncertain Long Term Efficacy in Trials of Knee Osteoarthritis

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A systematic review and network meta-analysis of 47 randomized clinical trials in knee osteoarthritis finds uncertainty around estimates of effect size for pain scores thereby casting uncertainty over the long-term efficacy of medications for knee osteoarthritis.

Sleep Apnea Increases Gout Risk

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Both Gout and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) comingle with a wide range of serious comorbidities. A matched retrospective cohort study from the UK Clinical Practice Research database shows those with OSA are at a higher risk of developing gout.

Best of 2018: Advance Practice Clinicians Proliferating in Specialty Practices

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An analysis of SK&A outpatient provider files, covering 90% of physician practices in the United States, shows that between 2008 to 2016, there was a 22% increase in the employment of advanced practice clinicians (APCs) by specialty practices.  By 2016, 28% of all specialty practices employed APCs.

Best of 2018: Patients May Not Fill Your Prescription

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A new study linking administrative claims and electronic health records (EHRs) shows that nearly 40% of patients fill and take newly prescribed methotrexate (MTX), tofacitinib or biologics. 

Kan et al set out to estimate the extent and predictors of primary nonadherence in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients who received new prescriptions for methotrexate, biologics or tofacitinib.

RheumNow Podcast – Rheumatologist Salaries (12.21.18)

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Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news from RheumNow for the week ending 12/21/18.

Rheumatologist and Physician Salaries for 2018

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Medpage Today has published the results of their 2018 Rheumatology Specialty Salaray Survey.

H2H: Ixekizumab vs. Adalimumab in Psoriatic Arthritis

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Lilly has issued an advanced press release on its SPIRIT-H2H trial, wherein ixekizumab (Taltz) was shown to be more effective than than adalimumab (Humira) in a 24 week psoriatic arthritis study.

Rising Physician Exclusion from Medicare and Medicaid

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JAMA Network Open has published that an increasing number of physicians are being excluded from Medicare and other forms of public insurance. 

CDC Top 15 Most Common Opioid Overdose Drugs

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The Dec. 12 issue of the National Vital Statistics Reports from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that the most commonly abused drugs causing drug overdose deaths (between 2011-2016) include fentanyl, heroin, oxycodone, and cocaine.