January 12, 2022

Deciding Between Increased Dose, Medication Add-On in Uncontrolled BP

Adding a medication to help manage uncontrolled blood pressure (BP) appears to be advantageous but appears to rarely occur, according to a new study of older patients with hypertension. Instead, most patients simply are prescribed higher doses of their current medication. Find out why researchers are urging more studies on the issue.

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Sexual Minority Patients More Likely to Skimp on Medications Because of Cost

Assuring medication adherence is a constant challenge for pharmacists, especially since not much research has been done on which patients are most likely to be affected by cost constraints. A new study offers some useful information, suggesting that sexual minority patients are more likely to use techniques to reduce medication costs, often resulting in less compliancy with their drug regimens. Read more.

Why Did CDC Change COVID-19 Isolation, Quarantine Recommendations?

Earlier this month, the CDC reduced some isolation and quarantine requirements for mildly ill and asymptomatic COVID-19 patients, now calling for isolation and quarantine periods of 5 days. The actions raised questions as to why public health officials decided to do that during the fast-moving Omicron variant outbreak. Recently, the CDC provided some answers to these questions on its website. Read more.

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How Out-of-Pocket Costs Have Changed for Medicare Chronic Disease Patients

The good news is that out-of-pocket costs have declined for some Medicare beneficiaries with chronic conditions and prescription drug plans. The bad news, however, is that costs increased substantially over a decade for some guideline-recommended medications for these older adults, according to a recent study. The authors note that the most affected were patients with multiple comorbidities. Read more.

 
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