Unbiased Analysis of Today's Healthcare Issues
Managing multiple medications is a challenge for many individuals, particularly the elderly. One study by Almodóvar et al. (2019) found that among Medicare beneficiaries eligible for medication therapy management (MTM), 51% had used 11 or more medications. One approach to improving medication management is to use an appointment-based model (ABM) and other forms of medication…
One reason for worse health outcomes for racial minorities could be reduced access to pharmacies. However, how big a problem is pharmacy access? A recent Health Affairs paper by Guadamuz et al. (2021) uses 2007-2015 data from the National Council for Prescription Drug Programs (NCPDP) to identify pharmacies, which were then geocoded and linked to…
Recently, the N.Y. Times, ran a story on medication therapy management programs (MTMPs). These programs typically involve either face-to-face or over-the-phone sessions between pharmacists and patients in retail stores or clinics. For example, insurance plans pay pharmacists to track patients, monitor cholesterol or blood glucose levels, and prod customers to change their diets or exercise. …