Behavioral Health Expert Discussion: Register here for my live interview next week, Friday, November 10th, with Wendy Abraham, Utilization Analyst, APWU Health Plan, and Ish Bhalla, MD, Medical Director of Behavioral Health Value Transformation, Blue Cross NC as we discuss the complex behavioral health ecosystem.
67: Percent of physicians are concerned about the use of AI in healthcare decision-making, according to a Medscape survey. Most are more supportive of it as a tool to help with administrative tasks like scheduling and note-taking, but worried about it being used for more involved tasks like diagnosing and treatment planning. Interestingly, older doctors, those 45-64, were more supportive of AI. Some specialists are also more supportive – particularly those already using it in some capacity like radiologists. Earlier this week, President Biden signed an executive order directing HHS to develop a program to better regulate AI tools already used in healthcare.
Burnout: Around 56% of nurses and 47% of physicians reported burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic, and high rates of burnout have continued into 2023. The CDC recently launched an initiative for hospitals to address employee well-being and offers training for leadership.
Goodnight, Sweetheart: California has experienced a 19% increase in men taking paid family leave since 2020, signaling a shift in the perception of parental leave from both employers and employees. Research shows that when fathers take leave, mothers tend to have better health outcomes, according to an associate professor of health policy at Stanford. Residents of most states have access to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave. Thirteen states and DC have enacted a paid family leave law, although some have yet to take effect.
Gene Therapy: The FDA is reviewing a one-time therapy that uses gene-editing to treat sickle cell disease. The blood disorder causes severe pain and organ damage and most with the disease die by 50-55. But the exa-cel therapy would mark the first time CRISPR gene editing will be used in a clinical setting and the first curative treatment for sickle cell, which affects around 7 million people worldwide including 100,000 Americans, most commonly Black or African Americans. The FDA has until December 8 to decide about whether to approve the therapy.
$1,000 For Doula Care: Walmart is expanding access to doula services for all employees, expanding a pilot program originally offered in four states. The expanded benefit will cover up to $1000 for doula services during pregnancy and is part of Walmart’s Life with Baby program.
Menopause Business: Memorial Hermann Health System is partnering with a virtual provider focused on menopausal care. Women in Texas will be able to access the Midi Health services directly through the company’s platform or through a referral by a Memorial Hermann provider. After meeting with a provider specializing in menopause care, patients receive a personalized care plan that can include hormonal or non-hormonal medications, behavioral health coaching, evidence-based supplements and integrative therapy.
Price Gap: The first study looking at federally mandated price transparency data from health insurers shows that health plans negotiate widely variable prices for the same procedures, depending on where in the country they’re performed. Research published in JAMA looked at Humana’s rates for seven different procedures for about 1 million members with commercial insurance – even though the health plan is exiting the commercial market at the end of the year. Higher rates tended to be paid in the Upper Midwest and Southeast. Prices varied from $69-$114 for an office visit and from $348-$528 for a colonoscopy, presumably for the professional fee only.
Onsite: Smaller employers are starting to follow in the footsteps of larger ones by offering onsite healthcare clinics, and a Mercer survey found more employers are offering deductible-free health plans to their employees, as about 25% of employees report they can’t afford their healthcare needs without help.
Extra Point: Dad says he “deleted the internet” again last night and somehow disabled use of his phone “because it was talking Spanish,” forcing him to walk over to Gerry’s house to call me about the time change for today’s 129th echocardiogram this year. He really loves these echos, obviously. I think he’s going for the record. Dad is repeating this story as we sit here early Friday morning waiting for the sonographer to call him in. “You know I think your mom had something to do with it – she was watching the your tube when it happened.” You mean You Tube dad? I said. “I don’t know whose tube it is…I just know she is probably to blame. But don’t tell her I said that. She’s making her spaghetti tonight.” It’s interesting watching my folks navigate life in their 80s, learning how to live in what must seem like a foreign world at times, holding on to familiarity like the tinker bell held onto her Reese’s on Halloween this week – it’s not unlike our kids navigating life in their 20s, on their own in a big city, grub hubbing Chipotle with the $13 they have in their account like they did when they were 15, feeling part lost, part over their head but doing best they can. I suppose my bride and I may not be much different in our 80s as things like artificial intelligence force us to God only knows what…take a George Jetson style helicopter to the actual clouds to see our sonographer? I guess until then we’ll just have to enjoy the lighter moments of coming of age, and aging.