Immediate Postpartum Long-Acting Reversible Contraception: Review of Insertion and Device Reimbursement Policies

BackgroundPrevious assessment of statewide policies on long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) indicate that an increasing number of states are implementing policies specifically for provision immediately postpartum, supported by current clinical guidelines. Less is known about how state policies describe payment methodologies for the insertion procedure and device costs.MethodsWe conducted a systematic, web-based review of publicly available statewide policy language on immediate postpartum LARC among all 50 states. We examined the payor/s identified in the policy and policy type, if the policy included language on the global obstetric fee, whether providers and/or facilities were authorized to bill for procedure or device costs, and if the billing mechanism was identified as inpatient and/or outpatient services.ResultsThree-fourths of states (76%; n = 38) had statewide policies on immediate postpartum LARC. All policies identified Medicaid as the payor, although two also included non-Medicaid plans. Language allowing for reimbursement separate from the global obstetric fee for insertion procedures was present in 76% of states; 23 states permit it and 6 do not. Device cost reimbursement separate from the fee was identified in more state policies (92%); 31 states allow it and 4 do not. More policies included inpatient or outpatient billing mechanisms for device costs (82%; n = 31) than insertion procedures (50%; n = 19).ConclusionsMedicaid reimbursement policies for immediate postpartum LARC services vary by state reimbursement process, type, and mechanism. Observed differences indicate payment methodologies more often include the cost of the device than provider reimbursement (31 states vs. 23 states). Fewer than one-half of states offer reimbursement for provider insertion fees, a significant systems barrier to contraceptive access for women who choose LARC immediately postpartum.     

International year of the family 1994: Family and gender equity in education

“Building the smallest democracy at the heart of society,” is the motto of the International Year of the Family being celebrated during 1994. The year 1994 has been designated by the United Nations to highlight issues concerning families locally, nationally, and globally during the year and to suggest recommendations for changes in policies and programs.

Since 1975, when the world celebrated International Women's Year, and again, in 1979 during International Year of the Child, evidence has been accruing regarding gender disparities in all countries. It is discouraging, yet perhaps not surprising, that in 1994 the world still awaits gender equity, even though a considerable amount of progress has been made since 1975.     

The Role of Indication-Based Pricing in Future Pricing and Reimbursement Policies: A Systematic Review

ObjectivesIndication-based pricing (IBP) has received growing attention because of the expected increase in the number of new medicines with multiple indications. In our systematic review, we assess the potential benefits, barriers, current experiences, and future perspectives of different IBP mechanisms.MethodsWe searched publications in English, Spanish, or French assessing the impact, international experience, and future context of IBP systems on PubMed, Scopus, Cochrane, EconLit, American Society of Clinical Oncology, and National Institute for Health Research Health Technology Assessment from 2000 to 2020. This was complemented by a gray literature search in Google Scholar.ResultsA total of 29 publications that specifically addressed the topic of IBP were retained. The most commonly reported benefits of IBP were a better alignment of medicines’ value and price, optimization of research and development incentives and increase of competition, and improvement of patients’ access to treatments. Data collection and proper infrastructures, and the risk of high administrative burden and associated costs, were seen as the main barriers for proper IBP implementation. International experience lacks concrete examples of IBP. A single weighted average price according to volume, value, or a combination of both, appears to be the most used methodology, followed by different confidential net prices per indication. Different brands with distinct price per indication are less common, although it is considered a pure IBP system.ConclusionsEvidence of IBP impact is still scarce, and there is a need for pilot projects and experiences to monitor its real consequences. An appropriate price and reimbursement model for multi-indication medicines should be a priority, but political will and proper data collection systems remain crucial.     

Secular trends in blood pressure among Japanese schoolchildren: a population-based annual survey from 1994 to 2010

Background: Monitoring secular trends in blood pressure (BP) among children is important in predicting subsequent hypertension and cardiovascular disease. We investigated secular trends in BP using data from population-based annual screenings of Japanese schoolchildren.Methods: The participants were 10 894 children (all fourth graders between 1994 and 2010 and all seventh graders between 1997 and 2010) living in the town of Ina in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. Body height, weight, and BP were measured, after which children were classified as non-overweight, overweight, or obese. Trends in variables relative to calendar year were analyzed using regression models.Results: Systolic BP was significantly associated with calendar year among fourth- and seventh-grade boys (-0.350 and -0.434 mm Hg/year, respectively) and fourth- and seventh-grade girls (-0.513 and -0.473 mm Hg/year, respectively) (all P < 0.001), respectively, over time. Systolic BP and calendar year were significantly negatively correlated regardless of physique or sex among all fourth graders, but not among obese seventh-grade girls. In addition, diastolic BP and calendar year did not significantly correlate among seventh-grade overweight or obese boys or obese seventh-grade girls.Conclusions: BP decreased among fourth-grade schoolchildren in Ina during the past 17 years, regardless of sex or physique. However, BP and calendar year did not significantly correlate among obese seventh graders.     

2010年度卫生部全国细菌耐药监测网报告:老年患者细菌耐药监测

目的 了解老年患者细菌感染种类分布及耐药特点.方法 用常规方法分离病原菌,用API鉴定或自动化细菌鉴定仪鉴定细菌,采用K-B纸片扩散法或自动化微量肉汤稀释法进行药敏试验;应用WHONET5.4软件进行统计分析.结果 全国125所医院＞65岁的老年患者共分离97 494株细菌,其中革兰阴性菌72 655株,革兰阳性菌24 839株,分离数前10位的依次为大肠埃希菌、铜绿假单胞菌、鲍氏不动杆菌、肺炎克雷伯菌、金黄色葡萄球菌、凝固酶阴性葡萄球菌、嗜麦芽寡养单胞菌、屎肠球菌、阴沟肠杆菌、粪肠球菌;38.1％的细菌来源于痰标本,大肠埃希菌、肺炎克雷伯菌、产酸克雷伯和奇异变形菌产ESBLs的检出率分别为70.1％、54.1％、40.6％和32.7％;肠杆菌科对美罗培南的耐药率均＜5.0％,而肺炎克雷伯菌对亚胺培南的耐药率已高达12.3％,铜绿假单胞菌和鲍氏不动杆菌对碳青霉烯类的耐药率分别为＜30.0％、55.0％,均对多黏菌素保持高度敏感性,敏感率分别为96.1％和96.0％ ;MRSA和MRCNS的分离率分别为69.9％和83.3％;未发现耐万古霉素、替考拉宁和利奈唑胺葡萄球菌属,肠球菌属对万古霉素和替考拉宁的耐药率均＜6.2％,未发现耐利奈唑胺肠球菌.结论 对＞65岁患者细菌耐药性应引起足够重视,加强抗菌药物合理使用以降低耐药性,并采取有效措施控制其传播.