Disappointing. What @ the actual "patients?" Widgets in our industrialized healthcare? FYI - most NC State Health Plan retirees are enrolled sponsored Humana plans - not Aetna 70/30 FFS. Duking It Out: State Health Plan Negotiations Continue As Deadline Looms www.theassemblync.com/health/duke-...

Clearly - healthcare spending doesn't impact all the same. Great info - thanks @kffhealthnews.org

Love Stefanie Ferreri's passion for community-based pharmacists and what they/we can do to improve health in our communities!

Follow the money - generally, good advice! @nchealthnews.bsky.social

Not good news.... #medicarepartd Breaking Down Why Medicare Part D Premiums Are Likely to Go Up www.medpagetoday.com/publichealth...

Begins next month: Tariffs on Medicines From Europe Stand to Cost Drugmakers Billions www.nytimes.com/2025/07/28/h...

We agree; excellent information and the video is so clear.

We agree! Medicaid is critical to the health of so many - in many ways. That includes people and communities.

Excellent work...per usual.

The opaque world of prescription payments - great description of the biggest middlemen - #PBMs and how they are damaging #pharmacy access; original mission gone off track for big bucks. @nchealthnews.bsky.social

Critical to watch how manufacturers with medicines that are in "protected drug classes" and taken orally, set their launch prices in light of the IRA's $2,000 annual cap on Rx spending for Medicare beneficiaries. Terrific job @dusetzinas.bsky.social

This is great reporting that should be a WAKE UP CALL to all in North Carolina (and beyond). This would trample on some of our most vulnerable neighbors.

Proud to know and work with two of these pharmacy leaders! Tasha Woodall with MAHEC in Buncombe County and UNC-CH and Megan Carr at High Point SOP. Great pharmacy leadership #AGS25

Always good to hear from DeLon Canterbury with @geriatrix.bsky.social and his passion for @deprescribing.bsky.social

Wise advice #AGS25 from Michelle Keller!

Pharmacoequity matters. Appreciate this work! #AGS25 @uressien.bsky.social

Thanks to advocates for aging in Congress, including Jan Schakowsky. Proud to be on the public policy committee for AGS. #AGS25

Proud to be an AGS member today...LGBTI+ position statement...talking about how to ensure all feel safe and cared for as we age. #AGS25

Happy to attend the @deprescribeus.bsky.social meeting in Chicago...preconference to the #AGS25 mtg!

The "system" is the major problem, and transparency about where the money flows - and for what value - is critical.

Yes, we need more geriatricians and other professionals working in geriatrics. Direct care workforce is also particularly challenged - and immigration policies may make things much worse for those trying to age with dignity.

MedPAC: Medicare Paid MA Plans $38 billion for Non-Medicare Services in 2024 www.medpagetoday.com/publichealth...

Trump pledges tariffs on pharmaceuticals, setting up fight over who pays www.washingtonpost.com/business/202... Not good!!

A federal judge in Texas blocked a Biden administration rule to boost staffing at nursing homes. KFF Health News walked through the decision from the judge and what it could mean for nursing home staffing. kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

At a meeting to kick off implementation of the new aging plan in NC - All Ages, All Stages NC. News pouring in about massive program and budget cuts in aging services across the Country. So sad when there is so much to do!

Massive changes and reductions: RFK Jr.'s Mass Layoffs: How Many Jobs Top Health Agencies Will Lose www.medpagetoday.com/washington-w...

12.2 million Medicare beneficiaries (nearly 1 in 5) also have Medicaid coverage. Most in this group have low incomes and modest savings. Medicaid coverage makes Medicare more affordable by paying the program’s premiums and, in most cases, cost sharing: on.kff.org/4iEtfEi

“We found that pharmacies will face payment delays of at least a week beyond current terms; they will lose $11,000 per week in cash flow; and they could lose as much as $43,000 annually.”

KFF’s updated analysis examines 5 indicators used to measure the quality of U.S. health care: treatment outcomes, provision of appropriate treatment, patient safety, preventive services, and system and workforce capacity.

Another potentially devastating policy for some...

Thanks to Fox Family Foundation for its stellar support since 1996! They recently featured our work in their newsletter. foxfoundation.org/defining-suc...

So happy to be here...remembering MaryAnn Black and hearing from Senator Natalie Murdock! Congrats to all the researchers as light truly shines in the darkness.

I know the world is on fire, but maybe next week will be less chaotic and you would like a little break to talk drug policy? If so, please join me and Laura Tollen at Health Affairs to talk about the next 15 drugs selected for Medicare negotiation! www.healthaffairs.org/do/10.1377/h...

Excellent description of "safe harbor protections" that allow "kickbacks" (rebates for formulary placement) b/w manufacturers and PBMs for branded meds, and how PBMs pay pharmacies less for some meds than the pharmacy paid to the obtain the medicine from the wholesaler (spread pricing).

“While there are ~500 Medicare formularies nationally, 5 of those formularies account for ~2/3 of my patients.”

Always read what @rachelsachs.bsky.social writes. Great summary of 2024 and what's ahead in 2025 for Rx policy. I might not get over this part - states arguing why they have a stake in banning mifepristone: because it...."is depressing expected birth rates for teenaged mothers".

HHS announces the next 15 drugs to negotiate under Part D! Great to see this progress. Quite a few cancer treatments, which will mean more savings potential than in the first year's drug list (cancer drugs get limited or no rebates today). Good news for taxpayers and Medicare spending!

After years of PBMs accusing critics of cherry-picking examples of big markups on specialty drugs, this new FTC report reveals that PBMs have been in the cherry-farming business all along. www.ftc.gov/news-events/...

Adverse side effects from prescription drugs can worsen a person’s health, but it isn’t always easy to ask providers about taking fewer medications. Grace Vitaglione reports ⤵️ buff.ly/49MYGcd

Opinion: The public response to Brian Thompson’s murder misunderstands something important www.statnews.com/2024/12/05/u...

Excellent reporting! #medicare #medicareadvantage @nchealthnews.bsky.social

My North Carolina aging hero...Mary Bethel...years of amazing advocacy for older adults (on left). Thanks to her and Jill Simmerman @NCDivisonofAging and others for All Stages, All Ages NC! @nciom annual mtg.