Practice Management
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last week approved the new non-opioid analgesic suzetrigine (Journavx) to treat moderate to severe acute pain in adults. Suzetrigine is an oral tablet that reduces pain by targeting the NaV1.8 pain-signaling pathway in the peripheral nervous system before the pain signals reach the brain. It is the first drug to be approved in this new class of pain management medicines, according to the FDA. Two randomized, double-blind trials of …
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Montefiore Health System is now the latest partner to hook its wagon to Amazon One Medical. In 2026, the health system will host the first One Medical brick-and-mortar primary care offices in New York’s Westchester County, according to a press release. With the affiliation, One Medical can refer patients to Montefiore for follow-up or additional health services. Montefiore and One Medical plan to open additional new facilities over the next several years as well. Some …
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CVS Health recently launched a re-engineered smartphone app that hopes to make the consumer experience better, according to the Wall Street Journal. It includes prescription refill ordering by scanning a prescription package barcode and tools that offer more prescription price transparency. It also has a feature for scheduling appointments at MinuteClinics, video visits with a provider, and checking insurance coverage. Customer reward points and benefits are streamlined in the new CVS app interface. Also just …
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A meta-analysis found that the global prevalence of reported penicillin allergy is 9.4% (ranging from 5-15%), as published in the Journal of Infection, however, much of the data could be skewed because it comes from high-income countries. Researchers analyzed 174 studies from 28 countries. Of those, 72% of the studies were conducted in the United States (95 studies), United Kingdom (18), and Australia (18). Even so, previous research has shown that 95% of people identified …
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Advocate Health Care will close all 47 of its Illinois urgent care centers that operate inside Walgreens retail pharmacy stores as well as several in Wisconsin, according to a statement from Advocate Health Care as reported by NBC. Company leaders made the decision to instead focus on virtual care and urgent care in other community locations. The clinics will close next week. Advocate—the largest health system in Illinois and the 3rd largest nonprofit system in …
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While some health officials initially distinguished an emerging tuberculosis (TB) outbreak in Kansas City as the largest documented TB outbreak on record in the United States, a report from the Associated Press indicates that it’s likely not the largest. A spokesperson for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) told the news outlet that there are at least 2 other larger TB outbreaks recorded. According to data from the Kansas Department of Health and …
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Proposed regulatory changes in Oregon would require registration for urgent care (UC) centers operating in the states while also enforcing a number of operational standards. Like the newly minted Massachusetts law, Oregon’s proposal would give the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) discretion to create processes, define fees, and require certain capabilities among UC centers. For example, the proposed regulation includes a requirement that centers must provide clinical summaries and medical notes to patients after their visits. …
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A group of 58 global clinicians has proposed a new way of identifying obesity that does not rely on body mass index (BMI) alone. They believe waist circumference and direct fat measurement should also be figured in, as well as other signs and symptoms of health, according to an online article in Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology. Current BMI-based measures of obesity can underestimate or overestimate body fat and health status. The clinician group recommends that …
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Kids diagnosed with multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) associated with COVID-19 infection recover fully within 6 months after infection, according to research presented in JAMA Pediatrics. Data came from more than 1,200 pediatric patients treated at 32 North American pediatric hospitals from March 2020 to January 2022. MIS-C is concerning because kids with the diagnosis are at risk for cardiovascular complications, meanwhile, the authors found that myocardial involvement occurred in 60.5% of patients studied. …
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Amazon customers will now be prompted to sign up for Teladoc’s chronic care offerings thanks to a new partnership announced this week between the 2 organizations. Teladoc already has 1 million program participants, and the connection to Amazon will only boost its visibility and market presence. Anyone managing diabetes, hypertension, prediabetes and weight loss can now enroll in virtual care directly through Amazon’s Health Benefits Connector. Just like its agreement with Hinge Health, Talkspace, and …
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