Healthcare Strategies

2023 Predictions: Insights from Payers, Providers, Revenue Cycle, Life Sciences Leaders

In 2023, payers, providers, revenue cycle, life sciences leaders will face extreme financial pressures that will shape their decisionmaking but that may also open their eyes to new opportunities in value-based care and other areas of healthcare. Healthcare leaders from Blue Shield of California, Cook Medical, Forrester Research, and Providence Health & Services – Washington share their projections for the new year.

Advancing Sexual Health: Breaking Down the Barriers to Gender-Affirming Care Access

Gender-affirming care, including social, psychological, behavioral, and medical interventions, is supportive healthcare that affirms a person’s gender identity when it conflicts with their assigned birth gender. Though proven to result in overwhelmingly positive outcomes, such as reducing suicide ideation and attempts, gender-affirming care access can be hard to come by, especially in primary care settings. In this episode, Kate Steinle, nurse practitioner, chief clinical officer at FOLX Health, and former Planned Parenthood employee, discusses ways to break down the barriers to gender-affirming care and expand access to patients.

Advancing Sexual Health: Introducing Health Plans Designed for the LGBTQ+ Community

Seniors in the LGBTQ+ community today are aging in a country that is much more open to conversation about LGBTQ+ care and wellness than when they were young, but they still face barriers to care and coverage. Sachin Jain, MD, president and chief executive officer of SCAN Group and SCAN Health Plan, and Jill Selby, senior vice president of product development, marketing, and market expansion for SCAN Health Plan, share how the health insurance industry can facilitate coverage and cultural change to reduce barriers to care for LGBTQ+ seniors.

Advancing Sexual Health: Addressing the Real Cost of IVF

Because the effects of fertility treatment such as in vitro fertilization can often be traumatic and taxing, patients see many disruptions in their daily lives and have rated the stress of undergoing this procedure as more stressful than or almost as stressful as any other major life event, including the death of a family member or divorce. In this episode, Dr. Maria Costantini-Ferrando, clinical director and reproductive endocrinologist with Reproductive Medicine Associates of New Jersey and a licensed clinical psychologist, shares how in vitro fertilization impacts patients personally, financially, and emotionally and how healthcare providers can lend support.

Chronic Disease Care: Balancing Third-Party Health App Benefits With Security, Privacy Risks

Third-party health apps can help patients manage chronic diseases, log vital signs, and take charge of their health. But these apps often fall outside of HIPAA's purview, leaving them in a regulatory gray area. Tina Grande, executive vice president for policy at the Healthcare Leadership Council and chair of the Confidentiality Coalition, Robert Tennant, vice president of federal affairs at the WEDI, and Marilyn Zigmund Luke, vice president at AHIP, discuss third-party health app privacy and security risks.

Chronic Disease Care: Solving Data Sharing Barriers for Incarcerated Patients with HIV

Supporting care coordination for incarcerated individuals is challenging due to fragmented care systems and data sharing barriers. Kim Dong, DrPH, RD, assistant professor in the Department of Public Health and Community Medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine, and Lynda Rowe, senior advisor of value-based systems at InterSystems, share findings from a study evaluating HIV care transition processes at a Massachusetts jail.

Chronic Disease Care: How Pharmacies Can Empower Patients Managing Chronic Diseases (Part 2)

In the second part of a two-part series on specialty pharmacies, Shaunte Law Rhames, RN, BSN, an infusion care nurse supervisor working in inpatient management services, and Nichol Marrero Nieves, PharmD CSP, a patient management service pharmacist who specializes in neurology, behavioral health, and chronic inflammatory diseases at AllianceRx Walgreens Pharmacy, one of the nation's largest home delivery and specialty pharmacies for patients with rare and chronic diseases, share how pharmacy team members can purposefully support patients manage and prevent chronic diseases.

Chronic Disease Care: How Pharmacies Can Empower Patients Managing Chronic Diseases (Part 1)

Considering specialty pharmacies provide highly accessible healthcare to patients, pharmacies have the chance to extend their role by advocating for better patient outcomes and supporting patients in navigating the complexities of dealing with a chronic disease. Shaunte Law Rhames, RN, BSN, an infusion care nurse supervisor working in inpatient management services, and Nichol Marrero Nieves, PharmD CSP, a patient management service pharmacist who specializes in neurology, behavioral health, and chronic inflammatory diseases at AllianceRx Walgreens Pharmacy, one of the nation's largest home delivery and specialty pharmacies for patients with rare and chronic diseases, share how the pharmaceutical community can purposefully empower patients and prevent future illnesses.

Value-Based Care: Improving Progress by Implementing Industry Collaboration Teams

The nation’s progress toward value-based care is impeded by the siloed nature of the healthcare industry. Joe Castiglione, principal program manager of Industry Initiatives at Blue Shield of California, shares how Blue Shield implemented an industry collaboration team to increase momentum in value-based care progress.

Value-Based Care: Boosting Value-Based Care for Seniors Through In-Home, Telehealth Services

To meet the needs of an increasingly independent senior population, primary care organization Heal leverages in-person and virtual care services to provide care in the home. Justin Zaghi, MD, Heal's chief medical officer, joined the podcast to discuss Heal's model, how it uses telehealth and RPM to supplement in-person care, and how care in the home can support value-based care delivery.