Health Headlines for Tuesday, March 1
Waste in Cancer Drugs Costs $3 Billion a Year, a Study Says
New York Times
The federal Medicare program and private health insurers waste nearly $3 billion every year buying cancer medicines that are thrown out because many drug makers distribute the drugs only in vials that hold too much for most patients, a group of cancer researchers has found.
Affordability: The Most Urgent Health Reform Issue For Ordinary Americans
Health Affairs Blog
The most serious health care problem faced by most Americans is affordability. A December Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 62 percent of Americans surveyed, including 62 percent of Republicans and 67 percent of Democrats, were concerned about the position of presidential candidates on health care affordability.
New Study Links Zika Virus to Temporary Paralysis
New York Times
A new study of 42 cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome in French Polynesia offers the strongest evidence to date that the Zika virus can trigger temporary paralysis, researchers reported on Monday.
CONFER: New Yorkers don’t need another health insurance tax
Niagara Gazette
Health Republic Insurance of New York was the largest of the 23 non-profit cooperatives created under the Affordable Care Act. It started up in 2013 after receiving $174.4 million in seed money from the feds.
New initiative to fight colorectal cancer in WNY
WKBW Buffalo
Buffalo will become the first city in the nation to unite local government and competing health systems around the shared goal of fighting colorectal cancer in Western New York.