MedCity Pivot Podcast: Price Transparency is the New North in the PBM World

[Sponsored] In this episode, a pharmacy benefit management executive and a pharmacy startup talk about why benefit verification, prior authorizations, and patient affordability still break the workflow and how smart integrations, real-time eligibility, and intuitive design can reduce friction for all involved. The post MedCity Pivot Podcast: Price Transparency is the New North in the…

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Ian Morrison

I got the very sad news today that Ian Morrison died peacefully at home yesterday. He had been sick and in hospice for some time but a few months back he told me that he was going for Jimmy Carter’s record. Ian was my first boss in American health care when I worked for him…

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Medicare Advantage Insurers Made Nearly 50 Million Prior Authorization Determinations in 2023

Nearly 50 million prior authorization requests were submitted to Medicare Advantage insurers on behalf of Medicare Advantage enrollees in 2023, of which 3.2 million (6.4%) were denied. Just 11.7% of denied requests were appealed, though 81.7% of appeals overturned the initial denial in Medicare Advantage. Substantially fewer prior authorization requests were made in traditional Medicare,…

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CMS’ ACCESS Model: A New Push to Rewire Medicare Around Outcomes?

CMS’ new ACCESS model, slated to begin on July 1, aims to shift traditional Medicare fee-for-service toward value-based care by tying payments to patient outcomes and encouraging tech-enabled, preventive care. Experts say it could benefit digitally mature, value-focused providers first, but its overall success will hinge on clear metrics, better data sharing and sustained participation….

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