How HHS, FDA, and CDC Can Influence U.S. Vaccine Policy

This policy brief highlights areas in which HHS, FDA, and CDC have authority to shape U.S. vaccine policy with a specific focus on vaccine approvals and recommendations for the public. Ultimately, while there are limits, federal officials have significant authority to influence and alter vaccine policy, which could affect vaccine availability, views about vaccines, and…

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Drug characteristics impacting rebates

What drug characteristics lead to higher vs. lower prices in the US? A paper by Beinfeld et al. (2025) finds the answer using data from SSR Health (about rebates) and Tufts Medical Center Specialty Drug Evidence and Coverage (SPEC) database (to inform drug characteristics. Among the 161 drugs in both SSR and SPEC data, the…

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The Clinical Enterprise is the Beating Heart of Health Systems

By JEFF GOLDMSITH As health systems struggle to emerge from the post-COVID financial crisis, the importance of the clinical enterprise to these systems has dramatically increased.  Healthcare organizations are getting larger, as failing enterprises are absorbed into growing systems.  Yet clinicians of all stripes but particularly physicians feel a deepening sense of alienation from the…

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Higher Drug Prices, No Tariffs: U.K. Trade Pact Shows How Trump Is Coaxing Countries to Pay More for Meds

The U.K. cost-effectiveness standard for drugs will increase by 25% in exchange for zero tariffs on the country’s pharmaceutical exports. The new trade agreement’s parameters could shape deals the Trump administration is pursuing with other countries. The post Higher Drug Prices, No Tariffs: U.K. Trade Pact Shows How Trump Is Coaxing Countries to Pay More…

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