Confronted with the different clinical impacts of different treatments, the rising cost of cancer care, and the financial burden of high drug prices, several influential professional organizations have developed models with which to assess the clinical benefit and value of cancer treatment regimens. The goal is a system of valuing patient therapies that is aligned with the beneficial impact to the patient and society and that moves away from a fixed cost regardless of clinical circumstances.
Variation exists in the quality and quantity of data available to patients seeking financial assistance for cancer treatment via manufacturer Web sites and hotlines. Greater transparency among patient assistance programs would enhance utility for patients and help to determine the net impact on costs and adherence.
IntroductionThe study details the experiences of Medicare, Medicaid and privately insured patients with diabetes in the United States by focusing on how these distinct populations perceive their disease and manage their treatment.MethodsA national survey was fielded among a representative sample of 2,307 US adult diagnosed diabetes patients to investigate demographic, lifestyle, treatment, access to information, and socioeconomic status. This was achieved using a combination of telephone-based interviews and internet-based questionnaires administered via KnowledgePanel®, the only large-scale online panel based on a representative random sample of the US population.ResultsPatients with Medicaid-based insurance face significant differences in diagnosis, treatment and intensity of their diabetes as compared to their Medicare and privately insured counterparts. Medicaid patients develop diabetes at an earlier age with an increased level of severity, and face significant socioeconomic concerns. Medicaid patients also have different health information seeking preferences than their counterparts, impacted by technology use patterns and education preferences. All groups report challenges in paying for their diabetes care, though cost-sharing requirements are relatively low.ConclusionsSignificant variation in experience between Medicaid, Medicare, and privately insured patients can inform disease management and patient engagement strategies. Payers, clinicians and public health agencies can leverage these findings to design initiatives more effectively and understand how intergroup variability impacts program uptake and disease outcomes.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s13300-015-0109-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.