Around the world, wealthy countries are struggling to afford long-term care for rapidly aging populations. Most spend more than the United States through government funding or insurance that individuals are legally required to obtain. Some protect individuals from exhausting all their income or wealth paying for long-term care. But as in the United States, middle-class and affluent individuals in many countries can bear a substantial portion of the costs.
Study shows how drug manufacturers use FDA, patent strategies to keep insulin prices high
Over the last four decades, insulin manufacturers have extended their periods of market exclusivity on brand-name insulin products by employing several strategies, including filing additional patents on their products after FDA approval and obtaining many patents on delivery devices for their insulin products. That is the conclusion of a new analysis of FDA and patent records carried out by William Feldman of Brigham and Women’s Hospital, U.S., and colleagues, and published Nov. 16 in the open access journal PLOS Medicine.
Swedish study finds growing income inequities in the utilization of health care resources
Swedish people with the lowest incomes utilize primary and outpatient care on par with those with the highest incomes despite having significantly higher mortality rates, according to a new study published November 16 in the open access journal PLOS Medicine by Pär Flodin of Karolinska Institutet, Sweden, and colleagues.
Researchers: We won’t get real equality until we price breast milk and treat breastfeeding as work
The Australian Women’s Economic Equality Taskforce delivered a major report last month drawing attention to what it called the “motherhood penalty”—the 55% cut in earnings for Australian women in the first five years after having a child.
‘Phage therapy’ could treat some drug-resistant superbug infections, but comes with unique challenges
As bacteria become resistant to antibiotics, more people will become infected and die of untreatable bacterial infections. By 2050, drug-resistant infections are predicted to kill ten million people a year.
Examining the impact of a hospital’s portfolio strategy on patient demand
Researchers from Indiana University and Texas Christian University published a new Journal of Marketing study that examines the impact of a hospital’s portfolio strategy on patient demand.
A healthy mouth helps to maintain balanced metabolic profiles, finds study
Common oral infections, periodontal diseases and caries, are associated with inflammatory metabolic profiles related to an increased risk of cardiometabolic diseases, a new study by an international team of researchers suggests. Oral infections also predicted future adverse changes in metabolic profiles.
Compassion fatigue can happen to anyone—here’s how you can overcome it
When tragic events happen, no matter how far away from us they are, it’s hard not to pay attention. Many of us empathize with the people in these situations and wonder how we can get involved, or if there’s anything we can do to help.
How a mutation in microglia elevates Alzheimer’s risk
A rare but potent genetic mutation that alters a protein in the brain’s immune cells, known as microglia, can give people as much as a three-fold greater risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. A new study by researchers in The Picower Institute for Learning and Memory at MIT details how the mutation undermines microglia function, explaining how it seems to generate that higher risk.
Gene splicing found to reduce effectiveness of CD20-targeting monoclonal antibodies for blood cancers and disorders
Immunotherapies that target the CD20 antigen have revolutionized how patients with a variety of blood cancers and hematologic disorders have been treated. However, many patients develop resistance to these treatments due to a loss of the antigen that’s being targeted.