Read today’s Kaiser Health News
In other news:
CDC finds 4% drop in US death rate in 2024. Experts say decline may be due to COVID:The United States death rate decreased by 3.8% in 2024 as COVID fell out of the top 10 leading causes of death for the first time in four years, new provisional federal data shows.
The overall rate declined from 750.5 per 100,000 people in 2023 to 722 per 100,000, according to the report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS).
This marks the lowest death rate recorded since 2020, during the first full year of the COVID-19 pandemic, and follows declines that began in 2022.
About health insurance/insurers
Lack of Health Coverage in US Remained Stable at 8% for 2024: The share of individuals in the US lacking health coverage held steady at 8%, or roughly 27 million people, in 2024, according to data the US Census Bureau released Tuesday.
The data show fluctuations in the uninsured rate for different demographics, although the numbers were not considered statistically significant. Working-age Black Americans’ uninsured rate ticked up from 11.1% to 12.3%, while Hispanic Americans’ uninsured rate dipped from 23.6% to 23%. Foreign-born workers were more than twice as likely to lack health insurance as native-born workers.
Just 1% of employees drive nearly a third of all health care spending: What You Need To Know
—Individuals with significant chronic and comorbid conditions drive a disproportionate percentage of the health care dollars.
—1% of enrollees account for 29% of spending at an average annual cost of $206,000 per person.
—61% of all enrollees in employment-based health plans have at least one chronic condition
About hospitals and healthcare systems
Hospitals Face Financial Duress As Trump Tariffs And Payment Cuts Hit:U.S. hospitals are facing mounting financial pressures as President Trump’s tariffs hit prescription drugs and the Republican-led Congress’ cuts to healthcare spending begin to take hold as early as next year.
A parade of new reports on hospital and health system finances show operating margins falling and financial outlooks dimming in part due to rising prescription drug costs. Meanwhile, bad debt and charity expenses are increasing as Americans see higher co-payments and deductibles, which means they aren’t paying their hospital bills or at least the patient share of the tab.
In a related article: 21 health system rating downgrades
Association Between Changes in Medicare Advantage [MA] Enrollment and Hospital Finances Report from MedPAC. The entire report is easy to read but read page 12 for the conclusion.
About pharma
Semaglutide and Tirzepatide for Obesity: Effectiveness and Value An analysis from the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER). The “bottom line” is:
The incremental cost-effectiveness ratios for each drug are listed in Table ES2. All drugs were cost-effective at the $100,000 per QALY and evLY gained thresholds.
Despite these therapies being highly cost-effective, their potential budget impact is large. We estimate that fewer than 1% of eligible patients could be treated at current and assumed net prices before crossing the ICER budget impact threshold of $880,000,000 annually. This raises serious concerns about affordability.
Hims & Hers Health expands into testosterone therapy after Novo Nordisk breakup: Telehealth company Hims & Hers Health announced Wednesday that it is launching treatment for low testosterone.
Effective immediately, providers on the Hims platform can prescribe personalised doses of a compounded version of the selective estrogen receptor modulator enclomiphene, either alone or combined with the erectile dysfunction medication tadalafil, for men experiencing sexual symptoms. Beginning next year, Hims will also offer Kyzatrex (testosterone undecanoate), an FDA-approved oral testosterone replacement therapy from Marius Pharmaceuticals.
Amid tariff uncertainty, Korea's Samsung Biologics inks $1.3B contract manufacturing deal with US pharma: Despite persistent uncertainty under the Trump administration’s international trade policy, Korea’s Samsung Biologics continues to snare billion-dollar contract manufacturing deals in the U.S.
As with previous production accords inked by the company, Samsung Bio has not revealed the identity of the drugmaker it will work with, though the CDMO did specify that its client is a “U.S.-based pharmaceutical company.”
All told, the contract manufacturing deal will run through Dec. 31, 2029 and net Samsung Bio 1.8 trillion Korean won (roughly $1.3 billion), the company said in a Tuesday filing on the Korea Exchange. Samsung Bio noted that the contract timeline could be changed in the future.
About the public’s health
Poor Accuracy of Blood Pressure Measurement Images Online: Implications for Public Health Education: Only 1 in 7 online stock photo images of BP measurement align with clinical guidelines. Media houses, website developers, and the public should be educated on appropriate measurement techniques to ensure accurate BP measurement in the clinic and at home.
About healthcare personnel
12 fastest-growing healthcare jobs by 2034 FYI
How does CEO tenure in healthcare compare to other industries?: The average tenure of healthcare CEOs is slightly shorter than the average across industries, according to a recent report from executive search firm Crist Kolder Associates.
Healthcare CEOs serve an average tenure of 7.3 years, compared to 7.5 years across industries. In 2024, the average tenure for healthcare CEOs was 7.6 years, compared to an average of 7.4 years across industries.