2012 Trends Report: Latest Industry Trends in Managed Care

Managed Care Professionals Challenged by Rising Costs

Associated with Treatment of Obesity and Other Disease States

New Trends Report, Released by HMP Communications, LLC,

Uncovers Hot Button Issues for Managed Care Executives

 Contact: Lisa Tomaszewski           P: 610-560-0500, ext 318

ltomaszewski@hmpcommunications.com

MALVERN, PA (February 6, 2013)—2012 Trends Report: Latest Industry Trends in Managed Care, produced by First Report^® Managed Care, finds obesity to be one of the most complicated disease states to manage, with additional findings on asthma, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease also included in the report. The survey, developed by First Report Managed Care editorial staff and an advisory panel of key thought leaders, was distributed to a diverse pool of managed care professionals.

Obesity poses a particular challenge to managed care professionals with 84.6% of those surveyed indicating a combination of comorbities, increased cost of care, and limited success in treatment as their greatest concerns. While 59% of the organizations represented do not cover obesity drugs, over half of those surveyed said that their organizations do offer incentives to their covered population to participate in wellness programs aimed at weight loss. *

In terms of asthma, the report also looked at the gap between getting the FDA to approve a new drug and getting a healthcare plan to cover it.  Managed care professionals surveyed were asked how quickly their organization would review any new devices/delivery systems for antiasthma agents to formulary.  39% said that it would take between 3 to 6 months after FDA approval to begin their review process. Only 9.8% said immediately after FDA approval. *

In addition to obesity and asthma, the treatment of diabetes was also identified as a growing cost among managed care professionals. As shared by one of the survey participant, “This already expensive arena will continue to expand along with increasing demand.”

Commenting on the future of cardiovascular treatment options, another participant said, “We anticipate the new agents for acute coronary syndrome will have a significant impact on our pharmacy expenditures.”

The goal of this Trends Report is to provide a forum where managed care professionals can see a snapshot of what their peers are doing, what frustrations they are facing, and how they are meeting the challenges inherent in this field. And through this information, they may find inspiration and insight. Visit www.firstreportnow.com for more information.

 If you’d like more information about this topic, or to schedule an interview with Lisa Tomaszewski, please call Kerri Fitzgerald at 610-560-0500, ext. 370 or email Kerri at kfitzgerald@hmpcommunications.com.  

 *This statistic is based on the results of the Trends Report Survey, which targeted managed care professionals.

About HMP Communications, LLC

HMP Communications, LLC, is a leader in healthcare communications and education. The company publishes some of the nation’s most well respected medical journals across a wide spectrum of medical specialties, including Wound Care/Podiatry, Cardiovascular, and Life Science. Additional core competencies within HMP include more than 20 years of meeting management/production expertise and over a decade producing cutting edge, online educational programs. For additional information, visit www.hmpcommunications.com.

About First Report Managed Care

First Report Managed Care (www.firstreportnow.com) is a managed markets print and online brand that circulates to more than 21,000 health plan CEOs, hospital formulary committee members, HMO pharmacists, health plan medical directors and pharmacy directors, large employer decision-makers, and state prison facility managers. The editorial mission is focused on delivering the most comprehensive late-breaking information that affects managed market providers with topics that include clinical, legislative, and economic developments. First Report Managed Care also reports on dozens of scientific and managed care conferences throughout the world, providing readers with pertinent news from scientific sessions, symposia, and late-breaking clinical trials. In addition, the First Report Managed Care award-winning travel brand is the official City Guide of both the AMCP Annual Meeting and Educational Conference.

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 Tags: Trends Report, obesity, asthma, diabetes, cardiovascular disease