May 17, 2019

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ACP Regulatory News

Who's Taking the Tech Route on Patient Care?

New ACP survey sheds light on telemedicine adoption and hurdles.


Advocacy in Action

Why Tackle Climate Change? ‘Our Health and the Planet Are at Stake’

ACP speaks out in an effort to mitigate the negative effects on public health.


ACP Fears New Rule Makes More Patients Vulnerable to Not Getting Needed Care

Federal regulation expands medical professionals' options to refuse care that conflicts with their moral or religious beliefs.


In Case You Missed It

ACP offers tools, resources on fostering productive health care cost conversations

ACP's new Cost of Care Conversations tools help physicians and patients understand the importance of talking about costs of health care and efficiently and effectively address cost issues in the clinical setting. Health care costs have been rising steadily in the United States and are a common cause of financial distress for patients. Acknowledging and discussing the costs of care with patients may impact care plans and eventually result in a stronger clinician-patient relationship and better patient outcomes.

The resources, which include evidence-based articles and training tools, were developed with grant support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. A supplement to Annals of Internal Medicine features eight articles and related multimedia content suggesting strategies for discussing the cost of care with patients during clinical encounters. The supplement includes links to tools designed to overcome barriers that may impede such conversations. The tools include free online health care cost estimator resources and a cost distress screening tool and conversation guide.


ACP encouraged by rule requiring drug pricing transparency in TV ads

ACP is encouraged by the final rule announced by the Trump Administration to require pharmaceutical manufacturers to disclose the cost of drugs in television advertisements. ACP believes that this is a promising step in improving transparency in prescription drug pricing. Prescription medications are only as effective as a patient's ability to access and adhere to treatment as prescribed.

ACP outlined its support for increasing transparency in the pricing, cost, and comparative value of all pharmaceutical products in our 2016 policy paper, Stemming the Escalating Cost of Prescription Drugs.


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