On July 16, 2018, Kevin Brady (R-TX), House Ways and Means Committee chair, announced that he’s working with the Trump administration to restore funding to key Affordable Care Act (ACA) payments. Previously, the White House suspended more than $10.4 billion in payments to insurers, which brought criticism from Democrats and stern warnings of rising healthcare premiums.
On July 20, 2018, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved ivosidenib for adult patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with a susceptible IDH1 mutation as detected by an FDA-approved test.
In response to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) on setting a tobacco standard for nicotine levels in combusted cigarettes, ONS submitted comments urging the agency to lower nicotine levels in combusted cigarettes and all tobacco products. Specifically, ONS recommended lowering the level of nicotine to a maximum of 0.4 mg or lower and that the ratio of tar to nicotine stay around 1 to reduce addiction. ONS pointed out that even lower levels of nicotine are harmful to health.
ONS shared the perspective of nurses caring for patients who may struggle to afford cancer drugs in comments submitted to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on its Prescription Drug Reform Request for Information.
Lurking in the dark corners of bedrooms across the country, unseen figures wait to feast of the blood of humans and animals alike. When the lights go dark, they come out for dinner. No, they’re not vampires or mystical beasts—they’re bedbugs. These parasitic insects feed exclusively on the blood of humans and animals and are a prevalent parasite in the United States.
Managing toxicities and adverse events (AEs) so that patients can continue to stay on effective treatments is essential to improving outcomes. Catherine Hill, BSN, RN, OCN®, Margaret Blaney, RN, BSN, Ashley Layton, BSN, RN, OCN®, and Kaddie Lopez, BSN, RN, OCN®, PHN, discussed ways to manage and prevent symptoms in cancer care during a session at the 43rd Annual Congress in Washington, DC.
On July 18, 2018, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) expanded the indication for ribociclib (Kisqali) in combination with an aromatase inhibitor for pre/perimenopausal women with HR-positive, HER2-negative advanced or metastatic breast cancer, as initial endocrine-based therapy.