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**The Latest Research, Commentary, and News from Health Affairs**

**Monday, June 22, 2020**

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HEALTH POLICY BRIEF

Social Isolation And Health

Government-ordered social distancing has been an important factor in
reducing community spread of COVID-19. It has also brought increased
attention to social isolation's significant and well-established
negative effects on morbidity and mortality. This Health Policy Brief
defines social isolation and loneliness, reviews their prevalence and
likely causes, discusses evidence connecting them to health, and
outlines policy interventions and challenges to be addressed. Read More
>>
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TODAY ON THE BLOG
COVID-19

Preparing For The Next COVID-19 Crisis: A Strategy To Save Safety-Net
Hospitals

By Peter P. Reese, Eugene Lin, and Meera N. Harhay

The COVID-19 pandemic has taxed our health care system to a point that
many safety-net hospitals face budget shortfalls that could force them
to close. Without a comprehensive strategy to protect safety-net
hospitals, the people they employ and the patients they serve will bear
the brunt of COVID-19's next wave. Read More >>

The Double Pandemic Of Social Isolation And COVID-19: Cross-Sector
Policy Must Address Both

By Julianne Holt-Lunstad

Similar to an economic recession that can have lasting effects even
after the economy begins to grow, social restrictions put in place
during the pandemic may have profound long-term consequences for social
isolation and its health sequelae, even after they are lifted.
Read More >>

MEDICAID

Trump Administration Proposes Medicaid Reforms To Encourage Innovative
Contracting Models

By Rachel Sachs

CMS's Medicaid best-price reporting proposal should-if
finalized-mitigate legal uncertainty for pharmaceutical companies
seeking to enter into innovative contracting arrangements with
commercial insurers. However, more will be needed to address broader
drug pricing concerns and encourage true value-based payment reforms.
Read More >>

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IN THE JOURNAL

PRIVATE HEALTH INSURANCE

Out-Of-Network Spending Mostly Declined In Privately Insured Populations
With A Few Notable Exceptions From 2008 To 2016

By Zirui Song, William Johnson, Kevin Kennedy, Jean Fuglesten Biniek,
and Jacob Wallace

While out-of-network or potential "surprise" billing has garnered
increasing attention, particularly in emergency department and inpatient
settings, few national studies have examined out-of-network care overall
or in other settings. Zirui Song and coauthors examined out-of-network
spending and use among two large nationwide populations with
employer-sponsored insurance. Read More >>

CONSIDERING HEALTH SPENDING

Paying For Value From Costly Medical Technologies: A Framework For
Applying Value-Based Payment Reforms

By Marianne Hamilton Lopez, Gregory W. Daniel, Nicholas C. Fiore, Aparna
Higgins, and Mark B. McClellan

Marianne Hamilton Lopez and coauthors propose a value-based payment
framework for medical products, including drugs, devices, and diagnostic
tools. Read More >>

Read the June 2020 Table of Contents
.

Subscribe to Health Affairs for full journal access.

**A CLOSER LOOK**-Racial Disparities

While Medicare's Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program has been
associated with improvements in readmission rates, little is known about
its effect on racial disparities. In their April 2018 Health Affairs
article, "Medicare Program Associated With Narrowing Hospital
Readmission Disparities Between Black And White Patients," José
Figueroa and coauthors compared trends in thirty-day readmission rates
for several conditions, finding that minority-serving hospitals saw
greater reductions in readmissions than other hospitals did
.

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About Health Affairs

Health Affairs is the leading peer-reviewed journal
at the intersection of health,
health care, and policy. Published monthly by Project HOPE, the journal
is available in print and online. Late-breaking content is also found
through healthaffairs.org , Health Affairs
Today , and Health Affairs
Sunday Update .  

Project HOPE is a global health and
humanitarian relief organization that places power in the hands of local
health care workers to save lives across the globe. Project HOPE has
published Health Affairs since 1981.

Copyright © Project HOPE: The People-to-People Health Foundation, Inc.

Health Affairs, 7500 Old Georgetown Road, Suite 600, Bethesda, MD 20814, United States

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