Friday Factoids

David Ermer–COVID-19, Federal employment benefits, Rx coverage, U.S. Healthcare–
Photo by Sincerely Media on Unsplash

Here are links to the CDC’s Covid Data Tracker and its last weekly interpretative review of those statistics. From now until the interpretative review ends, the interpretative review will be offered every other week, except when that Friday is the beginning of a federal three-day weekend. Good timing for this change because we just started the three-day weekend drought, which ends with Memorial Day.

The summary notes, “At this point in the pandemic, COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths have been decreasing for several weeks, and much of the country has protection against circulating strains either through vaccination, previous infection, or a combination of both.” Nevertheless, the CDC urges folks to be vaccinated or stay current on vaccinations because the virus can change.

The CDC’s Fluview says, “Seasonal influenza activity remains low nationally.”

From the Rx coverage, Ed Silverman writing in STAT News comments

Now that Eli Lilly slashed the price for some of its insulin products, the moves raised questions about what will happen to other efforts to provide low-cost insulin, Kaiser Health News explains. Civica, a nonprofit, plans to begin selling biosimilar insulin for roughly $30 per vial by 2024 — $5 more than the new price of Lilly’s generic insulin. And the Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Co. plans to sell low-cost insulin. But drug pricing experts predict Lilly’s moves will not undercut those efforts. And these other initiatives to bring lower-cost insulin to market, in turn, would put pressure on Lilly to keep its prices down.

The FEHBlog agrees with these comments. Cost curve down.

From the U.S. healthcare business front, Healthcare Dive informs us

  • VillageMD, the clinical network majority owned by Walgreens, has acquired a medical group in Connecticut that operates more than 30 locations across the state.
  • On Friday, VillageMD said it snapped up Starling Physicians, which operates primary care and multi-specialty practices, for an undisclosed sum.
  • The acquisition expands VillageMD to more than 700 medical centers, as Walgreens continues to invest in expanding its clinical footprint.

Tammy Flanagan, writing in Govexec, points out irrevocable benefits decisions, e.g., FEHBP, that a federal or postal employee must make at the time they decide to take a CSRS or FERS retirement