The Rising Cost of Insulin for Pump Users: How Policy Drives Prices.

The price of insulin has increased dramatically over the past two decades. Medicare reimbursement for insulin is based on the route of administration via syringe (Part D) or via pump (Part B). Recently, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced a voluntary model for Part D enhanced plans that lower out-of-pocket costs to a co-pay of ≤$35/month.

C-PEPTIDE AND BETA-CELL AUTOANTIBODY TESTING PRIOR TO INITIATING CONTINUOUS SUBCUTANEOUS INSULIN INFUSION PUMP THERAPY DID NOT IMPROVE UTILIZATION OR MEDICAL COSTS AMONG OLDER ADULTS WITH DIABETES MELLITUS.

Objective: To study the impact of the C-peptide and beta-cell autoantibody testing required by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on costs/utilization for patients with diabetes mellitus initiating continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion (CSII) therapy.

Methods: This retrospective study used propensity score-matched patients. Analysis 1 compared patients 1-year pre- and 2-years post-CSII adoption who met or did not meet CMS criteria.

IMPROVED HBA1C, TOTAL DAILY INSULIN DOSE, AND TREATMENT SATISFACTION WITH INSULIN PUMP THERAPY COMPARED TO MULTIPLE DAILY INSULIN INJECTIONS IN PATIENTS WITH TYPE 2 DIABETES IRRESPECTIVE OF BASELINE C-PEPTIDE LEVELS.

Objective: Fasting C-peptide levels are used to differentiate type 1 from type 2 diabetes (T2D), thereby determining eligibility for coverage of continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion (CSII) for patients with T2D.

Methods: A total of 168 patients (74 female/94 male, aged 55.5 ± 9.

Health Care Costs, Hospital Admissions, and Glycemic Control Using a Standalone, Real-Time, Continuous Glucose Monitoring System in Commercially Insured Patients With Type 1 Diabetes.

Background: Studies comparing standalone real-time continuous glucose monitoring (rtCGM) to self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG) in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) have found that rtCGM is associated with lower glycated hemoglobin (A1C) levels, yet does not increase the risk of severe hypoglycemia. However, little is known about the relationship between rtCGM and health care costs and utilization. The objective of this study was to compare health care spending, hospital admissions, and A1C levels of patients using rtCGM to that of patients not using rtCGM.

Association between provider specialty and healthcare costs and glycemic control for patients with diabetes.

Aims: To analyze the association between provider, healthcare costs, and glycemic control for patients with diabetes mellitus (DM).

Materials And Methods: This cross-sectional study identified adults with type 1 or 2 DM (T1D, T2D) in the Optum database. The main independent variable was provider (endocrinologist or primary care).