Use of Telehealth for Follow-up Care After Children's Mental Health Hospitalizations.

Objectives: This study measured the extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted follow-up care for children and adolescents with acute mental health hospitalizations and the use of telehealth to offset barriers to in-person follow-up care.

Methods: The study used statewide claims data from Alabama's Children's Health Insurance Program, ALL Kids, from 2017 to 2022. Logit regressions measured associations between receipt of follow-up care within 30 days of acute mental health hospitalization and patient characteristics, timing of the COVID-19 pandemic, and receipt of care via telehealth.

Zero-Dollar Copayment Impact on Adherence Scores for Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Star Ratings Generic Medications.

Introduction: The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Star Ratings system pushes Medicare Advantage health plans to achieve ever greater attainments in key metrics, including adherence to hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA reductase inhibitor (statins), renin-angiotensin system (RAS) antagonist, and noninsulin antihyperglycemic (DM) medications. The purpose of this observational study was to evaluate the impact of expanding a $0 copayment (copay) benefit from mail order-only to mail order plus retail pharmacies on adherence to statin, RAS, and DM medications.

Methods: Medicare beneficiaries with and without a $0 copay expansion who received ≥ 1 dispensing of a generic, CMS Star Ratings RAS, statin, and/or DM medication during both 2021 and 2022 were included.

Disorders of the Pancreas.

The pancreas is a vital intra-abdominal organ with dual exocrine and endocrine function. This article provides an overview of several common pancreatic pathologies including pancreatitis, pancreatic cysts, and pancreatic cancer with a focus on clinical presentation as well as initial diagnosis and management.

Telehealth use among pediatric Alabama Medicaid enrollees, March-December 2020: Variations by race/ethnicity & place of residence.

During the early days and months of the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare facilities experienced a slump in non-COVID-related visits, and there was an increasing interest in telehealth to deliver healthcare services for adult and pediatric patients. The study investigated telehealth use variation by race/ethnicity and place of residence for the pediatric enrollees of the Alabama Medicaid program. This retrospective observational study examined Alabama Medicaid claims data from March to December 2020 for enrollees less than 19 years.

Social determinants of health and emergency department utilization in Alabama Children's Health Insurance Program.

Objectives: Injuries are the leading cause of death among children and youth in the United States, representing a major concern to society and to the public and private health plans covering pediatric patients. Data from ALL Kids, Alabama's Children's Health Insurance Program, were used to evaluate the relationship between community-level social determinants of health (SDOH) and pediatric emergency department (ED) use and differences in these associations by age and race.

Study Design: This was a retrospective, pooled cross-sectional analysis.