Patient, Caregiver, and Clinician Perspectives on the Time Burdens of Cancer Care.

Importance: Cancer and its care impose significant time commitments on patients and care partners. The oncology community has only recently conceptualized these commitments and the associated burden as the "time toxicity" of cancer care. As the concept gains traction, there is a critical need to fundamentally understand the perspectives of multiple stakeholders on the time burdens of cancer care.

Perinatal Loneliness and Isolation Early in the COVID-19 Pandemic in New York City: A Qualitative Study.

Introduction: During the COVID-19 pandemic, birthing parents were identified as a high-risk group with greater vulnerability to the harms associated with SARS-CoV-2. This led to necessary changes in perinatal health policies but also to experiences of maternal isolation and loneliness, both in hospital settings, due to infection mitigation procedures, and once home, due to social distancing.

Methods: In this study, we qualitatively explored birthing and postpartum experiences in New York City during the early days of the pandemic when lockdowns were in effect and policies and practices were rapidly changing.

Medicare Part D Protected-Class Policy Is Associated With Lower Drug Rebates.

Medicare Part D does not allow plans to exclude drugs in six protected classes from their formularies, which may limit plans' ability to negotiate rebates and lead to higher spending. We estimated the association between protected-class status, US-level estimated rebates, and formulary coverage during the period 2011-19. We found that protected classes indeed had significantly lower exclusion rates in Medicare Part D during this period relative to nonprotected classes, and this difference was larger than the corresponding difference in commercial plans.

How do Cancer Patients in Economically Marginalized Neighborhoods Decide Where to Seek Care: Perspectives From Cancer Patients and Healthcare Professionals.

Background: The quality of cancer care affects patient outcomes. It is therefore important to understand what factors and/or barriers shape a cancer patient's decision about where to seek care. We sought to understand factors influencing decision-making for historically marginalized communities in a large metropolitan area with multiple options for cancer care, including a National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated comprehensive cancer center.