Navigating coverage: A qualitative study exploring the perceived impact of an insurance company policy to discontinue coverage of antiobesity medication.

Introduction: Obesity rates continue to rise in the United States. Treatment includes modification of diet, exercise, behavioral modification and medical consideration including anti-obesity medications. However, multiple highly effective anti-obesity medications are expensive and with that we see insurers opting out of coverage of these medications.

Back Pain in the Era of Opioid Restriction and Implications for Neurosurgeons Based on Qualitative Findings From a Rural State.

Historically, back pain has been an inciting complaint for the initiation of opioids. Aggressive marketing of opioids to treat back pain coupled with the initiation of pain being treated as "the fifth vital sign" contributed to the emerging opioid crisis in the USA. West Virginia (WV) has long been considered the epicenter of the crisis.

Surveying the Knowledge and Practices of Primary Care Residents in Managing Adult Patients with Obesity.

Background: The prevalence of obesity is increasing worldwide at an alarming rate, yet obesity remains under-addressed during clinic encounters. A lack of training in how to treat obesity is one crucial factor contributing to this deficiency.

Objective: This study explored resident physicians' perceptions of their education on obesity and its relationship with confidence and practice behaviors when caring for patients with obesity.

"They either leave you or they get involved in it": Familial factors influencing drug use amongst Appalachian people.

West Virginia, the only state entirely in Appalachia, is considered the epicenter of the opioid crisis. Children raised in families affected by opioid use disorder can develop their own substance use disorder later in life. The continuing opioid crisis coupled with social and health disparities suggest families in West Virginia are vulnerable to generational cycles of substance misuse.