HEOR NEWS

Effects of Comprehensive Smoke-Free Legislation on Smoking Behaviors and Macroeconomic Outcomes in Shanghai, China: A Difference-in-Differences Analysis and Modeling Study (The Lancet Public Health)

In assessing the impact of Shanghai’s public smoking ban on individual smoking behaviors and quantifying its effect on macroeconomic outcomes, experts found smoking prevalence decreased in Shanghai by 2.2 percentage points (95% CI 2.1-2.3), equivalent to an 8.4% reduction in the number of current smokers. They theorize that if there were a national ban, it would result in a 0.04-0.07% increase in the national gross domestic product in China between 2017 and 2035, outweighing the economic costs of smoking ban enforcement.
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Measles Cases Surge Worldwide, Infecting 10.3 Million People in 2023 (WHO)

There were an estimated 10.3 million cases of measles in 2023, a 20% increase from 2022, according to new estimates from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Inadequate immunization coverage globally is driving the surge in cases.
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Worldwide Trends in Diabetes Prevalence and Treatment From 1990 to 2022: A Pooled Analysis of 1108 Population-Representative Studies with 141 Million Participants
(The Lancet)

More than 800 million adults live with diabetes worldwide, and in most countries, especially in low- and middle-income countries, diabetes treatment has not increased at all or has not increased sufficiently in comparison with the rise in prevalence.
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Teleconsultation on Patients With Type 2 Diabetes in the Brazilian Public Health System: A Randomized, Pragmatic, Open-Label, Phase 2, Non-inferiority Trial (TELECONSULTA diabetes trial) (The Lancet Regional Health Americas)

The primary objective was to test the hypothesis that teleconsultation is non-inferior to face-to-face consultation in terms of glycemic control, and the results show the non-inferiority, underscoring the transformative potential of telemedicine in addressing the complexities of diabetes management within the framework of a universal healthcare system.
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Real-World Cost-effectiveness of Multi-gene Panel Sequencing to Inform Therapeutic Decisions for Advanced Non-small Cell Lung Cancer: A Population-Based Study (The Lancet Regional Health Americas)

The study in British Columbia, Canada, which aimed to determine the population-level cost-effectiveness of publicly reimbursed multi-gene panel sequencing compared to single-gene testing for advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), found a moderate to high probability that panel-based testing to inform targeted treatment for NSCLC would be cost-effective at higher thresholds.
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Is it Possible to Pay for More Equitable Health Outcomes? (Health Affairs)

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts uses a pay-for-equity program that is focused on equity and quality simultaneously, with the priority being reducing differences by maintaining at least the baseline for the group receiving the highest quality care, while improving care for groups receiving the poorest care.
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Wealth and Mortality Among Late-Middle-Aged Individuals in Norway: A Nationwide Register-Based Retrospective Study (The Lancet Regional Health Europe)

In looking at high-quality register data on wealth and mortality for the entire population of Norway, researchers found results suggesting that wealth is an important predictor of mortality even after individuals’ observed and unobserved characteristics are accounted for, with the most disadvantaged groups being nonpartnered men and women at the lower end of wealth distribution.
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Evidence That Regulatory and Market Forces Are Driving Adoption of Biosimilars (Health Affairs)

Evidence suggests that the maturing postapproval biosimilar marketplace is flourishing, with the entry of biosimilars for adalimumab (Humira) offering a case study that demonstrates these recent market and policy dynamics.
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Small-Molecule Drugs Offer Comparable Health Benefits to Biologics at Lower Costs (Health Affairs)

When comparing the incremental quality-adjusted life-year (QALY) gains, incremental costs, and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) of small-molecule drugs and biologics approved by the FDA from 1999 to 2018, researchers found small-molecule drugs tend to be associated with lower additional costs ($4738 versus $16,020) and more favorable cost-effectiveness ($108,314 per QALY versus $228,286 per QALY).
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Evaluating the Effects of the World Health Organization’s Online Intervention ‘iSupport’ to Reduce Depression and Distress in Dementia Carers: A Multi-center Six-Month Randomized Controlled Trial in the UK

In evaluating iSupport, a self-guided online intervention designed by the World Health Organization (WHO) to reduce mental health problems in dementia carers, researchers found virtually no difference in mean distress and depression scores between those using iSupport and those in usual care.
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