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Outside the Huddle 8/28/22
1) Can You Hear Me Now? The FDA will now allow patients to purchase hearing aids over the counter, improving access to affordable hearing aids. Patients with perceived hearing loss can now go directly to stores or online shops and purchase hearing aids without needing a full evaluation, prescription or fitting. With an aging population,…
Read MoreThe Medicare Advantage Empire
More than 28 million Americans enrolled in a Medicare Advantage (MA) plan in 2022, representing 48% of all Medicare beneficiaries. MA is attractive for both consumers and insurers: patients reap more benefits like hearing and vision coverage while insurers reap bigger profits. The Deets Out of the 58.6 million Medicare beneficiaries, nearly half are enrolled…
Read MoreFDA to Approve Omicron Booster
The FDA is expected to approve Pfizer and Moderna’s updated Covid-19 booster vaccine this week, which covers the dominant BA.5 Omicron subvariant. mRNA technology is remarkable. The BA.5 subvariant started picking up steam back in June, and here we are nearly three months later with a vaccine ready to go. The Deets Pfizer and Moderna’s…
Read MoreHow to Make Outpatient Scheduling More Efficient
An appointment with my dermatologist—that’s who I’m waiting for. I called my dermatologist’s office to make an appointment for a routine body check, hoping to get an appointment in a week or two. “A week or two? The next available appointment is in three months. Which day works best for you?” “But… I don’t know…
Read MoreHow Much do Cancellations and No-shows Cost Your Practice?
Click the button below to access my model that estimates how much your practice is losing annually through inefficient scheduling. Please make a copy of the model to manipulate the inputs. If you plan on sharing the model, please credit me/Healthcare Huddle. Also, if you have any questions, please email me to chat further at…
Read MoreCounting Sheep: Who’s Helping Us Optimize our Sleep?
We spend one-third of our life sleeping. Yet, seldom do we treat our sleep with the respect it deserves. Even in medical school, I can only recall one lecture about sleep, despite concrete evidence that poor sleep leads to morbidity and mortality. Sleep is an attractive market for digital health companies given its important health…
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