JAMA : the journal of the American Medical Association
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative Study
Integrated Hepatitis C-Opioid Use Disorder Care Through Facilitated Telemedicine: A Randomized Trial.
Facilitated telemedicine may promote hepatitis C virus elimination by mitigating geographic and temporal barriers. ⋯ Opioid treatment program-integrated facilitated telemedicine resulted in significantly higher hepatitis C virus cure rates compared with off-site referral, with high participant satisfaction. Illicit drug use declined significantly among cured participants with minimal reinfections.
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Medicare's Hospital Value-Based Purchasing (HVBP) program will provide a health equity adjustment (HEA) to hospitals that have greater proportions of patients dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid and that offer high-quality care beginning in fiscal year 2026. However, which hospitals will benefit most from this policy change and to what extent are unknown. ⋯ Medicare's implementation of HEA in the HVBP program will significantly reclassify hospital performance and redistribute program payments, with safety net and high-proportion Black hospitals benefiting most from this policy change. These findings suggest that HEA is an important strategy to ensure that value-based payment programs are more equitable.