Only about five percent of rare diseases have treatments that are approved by the FDA, but the situation is improving. Today, drugs designed to treat rare diseases make up half of new drug approvals each year.
Only about five percent of rare diseases have treatments that are approved by the FDA, but the situation is improving. Today, drugs designed to treat rare diseases make up half of new drug approvals each year.
PQA has published more than 60 blogs this year, providing insights and updates on our work to improve medication use quality. As we close out 2024, here’s a look back at the top five blogs of the year.
As we near the end of 2024, it’s a great time to reflect on our accomplishments. We are wrapping up year four of Blueprint PQA 2025, PQA’s five-year strategic plan.
As we near the end of 2024, it’s a great time to reflect on our accomplishments. We are wrapping up year four of Blueprint PQA 2025, PQA’s five-year strategic plan.
As a PQA MPH Practicum Program student this summer, I collaborated with the Performance Measurement and Research Team to learn about PQA’s various frameworks and initiatives. As a dual-degree student pursuing my Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) and Master of Public Health (MPH), I found my background and interests to be greatly aligned with PQA. The practicum experience enriched my understanding of measure development through its iterative lifecycle and illuminated how PQA’s efforts positively impact pharmacy services like medication therapy management (MTM).
PQA members gathered in Arlington, Va., November 7-8, 2024, for the 2024 PQA Leadership Summit. The summit focused on PQA's recent and ongoing work to develop standard pharmacy quality measures.
PQA members and health quality professionals gathered in Arlington, Va., on November 7 for PQA Convenes: Quality Medication Use in Rare Disease. This half-day event brought together health care quality experts, rare disease leaders and individuals with lived experience to discuss what constitutes high-quality rare disease medication use.
What an exciting year it has been for PQA! As we continue progress towards completion of our strategic plan, Blueprint PQA 2025, our team has been hard at work alongside our valued members to deliver meaningful improvements and drive positive change in quality medication use.
Adherence to medications for cholesterol, hypertension, and diabetes helped Medicare beneficiaries avoid up to $29.2 billion in healthcare costs over six years (2016-21), according to the 2024 National Impact Assessment of CMS Quality Measures Report. This report underscores the importance of high-impact measures for chronic conditions, as evidence-based management efforts can significantly reduce complications and mortality.
Through convening events, research, pilots and work to develop standard pharmacy quality measures, PQA has been a national leader in advancing pharmacist-provided care. A 2018 PQA-convened task force identified 15 strategies to expand value-based pharmacist-provided care, which form the centerpiece of the 2019 Strategies to Expand Value-Based Pharmacist-Provided Care Action Guide. The guide was designed to spark conversation and foster collaboration between community pharmacy organizations, pharmacists and health care payers.
Oral anticancer medications (OAMs) are a growing and important tool in the fight against cancer. More than 120 FDA-approved OAMs were used in clinical practice in 2022, and OAMs represent more than one-third of cancer medications in the development pipeline.
PQA members and health quality professionals gathered in Baltimore, Md., May 14-16, for the 2024 PQA Annual Meeting.
The 2024 PQA Annual Meeting poster session featured 23 quality improvement and research projects. Sponsored by Pharmacy Quality Solutions, the session provided an opportunity for authors to showcase their work and for attendees to engage in insightful dialogue about healthcare quality.
The upcoming 2024 PQA Annual Meeting's poster session will showcase 23 quality improvement and research projects. Sponsored by Pharmacy Quality Solutions, this session offers authors a platform to exhibit their work and enables attendees to engage in insightful discussions about healthcare quality.
Have you made your plans to attend the 2024 PQA Annual Meeting? This year's meeting will be held in Baltimore from May 14 -16. Early registration ends Friday, April 19; register today to take advantage of the member discount!
Today is an exciting and important day for PQA. The PQA Board of Directors completed the sale of all of PQA’s shares in Pharmacy Quality Solutions (PQS) to Innovaccer, a San Francisco, CA based healthcare technology company with a platform unifying patient data across systems and care settings. A statement from our Board Chair, Susan Cantrell, followed the Innovaccer’s announcement at the HIMSS Global Health Conference & Exhibition in Orlando.
Today is Rare Disease Day. It’s an opportunity to raise awareness of the impact of rare diseases.
Patients, caregivers, family members and advocates have a critical role to play in high-quality medication use. They provide unique and valuable insights about what is important and meaningful in medication use quality, which supports the development of appropriate and useful quality measures, as well as related education, research and tools that support informed health care decisions and better medication use outcomes.
PQA mourns the passing of CMS Chief Medical Officer Jeffrey Kelman, MD, MMSc. Kelman served on the PQA Board of Directors for 10 years and most recently served on the board as a CMS Special Advisor. Kelman was a trusted advisor to PQA since its establishment in 2006. He was kind, generous and thoughtful in his support of PQA and its mission.
Kelman joined CMS in 2005 and helped implement the Part D program. He was a passionate advocate for patient-centered care and efforts to improve the quality of medication use. On behalf of our board, members and staff, PQA sends condolences to his family, friends, colleagues and the countless lives he touched during his life and career.
See Dr. Kelman's obituary for more on his life, accomplishments and family.
There is tremendous momentum and a keen focus among PQA member organizations on addressing social determinants and social drivers of health (SDOH). SDOH impacts every aspect of care, including medication use, and the impact of unmet health-related social needs on patient access and use of care, outcomes, total cost of care, well-being and satisfaction is apparent and a priority to payers and providers.