On July 9, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a scathing interim staff report based on their ongoing investigation of Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBM). The report notes that six of the largest PBMs across the country handle nearly 95% of the prescriptions filled in the U.S. Intel indicates that the Reports indicate that the FTC is gearing up to file lawsuits against healthcare companies acting as PBMs. The PBMs are being accused of inflating medication costs.

OSKALOOSA, Iowa — Rural regions like the one surrounding this southern Iowa town used to have a lot more babies, and many more places to give birth to them.

At least 41 Iowa hospitals have shuttered their labor and delivery units since 2000. Those facilities, representing about a third of all Iowa hospitals, are located mostly in rural areas where birth numbers have plummeted. In some Iowa counties, annual numbers of births have fallen by three-quarters since the height of the baby boom in the 1950s and ’60s, when many rural hospitals were built or expanded, state and federal records show.

Similar trends are playing out nationwide, as hospitals struggle to maintain staff and facilities to safely handle dwindling numbers of births. More than half of rural U.S. hospitals now lack the service.

“People just aren’t having as many kids,” said Addie Comegys, who lives in southern Iowa and has regularly traveled 45 minutes each way for prenatal checkups at Oskaloosa’s hospital this summer. Her mother had six children, starting in the 1980s, when big families didn’t seem so rare.

“Now, if you have three kids, people are like, ‘Oh my gosh, are you ever going to stop?’” said Comegys, 29, who is expecting her second child in late August.

These days, many Americans choose to have small families or no children at all. Modern birth control methods help make such decisions stick. The trend is amplified in small towns when young adults move away, taking any childbearing potential with them.

Hospital leaders who close obstetrics units often cite declining birth numbers, along with staffing challenges and financial losses. The closures can be a particular challenge for pregnant women who lack the reliable transportation and flexible schedules needed to travel long distances for prenatal care and birthing services.

Read more.

Most adults who needed opioid use disorder (OUD) treatment in 2022 either did not perceive that they needed it (43%) or received treatment that did not include medications for OUD (30%). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) researchers analyzed Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) data to come to these conclusions. Higher percentages of White than Black or African American or Hispanic or Latino adults received any treatment. Higher percentages of men than women and of adults aged 35-49 years than other adults received medications. Read the full CDC report.

KFF has released a new analysis outlining maternal mortality rates for every state and Washington, D.C.

KFF used 2018-22 data from the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics to compile maternal deaths and mortality rates. Maternal deaths are defined as deaths of women while pregnant or within 42 days of pregnancy termination. Only causes of death from or aggravated by pregnancy are included.

Nationwide, 4,295 maternal deaths were reported between 2018 and 2022, resulting in a maternal mortality rate of 23.2 deaths per 100,000 live births. The U.S. has the highest maternal mortality rate of any developed nation, according to The Commonwealth Fund.

To address this issue, CMS has proposed adding obstetrical standards for hospitals as part of its conditions of participation requirements. Hospitals and physicians have pushed back on the suggestion, arguing the approach is too punitive and could inadvertently hinder access to obstetrical care.

Below is a breakdown of maternal mortality rates by state.

Note: KFF expressed caution at making comparisons between states, as data for many states are based on small numbers and could be statistically unreliable. The organization suppressed data for several states, if mortality rates were based on fewer than 20 deaths. Variation in state rates is likely due to differences in the quality of maternal mortality data, KFF said.

Tennessee
Maternal mortality rate: 41.1
Number of deaths: 166

Mississippi
Maternal mortality rate: 39.1
Number of deaths: 70

Alabama
Maternal mortality rate: 38.6
Number of deaths: 112

Arkansas
Maternal mortality rate: 38.3
Number of deaths: 69

Louisiana
Maternal mortality rate: 37.3
Number of deaths: 108

Kentucky
Maternal mortality rate: 34.6
Number of deaths: 91

Virginia
Maternal mortality rate: 32.7
Number of deaths: 158

South Carolina
Maternal mortality rate: 32.3
Number of deaths: 92

Georgia
Maternal mortality rate: 32.1
Number of deaths: 201

Indiana
Maternal mortality rate: 30.9
Number of deaths: 124

Arizona
Maternal mortality rate: 30
Number of deaths: 118

Oklahoma
Maternal mortality rate: 29.6
Number of deaths: 72

Texas
Maternal mortality rate: 28.2
Number of deaths: 532

New Mexico
Maternal mortality rate: 28
Number of deaths: 31

North Carolina
Maternal mortality rate: 26.7
Number of deaths: 159

New Jersey
Maternal mortality rate: 26
Number of deaths: 131

Nebraska
Maternal mortality rate: 25.1
Number of deaths: 31

Ohio
Maternal mortality rate: 24.5
Number of deaths: 161

Florida
Maternal mortality rate: 24.1
Number of deaths: 263

West Virginia
Maternal mortality rate: 23.9
Number of deaths: 21

Missouri
Maternal mortality rate: 23.8
Number of deaths: 84

Kansas
Maternal mortality rate: 22.8
Number of deaths: 40

New York
Maternal mortality rate: 22.4
Number of deaths: 241

Maryland
Maternal mortality rate: 21.3
Number of deaths: 74

Nevada
Maternal mortality rate: 20.4
Number of deaths: 35

Idaho
Maternal mortality rate: 20
Number of deaths: 22

Iowa
Maternal mortality rate: 19.5
Number of deaths: 36

Michigan
Maternal mortality rate: 19.1
Number of deaths: 101

Illinois
Maternal mortality rate: 18.1
Number of deaths: 123

Washington
Maternal mortality rate: 18
Number of deaths: 76

Pennsylvania
Maternal mortality rate: 17.5
Number of deaths: 116

Oregon
Maternal mortality rate: 16.6
Number of deaths: 34

Massachusetts
Maternal mortality rate: 16.4
Number of deaths: 56

Colorado
Maternal mortality rate: 16
Number of deaths: 50

Connecticut
Maternal mortality rate: 15.6
Number of deaths: 27

Utah
Maternal mortality rate: 15.5
Number of deaths: 36

Wisconsin
Maternal mortality rate: 13.2
Number of deaths: 41

Minnesota
Maternal mortality rate: 12.3
Number of deaths: 40

California
Maternal mortality rate: 10.5
Number of deaths: 228

Alaska
Maternal mortality rate: Data suppressed
Number of deaths: 12

Delaware
Maternal mortality rate: Data suppressed
Number of deaths: 9

District of Columbia
Maternal mortality rate: Data suppressed
Number of deaths: 12

Hawaii
Maternal mortality rate: Data suppressed
Number of deaths: 13

Maine
Maternal mortality rate: Data suppressed
Number of deaths: 7

Montana
Maternal mortality rate: Data suppressed
Number of deaths: 17

New Hampshire
Maternal mortality rate: Data suppressed
Number of deaths: 11

North Dakota
Maternal mortality rate: Data suppressed
Number of deaths: 11

Rhode Island
Maternal mortality rate: Data suppressed
Number of deaths: 9

South Dakota
Maternal mortality rate: Data suppressed
Number of deaths: 16

Vermont
Maternal mortality rate: Data suppressed
Number of deaths: 1

Wyoming
Maternal mortality rate:  Data suppressed
Number of deaths: 7

Can the economic impact of anchor institutions across the state help in attracting global companies? Assist in developing plans for growing small businesses and creating jobs in underserved communities? Or uncover new ideas for potential partnerships with local hospitals and universities?

Higher education institutions and hospitals, so-called “eds and meds,” are two types of anchor institutions that researchers at the Philadelphia Fed are studying to learn more about how these public-serving institutions impact their local and state economies. This includes developing an interactive dashboard that allows users to explore the economic impacts of anchor institutions across 524 U.S. regions and state profiles that detail the economic impacts of anchor institutions state-level measures of anchor institution economic impacts.

Deborah Diamond, director of the Philadelphia Fed’s Anchor Economy Initiative, shares insights from three experts who are using data on the economic impact of anchor institutions to start conversations, support greater collaboration, and drive economic growth in their regions and states.

Read the article.

The U.S. Census Bureau has released the 2023 Detailed National, State, and County Population Estimates, the final set of population estimates for this vintage. The data, as of July 1, 2023, provides estimates at the national, state, and county levels for population by age, sex, race, and Hispanic origin.

Highlights from this release include:

• The senior population (65+) in Pennsylvania continues to grow, especially those aged 75 to 79 (16.4%) and 80 to 84 (10.5%).
• Overall, the population under 25 years decreased slightly by more than 56,000 persons (-1.4%), while the population over 65 years increased by over 184,773 persons (7.6%).
• The most substantial growth occurred in the Hispanic or Latino population (10.0%), those identifying with two or more races (8.8%), and the non-Hispanic Asian population (7.5%).

To read more, visit: https://pasdc.hbg.psu.edu/Data/Research-Briefs.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announces the latest annual release of the U.S. Cancer Statistics, the official federal cancer statistics, providing cancer information on the U.S. population. The data release is a culmination of a tremendous amount of effort by cancer registrars, reporting facilities, central cancer registry staff, and CDC NPCR and NCI SEER staff and contractors.

This year’s data release includes Minnesota’s county-level cancer case data for the first time. The data release also includes cancer deaths presented by single race group from 2018 through 2022. The USCS Stat Bites present incidence, mortality, prevalence, and relative survival statistics for the four most common cancers (breast, prostate, lung, and colorectal).

The data show that the number of new cancer cases diagnosed in 2021 was higher than in 2020 but was slightly lower than pre-pandemic trends. Read the USCS Data brief for highlights from the 2021 data.

How can I access the latest U.S. Cancer Statistics data?

• Data Visualizations Tool

Using the Data Visualizations tool, you can create and export presentation-ready trend graphs, maps, and tables by state, county, and demographic characteristics. Watch this video for an overview of the Data Visualizations Tool.

• Public Use Database

Researchers can use the public use database to take a deeper dive into cancer incidence and population data for the United States. With more than 37 million cases and 20 plus years of data available (2001 to 2021), this is a valuable resource for examining populations by demographic and cancer characteristics.

Questions? Please contact us at uscsdata@cdc.gov.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a draft guidance, “Diversity Action Plans to Improve Enrollment of Participants from Underrepresented Populations in Clinical Studies.” Diversity Action Plans are intended to increase clinical study enrollment of participants of historically underrepresented populations to help improve the data the agency receives about the patients who may potentially use the medical product. The draft guidance was developed by the Oncology Center of Excellence Project Equity in collaboration with the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, the Center for Devices and Radiological Health, the Office of Women’s Health, and the Office of Minority Health and Health Equity.