Managed Care Pharmacy Residents Present at 2024 AMCP Meeting

Amy Epps, Allison Hietpas, Petir Abdal, Olivia Shelton

Evidence is at the heart of how we make decisions at Humana. Over the last several years, we have built methodological skillsets needed to perform rigorous analyses—our associates are data-savvy and our leaders ask, “what does the science say.”

This is something we love hearing at Humana Healthcare Research, where our mission is to deliver high-quality scientific research and contribute to real-world evidence in healthcare. Every day we conduct rigorous analysis that not only impacts Humana’s internal decisions but also adds to the body of knowledge for both the scientific community and society at large. We focus on quality of care, health outcomes and population health. 

As part of Humana’s focus on generating useful evidence and making evidence-based decisions, Humana Pharmacy Solutions works together with Humana Healthcare Research to equip managed care pharmacy residents to present their research projects at the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP) Annual Meeting in New Orleans, La. Residents from the program gain experience in integrated health plans and pharmacy benefit management to prepare them to become the next generation of managed care leaders.

“Our residency program allows pharmacy residents to collaborate and make contributions within multi-disciplinary teams to support Humana members in achieving their best health,” said Vicky Brown, AVP, Clinical Drug Strategy, Humana Pharmacy Solutions. “Specifically, their research contributions help advance our understanding of medication related needs for our members so we can adapt our strategies accordingly.”

Congratulations to Humana’s managed care pharmacy residents as they present their studies at this year’s AMCP Annual Meeting, held April 15-18, 2024.

Allison Hietpas — Descriptive analysis of specialty infusion therapies by place of treatment —

This retrospective cohort study identified patients who received specialty infusion therapies administered in the home, outpatient hospital, or physician office. Home infusion consistently had the lowest proportion of specialty infusions (22-24% home, 23-27% physician office, 49-53% outpatient hospital) but the highest infusion days per patient out of the three treatment settings during the study period (2018-2022). Treatment requirements, patient demographics, and existing comorbidities may explain the variation in specialty infusions across place of treatment. 

Amy Epps — A descriptive study of factors related to anticoagulant treatment in newly diagnosed non-valvular atrial fibrillation —

In this real-world study of 147,333 patients newly diagnosed with non-valvular atrial fibrillation, a heart rhythm disorder for which anticoagulant treatment is commonly prescribed, researchers found that despite high stroke risk, 49.4% of patients did not receive anticoagulant treatment. Patient demographics and clinical and care delivery factors might explain part of the underutilization of oral anticoagulant therapies. 

Olivia Shelton — The prevalence of behavioral health conditions among Medicare patients eligible for CMS Star Rating measures for medication adherence with diabetes, hypertension, and/or hyperlipidemia —

The objective of this retrospective study was to evaluate the prevalence of co-existing behavioral health conditions (i.e., depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, substance use disorder, bipolar disorder) in medication adherence quality measure eligible patients enrolled in a Medicare Advantage prescription drug plan. Researchers found that overall prevalence of behavioral health conditions among study patients in the CMS Star Rating measures for medication adherence in diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and hypertension ranged from 35% - 40%, the hyperlipidemia group had the highest average prevalence rate (38%) across the 5-year study period. A higher rate of depression in the diabetes group is in line with established evidence that the conditions are often co-occurring.

Petir Abdal — A comparison of healthcare resource utilization and healthcare costs in new users of SGLT2 inhibitors versus GLP-1 agonists —

In this real-world study of patients diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and newly initiating a glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist (e.g., semaglutide) or sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT2) inhibitor, there was no significant difference in all-cause inpatient stays (12.4% vs 12.0%) and emergency department visits (33.8% vs 32.2%) as well as diabetes-related inpatient stays (2.6% vs 2.4%) and emergency department visits (14.3% vs 13.5%) at 12 months follow-up. Greater all-cause costs within the GLP1 group relative to SGLT2 was observed following the initiation of treatment, and these increases were significant in both medical and pharmacy claims. The difference was particularly pronounced in pharmacy spend likely due to higher GLP1 drug costs.

To explore studies conducted by Humana Healthcare Research, visit research.humana.com.