NCCN: Half of Their Patients Have Difficulty Paying for Treatment

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Clinicians Believe That at Least Half of Their Patients Have Difficulty

Paying for Treatment

By C. Lyn Fitzgerald, MJ, Vice President, U.S. & Global Development

C. Li, PharmD, BCOP, Drugs & Biologics Editor

Clinicians are in tune with the difficulties cost of care presents for their

patients. According to a new NCCN TrendsT Survey, most clinicians believe

that at least half of their patients have difficulty paying for treatment.

Indeed, 52 percent of the 241 surveyed clinicians responded that the

proportion of their patients having trouble paying for treatment was at

least half. Further, clinicians indicated that when selecting among

intervention options that are clinically equal, they will consider the

patient's cost burden. When asked to rate the importance of different cost

domains when cost must be considered, 74 percent of clinician respondents

regarded the " patient's out-of-pocket expenses " as being very important. The

practice or institution's financial situation, overall cost to society, and

cost to the payer were considered to be very important by 39 percent, 26

percent, and 18 percent of clinician respondents, respectively.

Full text: http://bit.ly/cwema3

All the best,

~ Karl