Healio (1/31, Herpen) reports, “For individuals prescribed antipsychotic medication, nonadherence, along with switching and stopping medication, was associated with increases in acute care utilization,” investigators concluded in a study that “included 577 individuals with schizophrenia, 795 with bipolar disorder and 618 who were prescribed antipsychotics but lacked a diagnosis of either illness.” The findings were published online Jan. 24 in BMC Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Nonadherence, switching, stopping antipsychotics linked to more acute care utilization “Robert Herpen, Healio, January 31, 2023

CNN (1/31, LaMotte) reports that “use of marijuana and other substances dropped in teenagers during the first year of the pandemic,” but “adults’ use of cannabis, illegal drugs and alcohol, including binge drinking, either stayed the same or increased compared to the two years before COVID-19,” according to a study that “analyzed data from the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health Study.” The researcher wrote, “Substance use decreased between 2019 and 2020 among those aged 13 to 20 years,” but “consistent declines were not seen in older persons other than tobacco use reductions, and cannabis use increased among adults ages 25 years and older.” The findings were published online in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Adult drug use rose during pandemic, but dropped dramatically in youth, study says “Sandee LaMotte, CNN, January 31, 2023

MedPage Today (1/30, Henderson) reports a study published in JAMA Pediatrics found that “most teen alcohol use that escalated to having 10 or more drinks in a row reached that level rapidly during the high school years.” In “a sample of youth who reported drinking in the prior 30 days when surveyed in the 12th grade and who said they engaged in high-intensity drinking (HID)…when surveyed again around age 20, initiation of all three levels of alcohol use – first drink, binging on five or more drinks in a row, and HID – primarily occurred during high school grades 9 to 12,” and “it happened fast,” according to researchers.

Related Links:

— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

HealthDay (1/30, Murez) reports that “many adults with epilepsy have agoraphobia, or a fear of public places,” according to a study that “used data from a neuropsychology registry study to analyze a diverse sample of 420 adults.” The lead study author explained, “More than one-third of the participants reported significant phobic/agoraphobic symptoms. … We also found that phobic/agoraphobic symptoms, along with depression symptoms, were independently associated with poor quality of life, but generalized anxiety symptoms were not.” The study findings were published online in Epilepsy Research.

Related Links:

— “Fear of Public Spaces Is Common in People With Epilepsy “Cara Murez, HealthDay, January 30, 2023

HealthDay (1/30, Thompson) reports, “An adult living in a ‘legal’ state is not more likely to develop any sort of substance abuse disorder than their twin residing in a state where marijuana remains outlawed, researchers” concluded after analyzing “data on more than 4,000 twins who have been participating in long-term studies conducted by research teams at the University of Minnesota and the University of Colorado.” The findings were published online Jan. 5 in the journal Psychological Medicine.

Related Links:

— “Legalizing Marijuana Doesn’t Raise Drug, Alcohol Abuse: Study “Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, January 30, 2023

Healio (1/30, Herpen) reports, “In children with familial high risk of schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, evidence of motor impairment skills may indicate neurodevelopmental vulnerability for psychosis,” researchers concluded in a study that “included 437 children…born in Denmark between Sept. 1, 2004, and Aug. 31, 2009, with no, one or two parents born in Denmark with a diagnosis of either schizophrenia or bipolar disorder.” The findings were published online Jan. 4 ahead of print in the February issue of The Lancet Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Impaired motor skills may indicate psychosis for kids in families with psych disorders “Robert Herpen, Healio, January 30, 2023

On Friday, Kaiser Health News (1/27, Schulte) “released details of 90 previously secret government audits that reveal millions of dollars in overpayments to Medicare Advantage health plans for seniors.” These “audits, which cover billings from 2011 through 2013, are the most recent financial reviews available, even though enrollment in the health plans has exploded over the past decade to over 30 million and is expected to grow further.” KHN “published the audit spreadsheets as the industry girds for a final regulation that could order health plans to return hundreds of millions, if not billions, of dollars or more in overcharges to the Treasury Department;” this decision by CMS “is expected by Feb 1.”

Related Links:

— “Did Your Health Plan Rip Off Medicare? “Fred Schulte, Kaiser Health News, January 27, 2023

Healio (1/27, Herpen) reported, “States that enacted medical and recreational policies on cannabis did not see significant increases in rates of psychosis-related health outcomes compared with those that did not,” researchers concluded in a study that “examined commercial and Medicare Advantage claims data between 2003 and 2017, to identify more than 63 million beneficiaries at least 16 years of age, from all 50 states and the District of Columbia.” The findings were published online Jan. 25 in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Rate of increase low for psychosis-related outcomes in states with cannabis laws “Robert Herpen, Healio, January 27, 2023

Psychiatric News (1/27) reported, “Substance use disorders (SUDs) cost employer-sponsored health insurance plans $35.3 billion in the United States in 2018,” with “alcohol use disorder…the most costly at $10.2 billion a year, followed by opioid use disorder at $7.3 billion a year,” CDC researchers concluded after examining insurance data on “the medical costs of 210,225 people who had an SUD diagnosis with those of 1,049,539 people who did not have an SUD diagnosis.” The findings were published online Jan. 24 in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Substance Use Disorders Cost Employer Health Insurance $35 Billion in 2018, Psychiatric News, January 27, 2023

Healio (1/27, Bascom) reported, “Telehealth was a comparable alternative to in-person care for opioid use disorder” (OUD) “during the COVID-19 pandemic, indicating that telehealth can safely be used to expand access to this care,” researchers concluded in a study that “evaluated de-identified administrative claims data from 11,801 patients with a mean age of 53.9 years…who had OUD and were enrolled in either commercial insurance or Medicare Advantage plans.” The findings were published online Jan. 24 in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Study: Telehealth just as effective as in-person care for opioid use disorder treatment “Emma Bascom, Healio, January 27, 2023