Latest on contraception; handwashing to fight illness; actual savings from drug price negotiations – Morning Medical Update

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Contraception update

If your patients have questions about contraception, here is a summary of the latest recommendations from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The U.S. Selected Practice Recommendations for Contraceptive Use, 2024, updates guidance from 2016.

Wet, lather, scrub, rinse, dry

Slowing the spread of illness and disease can be as easy as washing your hands. Physicians and patients don’t even need to use antibacterial soaps that may give people a false sense of security and expose people to unnecessary chemicals. Tell your patients, young and old, that plain old soap and water will do, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Added bonus: Here’s a video primer on the best ways to wash your hands, created by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Saving money on drugs with CMS

The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced the prices of the first 10 widely used drugs that federal regulators negotiated prices starting in 2026. The feds say it will result in $6 billion in savings, but further analysis finds other factors could influence the real savings. As usual with drug pricing and policy, it’s complicated. Check out a breakdown with expert opinion here.