Bethesda, MD (Feb. 28, 2024) — Today, the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) published a white paper on the future of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) care in the United States. AGA highlights the current barriers to care and calls for collaboration among our healthcare community, insurers, pharmaceutical companies and legislators to improve and optimize care for the more than three million Americans living with IBD.
IBD is a complex disease that requires a vigilant and coordinated multidisciplinary approach. Over the last two decades, there has been a revolution in therapeutics fueled by exciting research and development that continues to expand and evolve the treatment armamentarium for IBD, offering hope for better disease control. However, the most effective therapies for IBD are cost prohibitive and have become inaccessible due to insurer-mandated barriers to care such as prior authorization and step therapy.
AGA highlights seven barriers to care:
“Unaffordable drug costs, step therapy, and other insurer-mandated barriers are fixable problems. Every day, we see people that have been harmed by delayed and inadequate care. Solving these barriers would lift an unimaginable weight off our patient’s shoulders and allow them to lead healthier lives,” said M. Anthony Sofia, MD, co-first author and IBD specialist at Oregon Health and Science University. “We must work together to collaborate on solutions to strengthen and advance the care for all people with IBD.”
AGA’s 12-point plan for the future of IBD care:
AGA published this white paper online on Feb. 28, 2024, in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology , and it will appear in the May 2024 print issue.
Groups interested in collaborating with AGA to advance IBD care should contact Kathleen Teixeira, AGA Vice President, Public Policy and Advocacy, at kteixeira@gastro.org.
IBD Resources
About the AGA Institute
The American Gastroenterological Association is the trusted voice of the GI community. Founded in 1897, the AGA has grown to more than 16,000 members from around the globe who are involved in all aspects of the science, practice and advancement of gastroenterology. The AGA Institute administers the practice, research and educational programs of the organization. www.gastro.org.
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Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology
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People
28-Feb-2024