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A new analysis from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services separates the costs of cancer drugs from other services provided by oncologists, highlighting an expense that’s already at the center of an intensifying debate. Medicare spent more than twice as much in 2013 on expenses for physician-administered drugs as it did on other medical services in several fields of oncology, according to data CMS released Monday as part of a trove of information on payments to doctors and hospitals. Officials hope researchers can use the data to detect potential areas in which CMS and health professionals may want to change their payments and policies. This CMS information on physician-administered drugs focused on payments for care provided by doctors through the Part B section of traditional, or fee-for-service, and doesn't reflect the costs of prescriptions filled through Medicare D drug plan. (Young, 6/2)

AstraZeneca Plc would consider acquiring a developer of a new type of cancer therapy aimed at supercharging the body’s immune response, Chief Executive Officer Pascal Soriot said. AstraZeneca, based in London, is collaborating with Juno, a Seattle startup, to combine its immune therapy drug with Juno’s CAR T treatment. CAR T is one of the hottest areas in health care, producing unprecedented responses in patients and boosting shares of biotechnology companies such as Kite Pharma Inc. and Bluebird Bio Inc. (Staley, 6/2)

[Kelly] Krodel is one of a growing number of hepatitis C patients in Minnesota caught in a bind between the exorbitant cost of the year-old medications — Harvoni, Sovaldi and Viekira Pak — and the tight restrictions insurers have used to prevent the drugs from busting their budgets. Two weeks ago a Los Angeles woman sued her insurer over the denial of hepatitis C medication, and last week an advocacy group sued on behalf of two Minnesota prison inmates who were denied state-funded prescriptions. The battle could be the first of many in coming years, as other revolutionary medications offer hope against chronic and deadly diseases, but at high prices manufacturers charge to recoup their research investments. (Olson, 6/2)