General
Private equity infuses healthcare with $63B investment Alex Kacik, Modern Healthcare
Global private equity-backed healthcare deals rose almost 50% to $63.1 billion 2018, the highest level since 2006, according to a new report. The provider sector continued to be the most active, with global transaction value surging to $35 billion across 159 deals, compared with $18.9 billion across 139 deals in 2017, Bain & Co.’s 2019 private equity and corporate M&A report found.
Number of Uninsured Americans Jumps 1.4 Million in Trump Era Shira Stein, Bloomberg Law
Over 1 million Americans lost health insurance between the end of the Obama administration and end of the second year of the Trump administration, according to new information from the Congressional Budget Office. The number of uninsured Americans under age 65 climbed from 27.5 million in 2016 to 28.9 million in 2018, the CBO said.
Legislation Overhauls Maryland Medical Network’s Board David McFadden, The Associated Press
Maryland’s governor signed fast-tracked legislation Thursday to overhaul a major medical network’s board of directors following revelations of numerous questionable financial arrangements involving board members, including Baltimore’s mayor. Mayor Catherine Pugh, who joined the volunteer board in 2001, has become the public face of the University of Maryland Medical System’s “self-dealing” scandal.
Risk Scores Assess Ties Between Genes and Obesity, Disease Betsy McKay, The Wall Street Journal
Researchers are developing new ways to mine growing stores of genetic data to predict risk of disease. The latest such tool, which assesses the risk for obesity, illustrates both the promise and the limitations of this emerging area of research.
Parents of 3 NYC children face $1,000 penalty for violating measles order Lena H. Sun, The Washington Post
New York City health officials issued summonses to parents of three children Thursday for failing to have their children vaccinated against measles, a violation of the city’s emergency order mandating immunizations to control a surging outbreak.
Judge Upholds Mandatory Measles Vaccinations As New York Closes More Schools Francesca Paris, NPR News
A Brooklyn judge has sided with New York health officials to uphold a mandatory measles vaccinations order, dismissing a lawsuit from a group of parents who claimed the city had overstepped its authority. Judge Lawrence Knipel on Thursday refused parents’ request to lift the vaccination order that was imposed last week to stem a severe measles outbreak.
Stocks Mixed in Holiday Hit Trading; Dollar Steady: Markets Wrap Cormac Mullen and Todd White, Bloomberg
Stocks in Asia traded mixed Friday after modest gains in their U.S. counterparts, ahead of a holiday weekend in many countries. The dollar was little changed.
Payers
Washington set to be 1st state with long-term care benefit Rachel La Corte, The Associated Press
Washington is poised to become the first state to establish an employee-paid program creating an insurance benefit to help offset the costs of long-term care, a step advocates say will help an aging population that is likely not prepared for the increasing costs needed for daily assistance.
Providers
Should Ohio hospitals need licenses? DeWine weighs options Kaitlin Schroeder, Dayton Daily News
Ohio is the only state in the U.S. that does not license hospitals and Gov. DeWine’s administration is looking at whether that should change. Hospital officials, however, say that while they aren’t licensed, they are already highly regulated for patient safety and quality.
Pharma, Biotech and Devices
Lower dose of Pfizer-Lilly painkiller misses main goals in late stage study Aakash Jagadeesh Babu, Reuters
A lower dose of non-opioid painkiller developed by Pfizer Inc and Eli Lilly and Co failed to meet main goals in a late-stage study in patients with moderate-to-severe osteoarthritis of the hip or knee, the companies said on Thursday. The drug, tanezumab, belongs to a new category of pain medications that target nerve growth factor, a protein involved in the growth of nerve cells, and has been touted as a potential blockbuster.
Pricing is taking a toll on the reputation of the pharmaceutical industry Ed Silverman, Stat News
When it comes to improving its image, the best that the pharmaceutical industry can do is go sideways. Just 41% of patient groups thought the pharmaceutical industry had an “excellent” or “good” reputation last year, which is within striking distance of the 43% notched in 2017 and 38% in 2016, according to a survey by PatientView, a research firm that canvassed more than 1,500 patient groups from 78 countries between last November and this past February.
A biotech startup’s lofty goal: Kill cancer with pills that target RNA instead of proteins Adam Feuerstein, Stat News
Arrakis Therapeutics is named for the desert planet in the legendary “Dune” series of science-fiction novels. It’s an apt name because the Waltham, Mass., startup is trying to achieve a feat once thought to be biotech fantasy: Develop oral medicines — pills — that can target RNA, the messenger-like molecules that turn genetic instructions into proteins.
Health IT
Crowdsourced AI learns to target lung tumors for radiation Linda Carroll, Reuters Health
In many parts of the world there are not enough radiation oncologists to design and deliver radiation treatments for lung cancer patients, but that gap could one day be filled with the help of artificial intelligence, researchers suggest in a new study.
The Future of Wearable Tech Is Called a Hearing Aid Josh Dean, Bloomberg
When Brandon Sawalich started at Starkey Hearing Technologies in suburban Minneapolis, he was 19 and there were about 70 companies worldwide making hearing aids. That was 1994.
Opinions, Editorials and Perspectives
When It Comes to Alzheimer’s, Important Changes Are Coming for MA Beneficiaries George Vradenburg and John Dwyer, Morning Consult
The majority of experts agree that because Alzheimer’s disease is significantly underdiagnosed and underreported, a large number of people may not know they have it.
Research Reports
Value-Based Care in America: State-by-State Change Healthcare
States are taking varied approaches in transitioning to value-based care, and some are much further along the spectrum than others. In its 2019 analysis, Value-Based Care in America: State-by-State, Change Healthcare details the progress of each state to give you a comprehensive understanding of the current payment-reform landscape.
Health Insurance Coverage for People Under Age 65: Definitions and Estimates for 2015 to 2018 Congressional Budget Office
In the United States, most people under age 65 are covered by private health insurance that they or their family members obtain through their employers (referred to as employment-based, or group, coverage). A smaller number of people buy private health insurance individ- ually (through what is known as the nongroup market).
‘Corporate Reputation of Pharma in 2018 – the Patient Perspective’ PatientView
The ‘Corporate Reputation of Pharma, 2018’ Global report is based on the findings of a PatientView November 2018-February 2019 survey exploring the views of 1,500 patient groups worldwide (one of the highest response rates attained by this annual survey).
Creating a treasure trove of data for health plans Ralph Judah et al., Deloitte Insights
By 2040, health data will be continually updated and reflect much deeper insights into the drivers of health and health care costs. Health plan organizations should invest in a strategy with an eye toward this future.
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