Simplicity is a virtue.
From Washington, DC,
- Per a Senate news release,
- “On Wednesday, July 15, [beginning at 10 am ET], the U.S Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee will hold a confirmation hearing on the nomination of Sean Kaufman to be Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and Erica Schwartz to be Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.”
- The Wall Street Journal reports,
- “Rates for many Affordable Care Act plans rose by double digits this year. Insurers want to do the same next year.
- “Some of the biggest Obamacare companies are seeking hefty premium increases for 2027, often for the second year in a row. In Washington state, Centene is asking for a 28% hike, after boosting rates by 35% in 2026. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois wants 15%—on top of a 28% increase this year.
- “It is a stunning jump” when you add both years together, said Cynthia Cox, senior vice president at KFF, a health-research nonprofit. At the request of The Wall Street Journal, KFF analyzed the rate requests for the largest ACA plans by enrollment in 15 states where insurers’ 2027 filings have already become public, as well as the District of Columbia.” * * *
- “KFF calculated the median increase across 77 publicly available ACA rate filings for 2027: 14%. For 2026, the median final rise across all ACA plans was 20%.
- “Insurers’ 2027 ACA rates have to be reviewed by regulators, and the premiums finalized in late summer might be different from these early requests.”
- Beckers Payer Issues reports,
- “CMS has rescinded a decade-old “fast-track” review process for certain Medicaid Section 1115 demonstration waiver extensions as the agency prepares to implement new federal budget neutrality requirements that take effect in 2027.
- “The July 7 informational bulletin formally withdraws 2015 guidance that allowed eligible states to use an expedited review process when renewing some Section 1115 demonstrations.
- “CMS said the change is necessary because new statutory requirements will require the agency’s chief actuary to certify that Medicaid demonstrations will not increase federal spending before they can be approved, renewed or amended beginning Jan. 1, 2027.” * * *
- “CMS previously notified state Medicaid directors that it intends to propose new budget neutrality policies and expects to issue additional implementation guidance. The agency said it remains committed to working with states to support Medicaid and CHIP innovation while complying with the new statutory requirements.”
- Federal News Network relates,
- “The Trump administration is looking to tweak the rules for federal employees’ paid administrative leave. Recently proposed regulations from the Office of Personnel Management would give agencies more leeway to use paid leave, including during workforce reduction efforts. During 2025, agencies used administrative leave to implement the deferred resignation program, choosing to paying thousands of employees for several months not to work, in exchange for them agreeing to quit their jobs.”
- and
- Federal News Network interviews Tammy Flanagan about early retirement for federal law enforcement officers.
- The American Hospital Association News informs us,
- “The Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services July 8 launched a voluntary pledge that hospitals can sign related to their efforts on healthy food. Among other actions, the pledge asks that hospitals prioritize food options in alignment with the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans; ensure that inpatient meals meet individual nutritional needs; provide accessible nutrition education and resources to sustain healthy habits following discharge; and provide community-based nutrition programs to support healthier communities.”
From the Food and Drug Administration front,
- STAT News reports,
- “The top contenders to lead the Food and Drug Administration have been sent to the White House for a final review and decision, according to a person familiar with the process.
- “The finalists include Heidi Overton, a White House adviser; Jeffrey Vacirca, an oncologist and health system executive; and Stephen Ferrara, a health affairs official at the Defense Department.” * * *
- “The advancement of the finalists suggests the highly anticipated decision is on the horizon, though the timing remains unclear.”
- Politico discusses the FDA’s 2026 regulatory agenda which was released on July 3.
From the judicial front,
- HealthExec reports,
- “Once scheduled for the fall, the federal murder trial against the man accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson will now begin in January, a judge determined last week.
- “At the conclusion of a June 29 hearing, U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett agreed with attorneys representing Luigi Mangione who argued the original date of Oct. 13 left little time to prepare a defense.
- “A trial in New York on state charges of second-degree murder is set to begin first, with jury selection pegged for a Sept. 8 start date, followed by opening arguments on Oct. 13—the same day the federal trial was initially scheduled to begin. With it now pushed back, Mangione’s attorneys need only worry about the looming prospect their client could be spending the rest of his life in prison as a result of the first trial.”
- Per a Justice Department news release
- “The founder and former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ruthia He of Done Global Inc., a California-based digital mental health company, was sentenced today to six years in prison and a fine of $1 million for orchestrating a scheme that used her company’s technology platform, compensation structure, and clinical protocols to unlawfully distribute over 37 million pills of Adderall, defraud insurers of over $12 million, and obstruct the federal investigation that followed.”
From the public health and medical / Rx research front,
- The Hill reports,
- “As of Monday [July 6], the parasitic illness has spread to at least 18 states, with the most cases reported in Illinois, Michigan, New York and Texas.
- “While exact numbers are unknown, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services has reported 572 cases of cyclosporiasis as of July 4, and New York has reported more than 100. No exact numbers have been released for Illinois or Texas. Current figures are most likely an undercount, as most people who are sick don’t report it or go to a doctor unless it’s severe.
- “Other states linked to the outbreak include Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and Wisconsin.”
- Health Day relates,
- “Exercise can boost a smoker’s odds of successfully quitting, a new evidence review says.
- “Smokers taking part in exercise programs were more likely to either quit or cut back on cigarettes, researchers reported recently in the Journal of Sport and Health Science.
- “In fact, a single bout of exercise immediately reduces nicotine cravings for up to a half hour afterward, researchers found.
- “Quitting smoking is one of the best things a person can do for their health, but it’s also one of the hardest,” lead investigator Ben Singh, a research fellow at Adelaide University in Australia, said in a news release.
- “Many smokers want to quit, but the current approaches don’t work for everyone,” Singh said. “That’s why we need more strategies that people can incorporate into their daily lives at little or no cost.”
- The New York Times discusses the medical problems created by parents refusing to protect their infants with an injection that resolves the Vitamin K deficiency with which all of us are born. It’s worth a read.
- STAT News tells us,
- “Could a lifesaving lung transplant strategy that contained the Covid-19 virus also save patients whose advanced lung cancer hasn’t spread?
- “That’s the question that inspired surgeons and oncologists at Northwestern Medicine to offer double lung transplants to patients who had run out of treatment options but whose late-stage cancer hadn’t left their lungs. People with late-stage lung cancer have not been transplant candidates before for two reasons: rates were high for cancer recurrence and low for survival.
- “There are ethical considerations to weigh, too, when deciding how to allot donated organs.
- “On Wednesday, the Northwestern team reported in JAMA that the 17 patients who received lung transplants after advanced but limited cancer fared better than 81 similar patients who continued standard immunotherapy, chemotherapy, or radiation treatments. Overall, the study followed 404 patients with end-stage pulmonary disease, including 98 with stage 4 lung cancer.
- “After one year, through June 2025, all the lung cancer transplant patients had survived compared to 88% of patients transplanted without cancer. Among those 17 patients, by January 2026, there were four recurrences of cancer and two deaths unrelated to cancer — one from an infection and one from a blood clot. Among the 81 cancer patients getting standard care, 74 saw their cancers progress.”
- Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News informs us,
- “It has long been known that brain gray matter plays a key role in multiple sclerosis (MS) disease progression and cognitive impairment, but because magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has only been able to detect lesions in white matter, neither clinicians nor researchers have had a way to detect or monitor gray matter (cortical) lesions. And while many new drugs developed in the past decade can slow disease progression significantly, they primarily work on reducing white matter lesions.
- “A University at Buffalo (UB)-led team now reports that it has found a way to use artificial intelligence to reveal these otherwise invisible cortical lesions by reviewing existing MRI scans. The researchers say the significance of finally being able to see what has been known as one of the most important indicators in MS disease progression cannot be overstated.”
- Healio points out,
- “Public health messaging had a longer-lasting impact on parents’ intent to vaccinate their children against HPV than AI chatbot interactions.
- “Strategies to make both modalities more effective are needed.”
- Per Fierce Healthcare,
- “After thriving in the market for more than a decade as the only treatment for Dupuytren’s contracture and Peyronie’s disease, Keenova Therapeutics’ Xiaflex has excelled in a phase 3 trial that could set up the injectable biologic enzyme for approval in a third indication.
- “The study of 436 patients with plantar fibromatosis achieved its primary endpoint, showing statistically significant and clinically meaningful reductions in pain versus placebo as measured by the Average Daily Pain Intensity on the Numeric Rating Scale (NRS).” * * *
- “Plantar fibromatosis, which is also known as Ledderhose disease, causes lumps composed primarily of excess collagen to form in the connective tissue that supports the arch of the foot. It can cause pain, swelling, and difficulty walking. Based on claims data and projections, Keenova estimates that 300,000 people will see a healthcare provider for plantar fibromatosis in 2028.
- “There is no medicine on the market specifically for plantar fibromatosis. Patients can get relief through radiation therapy or corticosteroid injections, with surgical interventions generally reserved as a last resort.”
- The Wall Street Journal reports,
- “Some patients are using GLP-1 drugs to treat eating disorders like bulimia and binge-eating disorder.
- “No major medical organization has endorsed GLP-1s for eating disorders, and drugmakers Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly say they are not approved for this.
- “Experts say widespread adoption is unlikely soon due to limited scientific data.”
- Per MedTech Dive,
- “Penumbra said Tuesday it has started a clinical trial that could support wider use of mechanical thrombectomy in a subset of stroke patients.
- “The real-world prospective study is assessing Penumbra’s RED reperfusion catheter portfolio in patients with M2 occlusions.
- “Penumbra, which Boston Scientific has agreed to buy for $14.5 billion, is assessing whether its computer-assisted vacuum thrombectomy and modulated aspiration tools improve outcomes.”
From the U.S. healthcare business front,
- Healthcare Dive reports,
- “A newly released audit of UnitedHealth’s home visits for Medicare seniors found little evidence to support accusations that the program, called HouseCalls, drums up extra patient diagnoses to inflate UnitedHealth’s reimbursement from the federal government.
- “UnitedHealth argued that the results vindicate HouseCalls, which has faced scrutiny from regulators and lawmakers focused on combating profiteering in Medicare Advantage, Medicare’s privatized sister program.
- “About 96.6% of diagnoses that UnitedHealth found during the home visits were backed up by patients’ health records, according to the audit released Tuesday from FTI Consulting, which used the same review process as the government.
- “That leaves 3.4% of diagnoses unsupported by medical information — three times lower than the error rate found by the CMS in its most recent audit of data in the privatized Medicare program.
- “UnitedHealth said it reviewed FTI’s findings and that the lion’s share of diagnoses unsupported by medical records were backed up by other information like paid claims.”
- and
- “Data from consumer wearables are valuable in clinical care, and many physicians are using the information in their practice — but widespread adoption is hindered by limited workflow integration and other barriers, according to a survey published Wednesday by the American Medical Association.
- “Eighty-six percent of U.S. physicians reported they at least sometimes reviewed data from their patients’ wearables, like information on heart physiology, oxygen and breathing, and sleep, according to the report, which also interviewed doctors from Canada, France, Germany, Spain and the U.K.
- “But only 6% of doctors in the U.S. said wearable data was integrated into clinical workflows, like the ability to import information into electronic health records. “We have all this data that’s available, but it’s actually not actionable because we don’t have a way to get it into clinical workflow,” AMA CEO Dr. John Whyte said in an interview.”
- Modern Healthcare relates,
- “Health insurance companies and third-party vendors offer arrangements to mitigate the costs of cell and gene therapies to employers.
- “More than three-quarters of employers see gene therapies as a major challenge, yet 35% lack financial protection, a survey found.
- “The Food and Drug Administration has approved cell and gene therapies for conditions such as blood cancers and neurodegenerative diseases.”
- MedCity News adds,
- “In Oncology, the Cost Problem Goes Beyond Predictability.
- “Healthcare does not lack the data needed to better understand oncology costs. What it does lack is a consistent way to connect clinical progression with financial impact in a time frame that aligns with strategic planning.”
- Beckers Payer Issues tells us,
- “Memorial Hermann Health System plans to shut down its commercial health insurance business.
- “The wind-down affects the Houston-based system’s HMO, PPO, and self-funded products for employers. On its website, the system said it would be difficult to reach the scale needed to sustainably provide value to members moving forward. The closure notice does not include the system’s Medicare Advantage business.
- “This decision was made following a careful and comprehensive assessment of system assets and resources, including an evaluation of existing opportunities and future challenges amid sustained pressures on health system-owned health plans,” the system wrote.
- “Current coverage will remain in effect, and providers can continue treating members through each plan’s termination date, which will vary by employer group. Groups whose plan year is set to renew before Dec. 1 will have the option to enroll in one additional year of coverage before the full closure.”
- and
- “Josh Michelson started serving as executive vice president and chief strategy and innovation officer for The Cigna Group, according to a recent LinkedIn post.
- “A Cigna website said Mr. Michelson is responsible for steering the company’s long-term strategic direction, corporate innovation and The Cigna Group Ventures, the company’s venture capital branch.
- “He joined Cigna in 2020 and was most recently a senior vice president and chief strategy and transformation officer for the company.”
- Beckers Health IT notes,
- “[The major electronic health records company] Epic named four executives who will take on expanded responsibilities following President Sumit Rana’s departure, according to a statement from Founder and CEO Judy Faulkner shared with Becker’s.
- “Ms. Faulkner said Seth Howard, Mark Lipsky, Erv Walter and Garrett Adams are among a small group of leaders who will be adding to their responsibilities as the company moves forward without Mr. Rana.
- “The statement did not detail the additional responsibilities these individuals would be taking on.” * * *
- “Mr. Rana’s departure leaves a notable gap at the top of the nation’s largest EHR vendor. He was widely viewed as a potential successor to Ms. Faulkner, who is 82.”
- Per Cardiovascular Business,
- “Novo Nordisk is now working with Vivani Medical, a California-based biopharmaceutical company, to evaluate the potential of a long-lasting semaglutide implant. This is a non-exclusive agreement between the two companies.
- “Novo Nordisk, one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies, sells semaglutide under the brand name Wegovy. Vivani is known for its drug implants, which are designed to help patients benefit from life-changing medications without ever needing to inject or ingest them.
- “The goal of this partnership is to reduce the risk of non-adherence and ensure patients taking semaglutide can receive the care their physicians have determined they need. The implant in question, currently known as NPM-139, is being developed to help patients with chronic weight management. It utilizes Vivani’s proprietary NanoPortal technology and could help patients receive the maximum benefits of treatment with just one or two treatments per year.
- “Vivani is also preparing the launch of a new first-in-human clinical trial that would randomize certain patients to either undergo treatment with an NPM-139 implant or receive semaglutide injections.”
- Per MedTech Dive,
- “Resmed has agreed to sell its MatrixCare software business for $490 million to private equity firm Frazier Healthcare Partners. The deal is meant to sharpen Resmed’s focus on sleep and breathing health devices and connected, home-based care.
- “Divesting MatrixCare enables Resmed to reallocate capital and resources toward higher-growth opportunities and expansion of its digital health ecosystem, the company said Tuesday.
- “The cash transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of Resmed’s fiscal 2027, which ends in September.”