Friday report

COVID-19

Friday report

David Ermer–CDC, CMS, COVID-19, FDA, Medical / Rx research, Medicare, Obesity, Rx coverage, U.S. Healthcare–

From Washington, DC,

  • Federal News Network reports,
    • “The U.S. Postal Service will run out of cash within a year unless Congress lifts a decades-old cap and allows the agency to borrow more money, the new postmaster general warned in an interview.
    • “If it doesn’t, the Postal Service might not be able to pay its employees or vendors by February 2027, with potentially dire consequences for mail delivery, Postmaster General David Steiner told The Associated Press.
    • “How long are employees going to work and vendors going to show up if we’re not paying them?” Steiner said in an interview on Wednesday.
    • “The postmaster general is scheduled to testify before Congress later this month about the Postal Service’s financial struggles and the need to change longstanding rules and regulations that he considers burdensome. He singled out the $15 billion cap on borrowing that has been in place since 1990.”
  • Per an HHS news release,
    • “The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), a division within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), today announced $69.1 million in funding opportunities for three grant programs: the Children’s Mental Health Initiative (CMHI), Implementing Zero Suicide in Health Systems (Zero Suicide) and Assisted Outpatient Treatment (AOT).
    • “Last month, I launched a comprehensive plan to strengthen prevention, expand treatment, and advance President Trump’s Great American Recovery Initiative,” said U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. “These grants will directly address the root causes of addiction — including homelessness and serious mental illness — and strengthen community safety by expanding treatment that prioritizes recovery, stability, and self-sufficiency.”
    • “Recovery is possible, and these investments help communities reach people earlier with the support and treatment that can change lives,” said Senior Advisor for Addiction Recovery Kathryn Burgum. “By expanding access to evidence-based mental health services and strengthening community partnerships, we are helping more Americans find a path to healing and stability.”
  • STAT News adds in an editorial piece,
    • “In a political moment defined by division, it is telling that former Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D) and health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. are attempting to find common ground on on one issue: the urgent need to take mental health and addiction seriously as national priorities.” * * *
    • “The urgency for our nation’s leaders to act is underscored by sobering data. Suicide remains one of the leading causes of death for young people. Anxiety and depression among adolescents have risen sharply over the past decade. Alcohol-related deaths continue to climb while overdose deaths remain high, particularly in communities already facing economic and health disparities. The economic toll of mental illness and addiction now reaches hundreds of billions of dollars annually — costs borne by families, employers, health systems, and taxpayers.
    • “In the discussion about this crisis, one fact is routinely overlooked: These conditions are often preventable in the first place. If the health secretary is serious about making America healthier, preventing behavioral health disorders is one place to start.”
  • Earlier this week, Blue Shield of California Paul Markovich and others launched a healthcare political movement called Worthy. Check it out.
  • Fierce Healthcare relates,
    • “Just over 56 million people are enrolled in Medicare Part D, with the share of those securing coverage through Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug (MAPD) plans growing alongside the overall program.
    • “As of 2026, 24.9 million people were enrolled in standalone Part D plans, according to a new analysis from KFF, while 31.4 million were in MAPD plans. By comparison, overall enrollment in 2006 was just 21.8 million, with 15.8 million of those individuals with just Part D coverage.
    • “The data for 2026 do reflect slight growth year over year in the number of people with standalone Part D, as 23.2 million were enrolled in just the prescription drug coverage for 2025.
    • “The report found that enrollment in non-group MAPD plans has steadily risen over the past several years, while sign-ups for non-group standalone prescription coverage has plateaued.
    • “Meanwhile, it’s the opposite story in employer group Medicare, according to the report. Enrollment in employer group MAPD plans fell from 3.9 million to 2.7 million between 2025 and 2026, while sign-ups for group Part D plans rose from 5.1 million to 6.3 million.
    • “This marks the first time enrollment in employer group MAPD coverage has declined, the KFF researchers said.
    • “The researchers note that this shift may be in response to the Part D premium stabilization program, instituted last year, which is applicable only in standalone prescription plans and not MA plans. In employer Part D plans, the program would afford $10 per member per month in additional subsidies.”

From the Food and Drug Administration front,

  • The Wall Street Journal reports,
    • “The Food and Drug Administration’s controversial vaccines chief is leaving the agency.
    • “Dr. Vinay Prasad, who has led the FDA’s vaccines and biotech drugs division, will depart at the end of April, FDA Commissioner Marty Makary said Friday. Federal health officials are searching for his replacement, Makary said.”
  • Per an FDA press release,
    • “Earlier this week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration held a meeting with several states to discuss the section 804 importation program (SIP), which allows states and Indian tribes to import certain prescription drugs from Canada to significantly reduce the cost of these drugs to the American consumer. The gathering was the latest step toward the FDA’s implementation of President’s Trump’s executive order on lowering drug prices. 
    • “The meeting provided a forum to exchange information, with the goal of making it easier for states that have expressed interest in the program to obtain authorization without sacrificing safety or quality. Representatives from HHS and the National Academy for State Health Policy also participated.
    • “We are committed to lowering prescription drug prices for Americans, building on recent MFN wins,” said FDA Commissioner Marty Makary, M.D., M.P.H. “We’re moving forward to implement the president’s executive order as we continue the crucial work of helping states and Indian tribes import reduced cost prescription drugs, while protecting public health and safety.” * * *
    • “Presentations from yesterday’s meeting are available for download at: Section 804 Importation Program Policies and Authorizations.”
  • The American Hospital Association News points out,
    • “The Food and Drug Administration March 5 issued a request for information seeking public comments on potential new standards for in-home opioid disposal products. The FDA said it is considering whether to require opioid sponsors to make in-home disposal systems available through dispensers. Comments are due April 6.”
  • BioPharma Dive tells us,
    • “The Food and Drug Administration has approved a regimen involving Johnson & Johnson’s antibody drugs Tecvayli and Darzalex for relapsed multiple myeloma less than three months after the drugmaker presented study data suggesting the combination could have curative potential.   
    • “The regulator reviewed the drug under its new “national priority voucher” program, which it used “proactively” following J&J’s release of the findings at the American Society of Hematology meeting. The approval issued Thursday was the third under that program, following that of an older antibiotic and a lung cancer treatment from Boehringer Ingelheim. The review took a total of 55 days, according to the FDA.
    • “The decision also converts Tecvayli’s authorization from a conditional, “accelerated” approval to full clearance that’s based on its ability to improve survival in early disease.”
  • Cardiovascular Business informs us,
    • “The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is sharing additional information about a series of recalls for certain electrophysiology (EP) and ultrasound catheters from Medline Industries. The agency emphasized that these devices should be destroyed immediately as opposed to being set to the side or returned to the manufacturer.
    • “Back in February, Medline Industries recalled several reprocessed catheters after discovering that they may contain small traces of residual material that could harm a patient. The catheters were originally made by a variety of vendors, but Medline Industries reprocessed the devices and then sold them again. Reprocessing single-use devices is a central component of the company’s business model, and it estimates this diverts more than 1 million pounds of waste from landfills each year. 
    • “Initial details about these recalls first appeared in an FDA database in February. However, this new advisory is the first time the agency has warned the public about these concerns.”

From the judicial front,

  • Govexec reports,
    • “A coalition of federal employee unions and other employee advocacy groups this week renewed their effort to block the implementation of President Trump’s plan to convert tens of thousands of federal workers into at-will employees who can be fired for virtually any reason, arguing that Trump exceeded his authority and violated federal law in advancing the policy.
    • “On Trump’s first day back in office last year, he signed an executive order reviving Schedule F, the abortive 2020 proposal to move feds in “policy-related” positions out of the competitive service and stripping them of most civil service protections, and renaming it “Schedule Policy/Career.” Final regulations implementing the policy are set to take effect next week, after which Trump is expected to sign an additional executive order formally converting the first tranche of positions into the new job category. Officials have estimated around 50,000 employees will be targeted for conversion.
    • “On Wednesday, the American Federation of Government Employees, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the AFL-CIO, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility and Democracy Forward filed an amended complaint in their lawsuit challenging Schedule Policy/Career, which began in January 2025 in the U.S. District Court for Maryland, incorporating new details that arose in the 14 months that the administration has spent preparing to launch the new excepted service job category.”

From the public health and medical / Rx research front,

  • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced today,
    • “RSV activity started later than expected in most regions of the United States, though severity is not higher compared with recent seasons. This atypical season indicates that higher levels of RSV activity may continue into April in many regions. Emergency department visits and hospitalizations for RSV are highest among infants and children less than 4 years old. Seasonal influenza activity remains elevated nationally. COVID-19 activity is decreasing nationally but remains elevated in some areas of the country.
    • “COVID-19
      • “COVID-19 activity is decreasing nationally but remains elevated in some areas of the country.
    • “Influenza
      • “Seasonal influenza activity remains elevated nationally. Influenza A activity is decreasing in most areas of the country while trends in influenza B activity vary by region.
      • “Additional information about current influenza activity can be found at: Weekly U.S. Influenza Surveillance Report | CDC
    • “RSV
      • “RSV activity has started later than expected in most regions of the United States, though severity is not higher compared with recent seasons. This atypical season indicates that higher levels of RSV activity may continue into April in many regions. Emergency department visits and hospitalizations for RSV are highest among infants and children less than 4 years old.
    • “Vaccination
      • “RSV is a leading cause of hospitalization among U.S. babies.
      • “To help keep babies safe from severe RSV, babies younger than 8 months of age should get protection in their first RSV season (which usually starts in the fall) in one of these ways:
        • “The pregnant mother gets the RSV vaccine during pregnancy, or
        • “The baby gets an RSV antibody (nirsevimab or clesrovimab) just before the start of the RSV season or soon after birth, if born during the season.
      • “A CDC report showed that these protections are working. During the 2024–25 RSV season, infant RSV hospitalization rates were reduced by up to half compared to rates during seasons before when RSV prevention products were available.”
  • The University of Minnesota’s CIDRAP relates,
    • “Children under two years of age hospitalized for COVID-19 are more likely to die or become seriously ill than babies with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), according to a study  published this week in Open Forum Infectious Diseases. 
    • “Babies can become sick and die from both respiratory viruses, even if they were healthy before becoming infected, according to the study, which was led by researchers from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.” * * *
    • “Although RSV immunizations were approved in 2023, they were not yet widely available during the study. Only 5.5% of babies age six to 23 months were vaccinated against COVID-19 in the study.
    • “Research shows that vaccinations for both RSV and COVID-19 are safe and effective. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends women receive a COVID-19 vaccine at any time during pregnancy and an RSV vaccine between the 32nd and 36th week of pregnancy. Both vaccines can protect newborns too young to be vaccinated. 
    • “For babies whose mothers weren’t vaccinated against RSV, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends newborns under 8 months receive an injection of lab-grown antibodies. The pediatric group also recommends babies age six to 23 months be vaccinated against COVID-19.”
  • The AHA News reports,
    • “The South Carolina Department of Public Health March 6 reported that the state’s measles outbreak is at 991 cases. The agency said the vaccination status of 925 cases is unvaccinated, 26 are fully vaccinated, 19 are partially vaccinated and the status of 21 cases is unknown. Additionally, the agency reported that more than 17,300 doses of the measles vaccine were administered statewide last month, a 70% increase compared to February 2025. Nationwide, 1,277 confirmed measles cases have been reported this year to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Of those, 5% of all cases have been hospitalized and no deaths have been reported.” 
  • USA Today relates,
    • “International travel often comes with vaccine reminders, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is now warning travelers to ensure their polio vaccinations are up to date.
    • “The CDC issued a level 2 travel advisory on March 3, warning that poliovirus has been detected in multiple destinations within the past 12 months – including parts of Africa, the Middle East and Europe.” 
  • Healio tells us,
    • “In-hospital mortality was significantly higher for younger women vs. younger men after a first heart attack, with women receiving fewer cardiac procedures and having more nontraditional cardiovascular risk factors, researchers reported.
    • “A study evaluating trends in first MI outcomes, both STEMI and non-STEMI, based on sex was published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.”
  • Health Day informs us,
    • “Regular cannabis users may be more likely to experience anxiety, depression or suicidal thoughts than non-users
    • “Rates of generalized anxiety and major depressive episodes among Canadians have nearly doubled since 2012
    • “Younger people show the strongest cannabis-mental health link.
  • Genetic Engineering and BioTechnology News notes,
    • “According to a new Stem Cell Reports paper, scientists have demonstrated that targeted delivery of mRNA can restore sperm production and fertility in genetically infertile male mice without introducing permanent changes to the germline. Full details are provided in a paper titled “Messenger RNA delivery into Sertoli cells restores fertility to congenitally infertile male mice.” The study was done by a team of scientists from Kyoto University, RIKEN, and elsewhere.  
    • “The findings represent a step forward in efforts to develop therapies that may help people affected by infertility.”

From the U.S. healthcare business front,

  • Healthcare Dive reports,
    • “The Mayo Clinic ended 2025 with income over 13% higher than the year before, as the nonprofit health system was buoyed by increased volumes and demand for healthcare services, according to earnings documents released this week.
    • “The Rochester, Minnesota-based nonprofit health system said increases in its outpatient, hospital and surgical volumes accounted for the rise in revenue compared to the year prior.
    • “Still, as revenues rose, so too did expenses. Mayo’s increase in volumes drove supply and services expenses up, contributing to an over 8% year-over-year increase in operating costs, according to the health system.”
  • Modern Healthcare adds,
    • “Many large health systems are on the upswing financially — at least for now.
    • “Health systems are seeing improved margins as they benefit from higher volumes, investment returns and technology-driven efficiency efforts. They are betting that a stronger balance sheet will help offset the coming reimbursement cuts. 
    • “Nonprofit health systems addressed these issues in quarterly and full-year earnings reports released over the past few weeks. Here are five key themes from those reports.
      • “Systems are strengthening their margins
      • “Investment income is driving profits
      • “Cash on hand is improving
      • “Non-labor expenses are climbing, and
      • “Systems are bracing for what’s ahead.”
  • Beckers Hospital Review tells us,
    • “Fairfield, Calif.-based NorthBay Health has signed a letter of intent to acquire Providence Queen of the Valley Medical Center in Napa, Calif., a move that would expand the system to three hospitals.”
  • and
    • “Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems has signed a definitive agreement to sell four Arkansas hospitals to Freeman Health System for $112 million.” 
  • STAT News relates,
    • “Generic versions of Novo Nordisk’s blockbuster Wegovy and Ozempic medications could be mass produced for about $3 per person per month, a cost that could greatly widen access in low- and middle-income countries, according to a new analysis.
    • “After reviewing data for active pharmaceutical ingredients from the past two years, the researchers estimated a generic version of semaglutide — the key ingredient in the Ozempic diabetes treatment and Wegovy weight loss drug — could be made for $28 to $140 per person a year and then sold at low prices once patents expire this year in several countries.
    • “Specifically, patents for semaglutide are due to expire starting later this month in India, China, Canada, Brazil, and Turkey, along with three other countries later this year, which is expected to spark distribution of generic versions. This is especially true of India, where numerous generic makers are based and are seeking new markets.
    • “The standard dose of semaglutide is 2.4 milligrams per week as an injection, which is the equivalent of 10 mg per month. This is a very small amount of drug, which is why the cost of production is so low,” said Andrew Hill, a University of Liverpool pharmacology professor, who has previously analyzed production costs for HIV, cancer, and hepatitis drugs. “These low prices open the door to worldwide access to an essential medicine.”
  • Fierce Pharma informs us,
    • “As nonprofit-governed Servier continues to make gains with its IDH-mutant glioma med Voranigo, the drugmaker is wading deeper into the rare oncology arena with a new M&A play. 
    • “Servier on Friday unveiled a definitive agreement to acquire Day One Biopharmaceuticals—a commercial-stage company developing targeted therapies for pediatric cancers and other diseases—for $21.50 per share in cash. The total value of the deal, which is expected to close in the second quarter, comes to roughly $2.5 billion, the companies said in a March 6 release.” 
  • Per BioPharma Dive,
    • “Blackstone Life Sciences is widening its presence in drug development, announcing Tuesday a $400 million commitment over four years to support Teva Pharmaceutical’s work on a late-stage gut disease drug likely to be in a hotly contested class.
    • “Per deal terms, if the drug, called duvakitug, gains Food and Drug Administration approval, Teva will owe a milestone payment to Blackstone, along with additional payouts and royalties based on commercial sales. Blackstone has signed similar deals with Moderna, Alnylam Pharmaceuticals and Autolus Therapeutics.
    • “Duvakitug is in Phase 3 clinical trials that will enroll more than 3,000 people with ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease and follow them for up to 40 weeks. The deal will help subsidize Teva’s research and development spending, which topped $1 billion in 2025.”
  • Per MedTech Dive,
    • “MiniMed, Medtronic’s diabetes tech spinoff, made its debut on the public markets Friday. 
    • “The company started trading on the Nasdaq under the ticker “MMED.” MiniMed offered 28 million shares priced at $20 each, for a total value of $560 million.
    • “The amount was below the $25 to $28 per share suggested by the company in filings last month.
    • “MiniMed has a market capitalization of about $5.29 billion, according to Yahoo finance.” 

Midweek update

David Ermer–AHRQ, CDC, CMS, Congress, COVID-19, FDA, Medical / Rx research, Medicare, NIH, Obesity, OPM, Telehealth, U.S. Healthcare–

From Washington, DC

  • The Hill reports,
    • “The House on Wednesday advanced a GOP-backed Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding bill, an effort by Republicans to pressure Democrats to end the partial government shutdown in the wake of the U.S. launching strikes against Iran.
    • “The panel voted 211-209 to pass the rule, which tees up debate and a vote on the final passage of the measure. The bill is expected to pass the lower chamber on Thursday.”
  • Roll Call relates,
    • “The White House tentatively aims to release President Donald Trump’s fiscal 2027 budget proposal the week of March 30, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the plan.
    • “That timing would put budget delivery some eight weeks after the statutory due date of the first Monday in February, though presidential budgets often miss that deadline.
    • “Office of Management and Budget staff couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.”
  • Federal News Network tells us,
    • “Agencies would make layoff decisions based more highly on federal employees’ performance, rather than how long they have been working in government, according to a new proposal from the Trump administration.
    • “If finalized, proposed regulations that the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is expected to publish Thursday morning would reorder the factors that agencies consider when determining which employees to retain or remove during a reduction in force (RIF).
    • “When it comes to personnel decisions during RIFs, current federal regulations tell agencies to first look at employees’ tenure and length of service, before considering their performance ratings. The new proposed regulations seek to reverse that order, making employee performance the top priority.”
  • Per an OPM news release,
    • “The US Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) today announced the launch of NASA Force, a dedicated talent track within the US Tech Force initiative designed to recruit and deploy the nation’s top engineers and technologists to support America’s space program.
    • “NASA Force will identify and place high-impact technical talent into mission-critical roles supporting NASA’s exploration, research, and advanced technology priorities, ensuring the agency has the cutting-edge expertise needed to maintain US leadership in space.”
  • Healthcare Dive informs us,
    • “Federal regulators received a record number of comments on their proposal to keep Medicare Advantage rates flat next year, Trump administration officials said Tuesday during an industry event, as insurers continue to lobby heavily for higher reimbursement.
    • “We appreciate all the input. I mean, obviously there’s been a little bit more input this year than we typically get,” John Brooks, the CMS’ chief policy and regulatory officer, said during the Better Medicare Alliance’s summit in Washington, D.C.
    • “In January, the Trump administration proposed an average rate bump of less than 0.1% for MA plans in 2027, along with tighter guardrails around how plans adjust for the health risks of their members.” * * *
    • “Regulators received almost 47,000 comments on the rule during the input period ended Feb. 25 — an all-time high, according to Brooks.
    • “In their comments, major MA carriers like UnitedHealth along with industry associations like the BMA and AHIP argued that the CMS ignored rising costs, resulting in a payment proposal underfunding MA.”
  • and
    • “The CMS innovation center is exploring more mandatory payment models as the Trump administration brainstorms how to get more providers to participate in value-based care, health officials said Tuesday.
    • “Mandatory models are going to have to be part of the equation,” CMMI Director Abe Sutton said at a conference hosted by value-based care advocacy group Accountable for Health.
    • “The CMMI tests ways of injecting more value-based care into federal programs through its models, which can be mandatory or voluntary. Mandatory models require all eligible participants — usually providers — to take part. Participants generally can’t exit the model before the testing period is up.
    • “That’s opposed to voluntary models, in which accountable care organizations or other actors can opt into participation.” * * *
    • “The CMMI started trialing more mandatory models during the first Trump administration, a direction that continued under President Joe Biden. Now, the second Trump administration is once again reiterating its support of expanded mandatory tests.”
  • Cardiovascular Business points out,
    • “The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has released a list 2,600 cardiologists who will be required to participate in a new Ambulatory Specialty Model (ASM) payment model for heart failure starting on Jan. 1, 2027.
    • “CMS said the new program aims to improve prevention and upstream management of high-cost chronic diseases with an initial push in heart failure and lower back pain. The new payment model is an attempt to reduce avoidable hospitalizations and unnecessary procedures. Heart failure is a major driver of Medicare expenses, and currently costs the U.S. health system about $179.5 billion annually.[1]
    • “Participation in the ASM will be mandatory for certain specialists who commonly treat these conditions in Medicare patients in an outpatient setting. The ASM will begin on Jan. 1, 2027, and run for five performance years through Dec. 31, 2031.”
  • Beckers Hospital Review notes,
    • “For the third time since March 2025, HHS has postponed a planned meeting for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, which provides clinical preventive health recommendations to Congress every year. 
    • “The USPSTF, which is a volunteer panel of national experts that was launched in 1984, usually meets three times a year. The group did not meet in July or in November of 2025, with the latter tied to a government shutdown. * * *
    • “An HHS spokesperson confirmed the March 2026 meeting’s postponement to Becker’s, adding that the meeting “will be rescheduled in the coming months.”

From the Food and Drug Administration front,

  • BioPharma Dive reports,
    • “Food and Drug Administration officials are giving Prime Medicine new hope for a gene-editing treatment the company was forced to shelve last year.
    • “The therapy, PM359, is designed to treat chronic granulomatous disease, or CGD, a potentially deadly condition that leaves patients highly susceptible to bacterial and fungal infections. A study of two patients released last year suggested PM359 could correct the genetic anomaly that causes the disease, offering the possibility of a cure.
    • “But the condition is so rare that Prime opted not to continue development of the therapy amid a cash crunch. Even as it announced the promising early results, Prime said it would deprioritize PM359 and focus on other programs after cutting a quarter of its staff. On Tuesday, Prime said it now sees the possibility of approval based on the two-patient study alone.”

From the judicial front,

  • STAT News reports,
    • “For the fourth time, federal auditors have turned up improper or potentially improper Medicaid payments in every sample of autism therapy records they audited. This report, focused on Colorado, yielded the highest improper payment amount yet. 
    • “The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General uncovered $285.2 million in improper and potentially improper payments in 2022 and 2023 to clinicians who provide a popular form of autism therapy called applied behavior analysis, or ABA. The payments, administered under Colorado’s Medicaid program, come from the state and federal governments. 
    • “HHS OIG announced in 2022 it would conduct reviews of Medicaid payments to ABA providers in seven states. The first was Indiana, then Wisconsin, and Maine. ABA is a commonly used therapy for managing autism symptoms, but a 2022 STAT investigation found that a rapid influx of private equity investment in the industry has contributed to a crisis of providers routinely overbilling insurers while providing substandard treatment to vulnerable children and families.” 

From the public health and medical / Rx research front,

  • The Washington Post reports,
    • Heard about a lot of people getting flu this winter but not much about covid?
    • It’s not just you. For the second winter in a row, the United States has faced a punishing flu season, with covid as a more muted threat.
    • Early in the covid pandemic, coronavirus proved far more transmissibleand deadly as it ripped through the world than the flu typically was. Flu was almost nonexistent that first pandemic winter in 2020-2021.
    • Now that SARS-CoV-2 is no longer a novel virus sweeping through a population with little immunity, covid and influenza illnesses are becoming more similar, with a key difference: Coronavirus circulates year-round and ticks up in the summer, when flu is gone.
    • “Does that mean flu is now the woe of the winter, and covid is the scourge of the summer? It’s complicated and too soon to say.”
  • The American Hospital Association relates,
    • “The U.S. maternal mortality rate fell to 17.9 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2024, statistically similar to the 2023 rate of 18.6 per 100,000, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC reported that the maternal mortality rate for Black women in 2024 was 44.8 deaths per 100,000 live births, significantly higher than rates for white (14.2), Hispanic (12.1) and Asian (18.1) women. 
    • “The AHA is committed to safeguarding mothers and babies by eliminating maternal mortality and reducing maternal morbidity. For more on members’ efforts, including case studies, podcasts, webinars and other resources, visit the AHA’s Better Health for Mothers and Babies Initiative webpage.” 
  • The New York Times tells us,
    • “The doctor kept hearing the same story from his patients. After taking GLP-1 weight-loss drugs and finally shedding those excess pounds, some had gone a bit rogue. They began spacing out the shots instead of injecting themselves every week.
    • “And it seemed to be working, said Dr. Mitch Biermann, an obesity and internal medicine specialist at Scripps Clinic in San Diego.
    • “By the time the third person told me they were taking it every second or third week and still maintaining their weight, I started recommending it to other patients,” he said.
    • “Dr. Biermann also conceived a study to test the strategy. Now the results of that research are in: After 36 weeks of follow-up, most of the patients who spaced out their GLP-1 injections kept the weight off and also maintained health benefits like reduced blood pressure and better blood sugar control.
    • “Only four patients gained weight after making the switch, and they quickly reverted back to weekly injections, the report said.
    • “The study was small, only 34 patients in a relatively homogeneous group — mostly white and privately uninsured. And it was done by analyzing their existing medical charts.
    • “Still, the research, published in February in the journal Obesity, provides a potentially appealing new option for patients who are loath to commit to lifelong weekly injections of a costly medication that may not be covered by insurance and that some fear could have unknown side effects.”
  • Medscape informs us,
    • “Viral and bacterial infections’ overlapping symptoms and signs can complicate RSV diagnosis and lead to unnecessary antibiotic prescriptions.
    • “In this study, children who had RSV detected via a rapid antigen test had a 48% lower likelihood of receiving antibiotics within 14 days of diagnosis.
    • ‘Overall, 20% of the kids who tested positive for RSV received at least one antibiotic prescription compared with 40% of those testing negative.”
  • and
    • “Alzheimer’s brain changes progressed up to 20 times faster in women with Alzheimer’s and alpha-synuclein co-pathology compared with men, a cohort study showed.” * * *
    • “The findings suggest that when alpha-synuclein — a protein associated with Parkinson’s and other Lewy body diseases — accumulates alongside Alzheimer’s pathology, it may drive faster Alzheimer’s progression in women.”
  • Health Day points out,
    • “A frequently prescribed atrial fibrillation drug might interact with blood thinners
    • “Diltiazem had a higher rate of serious bleeding events when taken with blood thinners like apixaban or rivaroxaban
    • “Diltiazem interacts with enzymes that play a role in the metabolism of the blood thinners.”
  • Per an NIH news release,
    • “A research team funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has developed a versatile machine learning model that could one day greatly expand what medical scans can tell us about disease. Scientists used their tool, named Merlin, to assess 3D abdominal computed tomography (CT) scans, accomplishing tasks as simple as identifying anatomical features to as complex as predicting disease onset years in advance. Despite being developed as a general-purpose CT model, Merlin surpassed a gauntlet of similar automated tools in tasks they were specifically built to handle.
    • “The team trained their model on a unique set of patient CT scans linked to radiology reports and medical diagnosis codes collected from the Stanford University School of Medicine. The researchers note that it is the largest collection of abdominal CT data to date.  
    • “Rich datasets like this are necessary to push the limits of what artificial intelligence models can accomplish in medicine,” said Bruce Tromberg, Ph.D., director of NIH’s National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB). “This work exemplifies how meticulously crafted training data can enable remarkable insights that significantly streamline workflows and assist in clinical decision-making.” 
  • Genetic Engineering and BioTechnology News adds,
    • “Life is governed by tiers of gene regulation, driven by modulation of RNA polymerase (RNAP) by transcription factors. The second tier is composed of cell signaling cascades and feedback loops. Dissecting gene regulation requires distinguishing transcription factor targets from indirect network effects. 
    • “A new study by The Rockefeller University published in Molecular Cell titled, “Cell-free genomics reveals fundamental regulatory principles of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis transcription cycle,” has revealed fundamental features of the transcription cycle in the bacteria that causes tuberculosis. The study informs the development of new drugs.
    • “Gaining a deep understanding of how transcription works reveals central principles in biology that have huge significance for human health,” said Elizabeth Campbell, PhD, head of the Laboratory of Molecular Pathogenesis at The Rockefeller and corresponding author of the paper. “We can more precisely design therapeutics to target a process if we truly understand it.” 

From the U.S. healthcare business front,

  • Beckers Payer Issues reports,
    • “In recent months, payers across the country have tried tightening policies to get a better grip on evaluation/management coding.
    • “While payers often say the policies aim to control costs or combat fraud, these more restrictive policies are often met with provider backlash. [You will find in the article] three insurer policies from the past few months — and where they stand.
  • Fierce Healthcare relates,
    • “Even as its inpatient occupancy surged near the end of 2025, the nation’s largest for-profit hospital system said it has generally managed to avoid revenue-limiting capacity constraints and should continue to do so through 2026 even as its volumes grow. 
    • “HCA Healthcare, with its stock sitting at an all-time pricing high, pleased investors earlier this year when announcing a better-than-expected fourth-quarter performance and bullish 2026 guidance despite hundreds of millions in expected headwinds due to changes in Medicaid policy. 
    • “But, while that quarter’s same-facility equivalent admissions rose 2.5% over the prior year, in line with expectations, its inpatient surgeries remained flat while its outpatient surgical volume dipped by about 1.5%. At the same time, its hospitals were filled to about 73% to 74% capacity, a historical high point that could place strains on the operating efficiency of hospitals pulling the average upward.”
  • Beckers Hospital Review tells us,
    • “Grand Forks, N.D.-based Altru has acquired CHI St. Alexius Health Devils Lake (N.D.) — a 25-bed critical access hospital — from Chicago-based CommonSpirit. The hospital is now known as Altru Hospital Devils Lake, according to a March 2 Altru news release. 
    • “This transition represents an opportunity to make a meaningful difference in the lives of those we serve,” Altru CEO Todd Forkel said in the release. “Over the next several months, we will be expanding services and enhancing care offerings to better meet the needs of this important community.” 
    • “Altru is also in the process of acquiring three more hospitals from CommonSpirit. In January, Altru signed a nonbinding agreement to acquire CHI St. Alexius Health in Bismarck, CHI St. Alexius Health Turtle Lake and CHI St. Alexius Health Garrison (N.D.). If finalized, the move would expand Altru’s footprint further west in North Dakota.
    • “CommonSpirit is also in talks with Pittsburgh-based UPMC to sell Trinity Health System — a three-hospital network based in Steubenville, Ohio. CommonSpirit CFO Michael Browning said on the system’s March 2 investor call that both deals, if approved, could close in 2026.”
  • and
    • “Academic health systems posted a wide range of operating performance in 2025 and early fiscal 2026, with margins spanning from negative territory to double digits. While strong investment returns buoyed bottom lines at many organizations, core operations remain under strain from rising labor, supply and drug costs.
    • “Across these systems, operating margins spanned from -2.6% to 10.7%, highlighting the uneven financial recovery taking shape in academic healthcare. Many organizations saw stronger net income driven by investment returns and nonoperating gains, even as core operating performance remained thin. Expense growth — particularly labor, supplies and drug costs — continues to pressure margins, while scale, integration and restructuring efforts are increasingly shaping financial trajectories across academic healthcare.
    • “{The article shows] how 12 major academic and nonprofit systems stack up based on their most recent financial reports. 
  • Health Day informs us,
    • “Telemedicine appointments aren’t only more convenient, but actually save money for both patients and health care systems, a new study says.
    • “Telemedicine visits are five times less costly than in-person appointments for the most common conditions, researchers recently reported in JAMA Network Open.
    • “On average, telemedicine patients are billed $400 less, researchers found, and are less likely to need follow-up visits after their first appointment.
    • “Before we did this study, there was a common concern that telemedicine might serve only as an easy source of ‘first aid,’ just delaying in-person care and increasing costs overall,” said co-senior researcher Dr. David Asch, senior vice president for strategic initiatives at the University of Pennsylvania.
    • “But we found that wasn’t true, and our work suggests that for many patients, telemedicine can be a complete solution, not just a temporary band-aid,” he said in a news release.”
  • Per Fierce Pharma,
    • “The primary growth drivers in Bayer’s pharma sector—Nubeqa and Kerendia—are performing even better than the company anticipated and their momentum is expected to continue in 2026. But that won’t lead to growth of Bayer’s pharma business overall this year as two contraction drivers—Xarelto and Eylea—are working in the opposite direction. 
    • “This will be the last year of the sector’s “resilience phase,” Bayer’s pharma president Stefan Oelrich said during a quarterly conference call, which will set it up for growth in 2027.”
    • “In a way, Bayer’s pharma business is the company in a microcosm. As the German conglomerate absorbs massive litigation charges related to its disastrous acquisition of Monsanto a decade ago and eyes a potential $7.25 billion settlement of Roundup lawsuits, a rebound is finally in sight.”
  • Per Fierce Healthcare,
    • “Eldercare company Papa is rolling out a new program that leans on its existing companion care services to support quality improvements for health plans.
    • “Called Papa Plus, the company’s network of vetted “Pals” will be able to provide key services that insurers need in addition to their work in addressing social needs of members. These tasks could include assisting a member in scheduling a key wellness visit and then accompanying them to the appointment, providing support after hospital discharge or helping an individual use a telehealth visit.
    • “This builds a direct engagement channel to some of the most vulnerable—and least reachable—patients, Papa said in the announcement, which was shared exclusively with Fierce Healthcare.”

Friday report

David Ermer–CDC, CMS, COVID-19, FDA, Federal employment benefits, Medical / Rx research, Mental health care, NCQA, OPM, Rx coverage, Telehealth, U.S. Healthcare, Uncategorized–

From Washington, DC,

  • Govexec.com reports,
    • “While the Homeland Security Department is shut down, the vast majority of employees—about 92%—are still reporting to work. In some cases, however, workers are finding creative solutions to get out of their regular duties and save money while their paychecks hang in the balance. 
    • “My unit is rotating voluntary furlough days,” said one DHS staffer.  “Workers in that office are taking turns to take time off work, which, during a shutdown, entails being placed in an unpaid furlough status. 
    • “[We] conserve finances by not commuting, since we’re only allowed to telework in emergency situations,” the employee said, noting some employees in the unit commute 80 miles per day and are therefore seeing significant savings on gas when they do not go to work. The employees who accept the furloughs have used the time to schedule medical appointments, handle errands or tackle home projects.” * * *
    • “Most DHS employees will not miss a full paycheck until the beginning of March. Craig Carter, president of the Federal Managers Association, said the impacts are already being felt across the DHS workforce.” 
  • The OPM Office of Inspector General has posted its semi-annual report to Congress for the period ended September 30, 2025. Here is a link to the OPM management’s response to this report.
  • Legistorm tells us about GAO report number GAO-26-107169 which was issued yesterday.
    • “What GAO Found
      • “The No Surprises Act, among its provisions, generally prohibits providers from balance billing in certain circumstances—such as emergency services—for individuals with private health insurance. Balance billing is when insured patients receive a bill from an out-of-network health care provider for the amount above any applicable cost-sharing that exceeds the health plan or issuer’s payment. An unexpected balance bill is referred to as a surprise bill.
      • “GAO analyzed the percentage of claims that were in-network for selected specialties to examine potential changes in network participation after the act’s implementation. Increases in the percentage of in-network claims may indicate increases in provider participation, while decreases may indicate reduced participation.
      • “Among specialties likely to be affected by the No Suprises Act protections—emergency medicine, radiology, anesthesiology, and air ambulance—the percentage of in-network claims increased for three of the four specialties after the act took effect. For example, GAO found the percentage of in-network facility claims (typically submitted by hospitals) and professional claims (typically submitted by physicians) for emergency medicine declined before the No Surprises Act took effect, then increased afterward.
      • “Payment changes for the selected services largely reflected continuations of trends prior to the No Surprises Act taking effect. For example, the inflation-adjusted payment for in-network emergency medicine services billed by facilities increased in 2022 and 2023, continuing the trend since 2019. Meanwhile, the inflation-adjusted payment for in-network emergency services billed by physicians or their practices decreased in 2022 and 2023, continuing previous trends.”
    • FEHBlog note: This is encouraging news.
  • NCQA writes in LinkedIn
    • “NCQA has updated its State of Health Care Quality Report to include data for HEDIS® Measurement Year (MY) 2024. This free resource, available on the NCQA website, offers valuable insight into healthcare quality performance nationwide.
    • “You can use this report to:
      • “Learn more about each quality measure, how it is defined and why it matters.
      • “Access national averages and historical trends for over 90 measures of clinical quality and patient satisfaction.
      • “Compare performance across different products, like Commercial, Medicare and Medicaid.
      • “We will add data for MY 2025 in February 2027, or you can get it sooner through NCQA’s Quality Compass®.
    • “The report is available through this link. You can also find a link to the report on the HEDIS Measures and Technical Resources web page.”

From the Food and Drug Administration front,

  • STAT News reports,
    • “Tracy Beth Høeg, the top drug regulator at the Food and Drug Administration, indicated in her first address to staff that she’ll scrutinize antidepressants and the shots used to protect babies from RSV.
    • “Høeg told employees on Thursday that her top priorities include two issues she’s focused on in the recent past: evaluating the safety of antidepressants taken by pregnant women and of monoclonal antibodies that protect infants against RSV.
    • “I’ve been interested to learn we really haven’t been doing sort of thorough safety monitoring of these products during pregnancy, and so I think we could do a better job,” Høeg said. “I actually think that there’s agreement about that, and among the CDER staff that I’ve been working with on this issue, so I’m excited to see that.”
    • “Høeg also discussed her interest in vaccine policy, and mentioned she’d like to “bring that interest” into the drug center.”
  • Radiology Business relates,
    • “GE HealthCare has secured three notable new MRI clearances from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. 
    • “On Thursday, the company announced the clearance of two MRI systems, Signa Sprint with Freelium and Signa Bolt, and one artificial intelligence-enabled workflow platform. Each of the three cleared produts were designed with the rising demand for MR imaging in mind, according to the company’s president and CEO of MR, Kelly Londy. 
    • “Achieving FDA clearance of our next-generation Signa MRI technology underscores our commitment to expanding access to high-quality imaging and elevating the standard of care for patients everywhere,” Londy said in an announcement. “As MRI demand continues to rise across clinical areas, providers need solutions that deliver greater efficiency without compromising diagnostic precision.”
  • BioPharma Dive informs us,
    • “Roche said Friday that the Food and Drug Administration will decide by Dec. 18 whether to approve its experimental drug giredestrant in breast cancer, setting the stage for a verdict that could intensify the competition surrounding a new class of oral, tumor-fighting medications.  
    • “Roche’s submission was based on the results of a Phase 3 study that found giredestrant superior to older hormone therapies at keeping people with a certain type of advanced breast cancer alive without their disease getting worse. The pill has also since proven helpful to people in the “adjuvant” setting after surgery. 
    • “If approved, giredestrant would become the third new oral “SERD” on the market, following clearances for Menarini Group’s Orserdu and Eli Lilly’s Inluriyo. Roche believes giredestrant has the potential to stand out from its competitors, but faces persistent doubts about the class’ commercial outlook.”

From the judicial front,

  • The American Hospital Association News reports,
    • The Supreme Court Feb. 20 ruled [in a 6-3 opinion written by the Chief Justice] that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act [of 1977] does not authorize the imposition of global tariffs. The court held that IEEPA does not provide the president with “the independent power to impose tariffs on imports from any country, of any product, at any rate, for any amount of time.” The court did not address whether the government will have to refund the tariff revenue or what other legal authorities the president may have to impose similar tariffs. [The Court remanded those decisions to the lower courts.]
  • Bloomberg Law reports,
    • “The FTC has asked a federal appeals court to revive requirements for companies to divulge more information to US antitrust regulators ahead of potential mergers.
    • “The Federal Trade Commission Wednesday appealed a Feb. 12 decision from a US district court judge in Texas blocking a 2024 Biden-era rule. The case is pending in the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
    • “The regulation updated a decades-old US pre-merger notification program to require companies share more about overlapping business lines and ownership structures, among other details. Companies seeking combinations valued at $133.9 million or more must undergo an initial 30-day review by the FTC and Justice Department under the notice system.”
  • and
    • “The [U.S. Court of Appeals for the] First Circuit rejected a lawsuit accusing Cigna Health & Life Insurance Co. of obesity discrimination, shutting down an attempt to broaden coverage of blockbuster GLP-1 weight-loss drugs.
    • “Pressure to cover the drugs is growing for insurers and employers as their uptake among the general public increases. One in five adults has taken a GLP-1 drug at some point, according to a November 2025 poll from health-care think tank KFF.
    • “The US District Court for the District of Maine previously dismissed Jamie Whittemore’s case, along with a similar case against Elevance Health Inc. The district judges determined that Whittemore didn’t prove that obesity qualified her as disabled.” * * *
    • “Here, even if Whittemore plausibly alleged that obesity is a physical impairment, she failed to allege sufficient facts to support an inference that her obesity substantially limits her major life activities,” Judges Lara E. Montecalvo, Sandra L. Lynch, and Ojetta Rogeriee Thompson wrote in their opinion Thursday.”
  • Per a Justice Department news release,
    • “The Justice Department’s Antitrust Division, together with the Attorney General of Ohio, filed a civil antitrust lawsuit today challenging OhioHealth Corporation’s (OhioHealth) anticompetitive contract restrictions that force Ohio patients to pay higher prices for healthcare.
    • “The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, seeks to enjoin OhioHealth, the largest healthcare system in central Ohio, from enforcing its anticompetitive contractual terms and continuing to suppress healthcare competition.”
  • Per Beckers Payer Issues,
    • “An insurance brokerage president and the CEO of a marketing company were each sentenced to 20 years in prison for their roles in a scheme to fraudulently enroll individuals in subsidized ACA plans to obtain commission payments from insurers.”

From the public health, medical and Rx research front,

  • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced,
    • “Seasonal influenza activity remains elevated nationally. RSV activity is elevated and increasing in some areas of the country. Emergency department visits for RSV are highest among infants and children less than 4 years old. RSV hospitalizations are highest among infants and children less than 4 years old. COVID-19 activity is decreasing nationally but remains elevated in some areas of the country.
    • “COVID-19
      • “COVID-19 activity is decreasing nationally but remains elevated in some areas of the country.
    • “Influenza
      • “Seasonal influenza activity remains elevated nationally. Influenza A activity is decreasing while influenza B activity is increasing nationally and in most areas of the country; however, trends vary by region.
      • “Additional information about current influenza activity can be found at: Weekly U.S. Influenza Surveillance Report | CDC
    • “RSV
      • “RSV activity is elevated in many areas of the country, including emergency department visits among infants and children 4 years and younger. Hospitalizations are highest among infants less than 1 year old.
    • “Vaccination
      • “National vaccination coverage for COVID-19, influenza, and RSV vaccines remains low for children and adults. COVID-19, influenza, and RSV vaccines can provide protection against severe disease this season. It is not too late to get vaccinated this season. Talk to your doctor or trusted healthcare provider about what vaccines are recommended for you and your family.
  • Per the AHA News,
    • “The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Feb. 19 released a report on the low use of COVID-19 antiviral drugs among individuals age 65 and older, a population at high risk of severe illness from the disease. The report found that from June 2023 through September 2025, 16%-23% of COVID-19 patients older than 65 received an antiviral prescription during low occurrences of COVID-19, compared to 37%-38% during higher occurrences. Adults ages 75-84 and 85 and older were more likely to receive an antiviral prescription than those ages 65-74. “COVID-19 vaccination and treatment can prevent severe COVID-19 among older adults,” the CDC wrote. “Efforts to improve health care provider and patient knowledge regarding the benefits of COVID-19 vaccination and antivirals, especially for older adults, are needed to reduce the risk for severe illness and death.”
  • The University of Minnesota’s CIDRAP adds,
    • “Two studies examined the effects of COVID-19 vaccination in pregnancy, with one estimating that full vaccination and a booster dose reduce the risk of preeclampsia (PE) by 15% and 33%, respectively, and the other finding no elevated risk of miscarriage before 20 weeks’ gestation among pregnant or soon-to-be-pregnant recipients of the Pfizer/BioNTech or Moderna vaccines.”
  • The CDC also announced,
    • “As of February 19, 2026, 982 confirmed* measles cases were reported in the United States in 2026. Among these, 976 measles cases were reported by 26 jurisdictions: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Kentucky, Maine, Minnesota, Nebraska, New York City, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin. A total of 6 measles cases were reported among international visitors to the United States. 
    • “There have been 7 new outbreaks** reported in 2026, and 89% of confirmed cases (870 of 982) are outbreak-associated (73 from outbreaks starting in 2026 and 797 from outbreaks that started in 2025).”
  • The University of Minnesota’s CIDRAP adds,
    • “Utah has confirmed 300 measles cases in an ongoing outbreak, with the virus now spreading in Salt Lake County and new exposures at high schools in that county, according to an update yesterday from the Salt Lake County Health Department (SLCoHD).
    • “The first measles symptoms are often cold- or flu-like, with cough, runny nose, red/watery eyes, and fever, so you may think you have a common respiratory illness and can continue engaging in normal activities,” said Dorothy Adams, executive director of SLCoHD. “But please stay home if you have any signs of illness, especially now that we know measles is actively circulating in our community.”
  • Per the AHA News,
    • “The ongoing measles outbreak in South Carolina has reached 973 cases, the state’s Department of Public Health reported Feb. 20. Of those, 906 cases are unvaccinated, 26 are fully vaccinated, 20 are partially vaccinated and the vaccination status of 21 cases is unknown. Nationally, 982 confirmed measles cases across 26 jurisdictions have been reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention since Jan. 1. The CDC said there have been seven outbreaks reported in 2026 and that 89% of confirmed cases are outbreak-associated.” 
  • Cardiovascular Business informs us,
    • “The American College of Cardiology (ACC) and American Heart Association (AHA) have developed their first clinical practice guidelines focused on the treatment and management of acute pulmonary embolism (PE). The new document, published in full in JACC and Circulation, highlights the importance of diagnosing patients as quickly as possible and determining the best course of action.
    • “A PE is a potentially fatal blood clot that travels through the heart and then becomes lodged in an artery in the lungs. Treating PEs quickly—and effectively—can help minimize the patient’s risk of death and cardiac arrest. Anticoagulants are the most common PE treatment, but catheter-based interventions and surgery may be necessary for more severe cases.
    • “There have been significant advances in the understanding of PE and treatments to effectively manage this condition,” Mark A. Creager, MD, chair of the document’s writing committee and director emeritus of the Heart and Vascular Center at Dartmouth Health, said in a statement. “This guideline is a road map to help clinicians navigate these advances for the safest and most effective approaches to care for people with this condition.”
  • Per Radiology Business,
    • “New research highlights the potential for a PET- and MRI-based imaging approach for differentiating a new type of dementia from Alzheimer’s disease. 
    • “Limbic-predominant age-related TDP-43 encephalopathy, also known as LATE, was recently recognized as a type of dementia that occurs in older adults, typically presenting as memory-related cognitive decline. Due to its impact on memory, it is often mistaken for AD. 
    • “However, both LATE and Alzheimer’s present differently on imaging. While AD is identified due to the accumulation of amyloid and tau proteins on the brain, LATE involves clumps of the protein TDP-43 in the limbic system. It is important to differentiate between the two due to the differing treatment methods for each. 
    • ‘A new paper in the Journal of Nuclear Medicine describes how combining PET and MRI imaging data can help distinguish between the two in living patients. 
    • “The distinction in the causes of these types of dementia is critical, especially in the era of anti-amyloid therapies,” Satoshi Minoshima, MD, PhD, professor of radiology and imaging sciences at the University of Utah, Salt Lake City, said in a news release. “Because LATE has a different underlying pathology and a seemingly different prognosis, it cannot be diagnosed or treated in the same way as Alzheimer’s disease.” 
  • The University of Connecticut, the FEHBlog’s alma mater, writes in LinkedIn about research on Parkinson’s Disease treatments.
  • Per BioPharma Dive,
    • “Grail’s multi-cancer early detection test failed to meet its primary endpoint in a key study, sending the company’s shares tumbling about 50% in Friday trading.
    • “The NHS-Galleri trial evaluated annual screening with the Galleri MCED test in England’s National Health Service over three years in 142,000 asymptomatic participants aged 50 to 77.
    • “Grail said the study aimed to show testing could help reduce late-stage cancer diagnoses and increase detection rates to support national screening in England. A U.S. premarket approval application for Galleri, submitted earlier this month, includes data from the trial on test performance, clinical validation and benefit of detection at stages I through III, including reduction in stage IV cancer diagnoses, the company said.”
  • Per Health Day,
    • “An ancient Chinese mind-body practice can lower a person’s blood pressure as well as medication or a program of brisk walking, a new study says.
    • “Baduanjin is a widely practiced eight-movement sequence that combines slow, structured movement, deep breathing and meditation.
    • “The practice lowered people’s blood pressure by about 3 to 5 points, similar to benefits sustained by people asked to take up walking, according to clinical trial results published Feb. 18 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.”
  • Per Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News,
    • “Stanford Medicine researchers and collaborators have developed a universal vaccine candidate that studies in mice suggest protects against a wide range of respiratory viruses, bacteria, and even allergens. Unlike any vaccine used today, the new vaccine, delivered intranasally, was found to provide broad protection in the lungs for several months. The novel vaccination strategy integrates the two branches of immunity—innate and adaptive—creating a feedback loop that sustains a broad immune response.
    • “The research team, headed by Bali Pulendran, PhD, the Violetta L. Horton Professor II, director of the Institute for Immunity, Transplantation and Infection, and a professor of pathology, microbiology and immunology at Stanford University, demonstrated that vaccinated mice were protected against SARS-CoV-2 and other coronaviruses,  Staphylococcus aureus and Acinetobacter baumannii (common hospital-acquired infections), and house dust mite allergen. Pulendran said the new vaccine has worked for a remarkably wide spectrum of respiratory threats that the researchers tested. Speaking to GEN, Pulendran emphasized that the reported work is preclinical, and the team’s goal is to translate their research carefully and responsibly. “If it ultimately proves safe and effective in humans, the potential impact could be transformative: simplifying seasonal vaccination and improving readiness for emerging respiratory threats,” Pulendran said.”

From the U.S. healthcare business and artificial intelligence front,

  • Beckers Payer Issues reports,
    • “Medicare Advantage now covers about 55% of eligible beneficiaries nationwide — more than 35 million people — but health systems are confronting a question that until recently felt almost taboo: What happens when participation in the country’s fastest-growing Medicare program no longer makes financial sense?
    • “Over the past three years, Becker’s has reported on roughly 90 hospitals and health systems that have terminated some or all of their commercial Medicare Advantage contracts. In 2026 alone, at least 15 systems have gone out of network with one or more Medicare Advantage plans, and the trend is showing no signs of slowing down. 
    • ‘This year, 1 in 10 Medicare Advantage enrollees — about 2.9 million people — will be forced to disenroll from their plan following a spike in plans exiting the market, according to a Feb. 18 study published in JAMA.
    • “Behind many of those decisions lies what Scripps Health CFO Brett Tande describes as a classic “sunk-cost” dilemma: after years of building infrastructure, staffing and strategy around Medicare Advantage, can systems realistically walk away — even when contracts are losing money?
    • “For a growing number of health systems, the answer is becoming clearer.
    • “Becker’s connected with executives from Providence, Scripps Health, Ascension, MemorialCare and Mayo Clinic to understand how they are reassessing their participation in Medicare Advantage and what that shift could mean for providers, payers and patients.”
  • Kaufmann Hall notes,
    • “Partnerships, like all relationships, are de facto collaborative. Certain success factors are well known, including the importance of cultural alignment, constant communication and effective post-closing integration. Based on our collective experience assisting health systems with the negotiation of strategic partnerships, we share other lessons learned that are important considerations. These are tangible steps that require intentional focus and may require hard choices during the partnership development process but are important for ensuring long-term success. We hope these “inside baseball” lessons and case studies are useful for organizations when negotiating their next strategic partnership.”
  • and
    • “Amazon last week announced it would expand its same-day pharmacy delivery service to 4,500 cities nationwide. The move expands Amazon’s market share against other drug delivery providers like Walmart and CVS Caremark. It adds same-day delivery services to 2,000 communities, including remote areas in Alaska, the Navajo Nation and islands only accessible by ferry and only navigable by horse-drawn carriage. The expansion demonstrates the retail giant’s ability to scale its logistics network in healthcare, offering faster access to medications compared with traditional mail-order pharmacies, which can take up to 10 days to deliver drugs.”
  • Behavioral Health Business relates,
    • “Madison Health Group (MHG) has announced its plans to purchase managed behavioral health provider Magellan Health.
    • “This comes roughly five years after payer giant Centene Corporation (NYSE: CNC) bought Magellan Health at a valuation of $2.2 billion.
    • ​”Magellan Health manages behavioral health services for health plans, employers and government agencies.
    • ​”Following the deal, Magellan will become an independent organization, with MHG’s backing to support innovation. Specifically, the new funds will be used to expand its clinical programs into new markets, leveraging “enhanced technology, AI, data and analytical solutions” for its clients, according to social media posts.”
  • Fierce Healthcare tells us,
    • “Carrot is expanding its parenting benefits with on-demand virtual pediatric care through Blueberry Pediatrics. 
    • “Carrot, a fertility and family-building benefits platform working with payers and employers, will offer Blueberry as an add-on. The new offering will be available to families with kids under 12. It is expected to roll out in the next few months. The offering will be covered by the plan sponsor, and members are not expected to incur out-of-pocket costs.
    • ‘Parents will have 24/7 access to on-demand virtual visits with board-certified pediatricians from Blueberry for common issues like ear infections, rashes, colds and the flu. Families can connect with pediatricians around the clock via secure messaging, video or audio. Members will also get a home medical kit with a wireless digital ear scope, pediatric pulse oximeter and thermometer. This will help Blueberry clinicians remotely assess children.”
  • Per Modern Healthcare,
    • “Early lessons are emerging as the digital health sector’s ambient AI focus shifts from clinical documentation to prior authorization.
    • “Companies such as Abridge, Suki and Cohere say their solutions can do for prior authorization what ambient AI has done for documentation and clinician burnout. The importance of partnerships become an integral part of their efforts in this area.
    • “In August, Abridge announced a partnership with Pittsburgh-based insurer Highmark Health and its integrated health system Alleghany Health Network to develop a tool that would approve prior authorization requests at the point of care. Prior authorization was the logical next step for Abridge after clinical documentation, said Clinical Strategy Principal Matt Troup.
    • “Six months in, the collaboration has shown the importance of building connections with providers and payers when developing ambient AI for prior authorization.
    • “[Our partnership] just gave us access to bring everyone to the table, to figure out, what we can possibly do in this space,” Troup said. “Is it actually possible to get these approvals in real-time, upstream in the conversation, if both the payer and provider are aligned on the impact that this can have in healthcare.” 

Friday report

David Ermer–CDC, Congress, COVID-19, FDA, Medical / Rx research, Obesity, OPM, U.S. Healthcare, Uncategorized–

From Washington, DC

  • Roll Call tells us,
    • “As Congress spent months arguing over COVID-19-era enhanced premium tax credits that many people on the Affordable Care Act used to subsidize their health insurance, a relatively narrow debate over a single policy grew into a much broader and more complicated discussion about how to lower health care costs. 
    • “Concerns about those costs are a top issue for voters ahead of this year’s midterms. But whether Congress can meaningfully address the issue and how candidates communicate that idea to voters depends on the type of cost increases and what is driving them. 
    • “A main reason is that health-related costs mean different things to different people, such as higher insurance premiums, more expensive drugs, co-pay increases, surprise charges or unexpected gaps in coverage.
    • “Health care is probably the most complicated sector of the economy,” said Jonathan Burks, executive vice president of health and economic policy at the Bipartisan Policy Center. “I think when policymakers are talking about affordability, the reason that they can say ‘affordability’ and yet be nowhere near agreement on what they specifically want to do is because of that complexity.”
  • Federal News Network reports,
    • “The Trump administration is telling most agencies to proceed with terminating their collective bargaining agreements and derecognizing their federal unions in response to a pair of 2025 executive orders, despite ongoing litigation.
    • I”n a memo issued Thursday, Office of Personnel Management Director Scott Kupor advised all agencies covered by President Donald Trump’s orders to move forward with either amending or fully canceling their collective bargaining agreements. The president’s orders last year directed a majority of agencies to cancel their union contracts, citing “national security” concerns.
    • “For various reasons, including litigation, implementation of these executive orders at certain agencies and agency subdivisions has been delayed,” Kupor wrote in the Feb. 12 memo. “[OPM] now advises agencies and agency subdivisions covered by [the orders] that they should proceed to terminate or modify collective bargaining agreements.”
    • “The OPM memo tells agencies to notify their federal unions that the agreements are being terminated. It adds, though, that federal employees and agencies not covered by the two executive orders [here and here] can continue collective bargaining procedures as normal.”
  • NCQA announced the draft measurement year 2027 changes to its HEDIS quality measures. The public comment period ends on March 13, 2026 at 5 pm ET. HEDIS measures form a major part of OPM’s FEHB/PSHB plan performance assessment.
  • The American Hospital Association News relates,
    • “The Department of Health and Human Services Feb. 13 issued a request for information on a new 340B rebate model program. The RFI said HHS’ Health Resources and Services Administration’s Office of Pharmacy Affairs, which currently oversees the 340B Drug Pricing Program, will accept comments through March 19.
    • “The RFI asks 340B stakeholders to provide answers to a long list of questions so that HRSA can evaluate whether it should implement a 340B rebate model pilot program and how such a program might be designed. HRSA expressly encourages commenters to “include supporting facts, research, and evidence.”
    • “In a statement, Aimee Kuhlman, AHA vice president of advocacy and grassroots, said, “The AHA welcomes HRSA’s attempt to gather detailed information about the impact of a rebate model. We look forward to working with the agency to answer the many specific questions it has posed to 340B hospitals and other stakeholders. We hope that after careful consideration of comments from 340B hospitals and other stakeholders, HRSA will recognize that imposing hundreds of millions of dollars in costs on hospitals serving rural and underserved communities is not a sound policy.”

From the Food and Drug Administration front,

  • STAT News reports,
    • “The Food and Drug Administration on Friday rejected bitopertin, a therapy developed by Disc Medicine to treat the rare blood disorder porphyria, which makes patients extremely sensitive to sunlight. 
    • “It’s the first experimental drug to go through FDA Commissioner Marty Makary’s new program to fast-track drug reviews. The agency previously approved a generic antibiotic through the new drug review program in December.
    • “The FDA, in its letter rejecting bitopertin, cited “uncertainties” about the correlation between the blood-based biomarker used as the efficacy goal in Disc’s clinical trials and clinical benefit for patients.” 
  • Fierce Pharma informs us,
    • “With the writing apparently on the wall, PTC Therapeutics has called off its latest bid for FDA approval of its Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) drug Translarna. 
    • “Late Thursday, PTC revealed that it withdrew its FDA application for Translarna in nonsense mutation DMD after receiving feedback on its filing from the regulator. 
    • “FDA shared that based on its review to date, the data in the [New Drug Application] submission are unlikely to meet the Agency’s threshold of substantial evidence of effectiveness to support approval of Translarna,” Matthew Klein, M.D., PTC’s chief executive, explained in a statement. 
    • “PTC is “disappointed that FDA approval cannot be achieved,” Klein said, citing the decades of development work that have gone into the company’s protein restoration therapy. 
    • “In a letter to the U.S. DMD community, PTC cited unresolvable “differences in data interpretation” with the FDA, Pharmaphorum reports.” 
  • and
    • “It’s déjà vu all over again. Just as the kidney disease space becomes increasingly competitive, Novartis has found itself intending to turn a statistical miss into a regulatory win.
    • “Despite the phase 3 Align trial narrowly failing to hit its kidney function endpoint, Novartis announced Friday that it will pursue traditional FDA approval for Vanrafia (atrasentan) in IgA nephropathy (IgAN).” * * *
    • “For its part, Novartis is leaning on a “positive difference” with Vanrafia versus placebo in eGFR change from baseline at Week 136, as well as a “clinically meaningful” improvement for the drug at Week 132, when study treatment ended.” 

From the judicial front,

  • The AHA News reports,
    • “The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas Feb. 12 vacated a final rule by the Federal Trade Commission that changed premerger notification rules, form and instructions under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act. The rule had increased reporting requirements on the HSR form. The final rule was challenged by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in 2024.
    • “First, the Final Rule exceeds the FTC’s statutory authority because the agency has not shown that the Rule’s claimed benefits will ‘reasonably outweigh’ its significant and widespread costs,” Judge Jeremy D. Kernodle wrote in his opinion. “Though the FTC asserts that the Rule will detect illegal mergers and save agency resources, the FTC fails to substantiate these assertions. The Final Rule is therefore not ‘necessary and appropriate,’ and the statute ‘does not authorize [the FTC] to promulgate [the Final Rule].’”
    • “The AHA filed an amicus brief in the case last year, explaining that the changes made by the FTC under the HSR Act were “unnecessary and unlawful.” Key aspects of yesterday’s decision, including the court’s rejection of the FTC’s reliance on a study regarding hospital mergers, were based on arguments made in the AHA’s amicus brief.”

From the public health and medical / Rx research front,

  • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced today,
    • “Seasonal influenza activity remains elevated nationally. RSV activity is elevated in many areas of the country. Emergency department visits for RSV are highest among infants under 1 year and children 1-4 years old. RSV hospitalizations are highest among infants less than 1 year old. COVID-19 activity is elevated in some areas of the country.
    • “COVID-19
      • “COVID-19 activity is elevated in some areas of the country.
    • “Influenza
      • “Seasonal influenza activity remains elevated nationally. Influenza A activity is decreasing while influenza B activity is increasing nationally and in most areas of the country; however, trends vary by region.
      • “Additional information about current influenza activity can be found at: Weekly U.S. Influenza Surveillance Report | CDC
    • “RSV
      • “RSV activity is elevated in many areas of the country, including emergency department visits among infants under 1 year and children 1-4 years old. Hospitalizations are highest among infants less than 1 year old.
    • “Vaccination
      • “National vaccination coverage for COVID-19, influenza, and RSV vaccines remains low for children and adults. COVID-19, influenza, and RSV vaccines can provide protection against severe disease this season. It is not too late to get vaccinated this season. Talk to your doctor or trusted healthcare provider about what vaccines are recommended for you and your family.”
  • The University of Minnesota’s CIDRAP adds,
    • “Six more US children died of influenza last week, for a total of 66 pediatric deaths this respiratory illness season, as flu rates remained moderate to very high in different regions of the country, per the weekly FluView update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
    • “Of all pediatric deaths this season, 90% who were eligible for vaccination were unvaccinated. This age-group has been particularly vulnerable, with high-severity illness, while both adults and older adults are currently categorized as having moderate-severity illness. 
    • “The 2024-25 influenza season saw 289 pediatric deaths—the most reported in a non-pandemic flu season since the CDC began tracking child flu deaths in 2004.
    • “COVID-19 rates are still elevated and are growing in some states, but ED visits for the virus are decreasing.”
  • The AHA News tells us,
    • “The South Carolina measles outbreak has grown to 950 cases, the state’s Department of Public Health reported Feb. 13. Of those, 246 cases are under age 5, 611 cases are from age 6-17, 82 cases are age 18 or older, and the ages of 11 cases are unknown. Since Jan. 1, 910 confirmed measles cases nationwide have been reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The vaccination status of 94% of cases is classified as unvaccinated or unknown.”
  • The UMN CIDRAP again adds,
  • Radiology Business informs us,
    • “A novel artificial intelligence model could improve the identification of a potentially deadly pregnancy complication that often goes undetected. 
    • “Placenta accreta spectrum happens when the placenta improperly attaches, typically too deeply, to the uterine wall. Due to its potential to trigger life-threatening hemorrhage during or after delivery, it is considered a high-risk complication of pregnancy and is a leading cause of maternal mortality and morbidity. 
    • “Despite the dangers associated with the condition, its presence often (up to half the time) evades detection during pregnancy. With instances of PAS on the rise, there is a critical need for methods of identifying the condition prior to delivery. 
    • “This week, during the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM) 2026 Pregnancy Meeting, researchers shared new data on a novel AI tool they believe could help improve the diagnosis of PAS. 
    • “Our team is very excited about the potential clinical implications of this model for accurate and timely diagnosis of PAS,” researcher Alexandra L. Hammerquist, MD, a maternal-fetal medicine fellow at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, said during the presentation. “We are hopeful that its use as a screening tool will help decrease PAS-related maternal morbidity and mortality.”   
  • Fierce Healthcare informs us,
    • “While Generation Z and millennial workers still account for fewer claims than their baby boomer counterparts, claims in these populations are rising fast, according to a new report.
    • “UnitedHealthcare and the Health Action Council (HAC) earlier this month released their annual white paper digging into key trends impacting the employer market and found that the number of claims for lower-aged workers are increasing more quickly than they did for baby boomers.
    • “Between 2023 and 2025, the year-over-year growth rate in claims was nearly double that of baby boomers. The study also found that younger individuals were developing conditions like diabetes or obesity earlier in life and were less likely to be engaged with a primary care provider (PCP), instead frequenting the emergency room.
    • “All of these factors can drive up medical costs for employers in the long term, according to the report.” * * *
    • “For employers or plan sponsors that identify this trend, the challenge is how to best engage this population around their health. One approach, Kurtzweil said, is to try and incentivize them to develop a primary care relationship through education and communication programs that make clear the value of a PCP.
    • “Or, plan sponsors can consider alternative options like on-site clinics or virtual care that can connect people to the healthcare system without necessarily leaning on primary care, he said.”
  • The Health Care Cost Institute lets us know,
    • “Nearly half of adults in the US have high blood pressure or high cholesterol, which are key risk factors of heart disease – the leading cause of death in the US.  HHS estimates about 30 million adults in the US have blood pressure at levels where medication use is recommended but are untreated. The American Heart Association estimates the direct and indirect costs of cardiovascular disease in the US is more than $414B. Commonly used, low-cost medications can effectively treat high blood pressure and high cholesterol and prevent more serious and costly heart-related conditions like heart attack or stroke.” 
  • Medscape adds,
    • “Patients worried about potential side effects of statins can rest easy, according to a new large-scale study: The vast majority of adverse effects listed on statin medications simply never occur.
    • “The study, published in The Lancet, analyzed individual patient data from 154,000 patients in 23 large, randomized controlled trials conducted by the Cholesterol Treatment Trialists’ Collaboration.”
  • Healio points out,
    • “Night shift workers and individuals who regularly achieve fewer than 6 hours of sleep demonstrate an increased risk for osteoarthritis, according to findings published in Arthritis Care & Research. 
    • “We chose to study the associations of shift work and sleep with osteoarthritis because accumulating laboratory evidence had indicated that maintenance of daily circadian rhythms are critical for homeostasis of articular cartilage and other joint tissues,” Elizabeth Yanik, PhD, ScM, assistant professor in the department of orthopedic surgery at Washington University, St. Louis, told Healio. “However, few studies had investigated the relationships between circadian clock disruption, sleep and osteoarthritis risk in humans.”
  • The Wall Street Journal adds,
    • “Attention lapses from sleep deprivation result from the brain’s efforts to clean itself, a process usually occurring during sleep, research suggests.
    • “A study in Nature Neuroscience found sleep-deprived brains experience fluid pulses during wakefulness, causing brief attention reductions.
    • “During these attention lapses, cerebrospinal fluid surges through the brain, and study participants experienced slower reactions and missed cues.”

From the U.S. healthcare business and artificial intelligence front,

  • The Wall Street Journal reports,
    • “Annual inflation slowed in January, falling more than economists expected, helped by declining prices for gasoline and used vehicles.
    • “Cooler price increases overall are positive news for the economy, easing concerns that the Trump administration’s steep tariffs will lead to broader ongoing inflation. Yet price increases in January for items like computers and washing machines suggest inflation is continuing to weigh on Americans exhausted by price hikes.
    • “Consumer prices rose 2.4% in January from a year earlier, cooler than 2.7% in December and below the 2.5% economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal had expected. Core prices, which exclude volatile food and energy items, rose 2.5% from a year earlier, in line with expectations.” * * *
    • “Analysts and economists have focused on the rising price of goods as a way to measure tariff impact, but the report also showed higher costs for an array of services, including airline tickets and hospital care. Overall, costs for services rose at their fastest monthly clip in a year, a frustrating data point for economists who have warned that lingering services inflation will be hard to slow.” 
  • Modern Healthcare relates,
    • “Health systems are investing billions of dollars into inpatient facilities, driven by an aging population and increasing demand for specialized care. 
    • “In recent years, providers have largely focused their investing on extensive outpatient projects. They also face ongoing cost pressures and regulatory uncertainty.
    • “Still, several are looking to add to their inpatient footprint. 
    • “Mark Pascaris, senior director at credit ratings agency Fitch Ratings, said demand for inpatient projects is particularly strong in competitive markets with growing populations.
    • “I think we have and will continue to see plenty of big-ticket hospital constructions,” Pascaris said. “We can’t ignore the inpatient footprint. The [COVID-19] pandemic taught all of us that we still need ICUs. We still need inpatient surgery suites.” 
  • Per Beckers Payer Issues,
    • “Humana is in talks with Sarasota, Fla.-based MaxHealth — a primary care network and platform focused on adults and seniors — regarding an acquisition, Bloomberg reported Feb. 12.
    • “According to Bloomberg sources, MaxHealth, owned by private equity firm Arsenal Capital Partners’ Best Value Healthcare, could have been valued at about $1 billion.
    • “Humana President and CEO Jim Rechtin previously said the company is looking to expand its primary care footprint.
    • “We also hope to soon announce a strategic acquisition in the primary care space,” Mr. Rechtin saidon a Feb. 11 earnings call.” 
  • The Employee Benefits Research Institute prepared a report titled “Cell and Gene Therapies in Employment-Based Health Insurance: Financing the High-Cost, High-Impact Future.” Check it out.
  • MedCity News considers “From Claims Payer to Care Partner: What AI Really Changes in Health Insurance, and What It Doesn’t.”
    • “AI can help health plans reduce friction, speed revenue-cycle throughput, and improve member experience, but only when it is deployed with strong data discipline, modern integration patterns, and a governance model that treats AI as “augmented intelligence,” meaning powerful, assistive, and accountable.”
  • The Wall Street Journal notes,
    • “In one experiment, offering human contact to loan applicants during the approval process made them much more likely to eventually accept a loan if offered.
    • “A study found that providing access to a human, even if unused, boosts customer satisfaction and confidence in sensitive online transactions.
    • “Only about 10% of customers offered human assistance actually use it, suggesting the cost of providing the option is lower than perceived.”
  • Fierce Pharma points out,
    • “Determined to avoid a repeat of the supply shortfalls that plagued early GLP-1 rollouts for obesity, Eli Lilly has amassed a sizable store of its oral weight loss candidate orforglipron. 
    • “Specifically, Lilly had secured “pre-launch inventories” worth $1.5 billion as of Dec. 31, with most of that supply tied to orforglipron, the company said in a securities filing this week. 
    • “The update on Lilly’s pending launch inventory comes after the Indianapolis drugmaker said last February that it had built up nearly $550 million in early inventory that was again primarily related to orforglipron.” 
  • BioPharma Dive informs us,
    • “Moderna reported better-than-expected fourth quarter sales and affirmed revenue growth estimates for 2026 despite soft demand for its COVID-19 vaccine and recent, high-profile pushback from the Food and Drug Administration.
    • “The biotechnology company said Friday it recorded revenue of $678 million over the final three months of last year and $1.9 billion for all of 2025, figures that came at the higher end of a projected forecast from November. U.S. sales more than halved between the third and fourth quarters, but still made up more than 60% of Moderna’s full-year revenue, in part because of the successful launch of the COVID shot mNEXSPIKE and a strong U.S. retail COVID vaccine market.”
  • Per MedTech Dive,
    • “Dexcom is watching for expanded Medicare coverage of its continuous glucose monitors to people with Type 2 diabetes who don’t take insulin. 
    • “New CEO Jake Leach told investors on Thursday that the company has been “sitting here waiting for a coverage decision” from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Dexcom expects CMS to propose a coverage expansion in the first half of 2026, BTIG analyst Marie Thibault wrote in a note to clients Thursday. 
    • “Dexcom started to see commercial coverage unlock for Type 2, non-insulin users toward the end of last year, Leach said. He expects broader Medicare coverage for that group would allow nearly 12 million people to access CGMs. 
    • “In the meantime, the American Diabetes Association updated its guidelines last year to recommend clinicians consider using CGMs for Type 2 diabetes when patients are taking glucose-lowering medications other than insulin. Leach said that real world data the company has been generating supports that decision, and that Dexcom has launched a registry for non-insulin users.”

Friday report

David Ermer–CDC, Congress, COVID-19, FDA, Generative AI, Rx coverage, U.S. Healthcare–

From Washington, DC

  • The Wall Street Journal reports,
    • “Mehmet Oz arrived on Capitol Hill last week to pitch Republicans on an idea to codify into law President Trump’s drug-pricing model, which ties U.S. pharmaceutical costs to lower prices typically paid abroad.
    • “Oz, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services administrator, could sense the skepticism from GOP senators—members of the Finance Committee—as they raised concerns about industry backlash and a potential chilling effect on innovation.
    • “You read the room,” Oz said in an interview. “When’s the right time to tell them they need to do something different?”
    • “The move marked the opening effort of the administration’s push to advance the president’s planahead of the midterm elections, as healthcare costs have become a top voter concern. While Trump has proposed sending money directly to Americans through Health Savings Accounts to ease those costs, that discussion was absent from Oz’s talks with Republicans, he said.
    • “That’s not the most important issue for us,” said Oz, the former television host and celebrity surgeon widely known as Dr. Oz. He emphasized making sure that pricing deals reached under Trump with more than a dozen pharmaceutical companies endure beyond his time in office.”
  • and
    • “The White House on Thursday launched its drug-pricing website, dubbed TrumpRx, the culmination of efforts by the administration to bring down pharmaceutical costs for some consumers.
    • “When it launched, it had roughly 40 drugs available, including obesity treatments Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Eli Lilly’s Zepbound and infertility treatments such as Gonal-F from EMD Serono. The prices for the drugs on TrumpRx were generally much lower than their sticker price, with President Trump touting some discounts of hundreds of dollars a month. The website, TrumpRx.gov, allows customers to search for specific medicines and purchase them through a manufacturer’s direct-to-consumer site, or in some cases gives users coupons that they can present at certain pharmacies.” * * *
    • “The website likely won’t have a substantial impact on the amount most Americans pay for their prescriptions, as most of Americans are insured—either through private or government plans—and are likely to get a better deal on the drugs via their coverage. The roughly 27 million Americans who are uninsured are those most likely to benefit from the direct-to-consumer offerings.” 
  • Here is a link to the White House’s fact sheet on TrumpRx.
  • Govexec tells us,
    • “The U.S. Postal Service on Thursday reported that it experienced a net loss of nearly $1.3 billion in the first quarter of fiscal 2026, as there continues to be a lack of consensus among postal leaders, stakeholders and lawmakers about how to fix the agency’s longstanding financial challenges. 
    • “Officials attributed the loss to a $634 million increase to workers’ compensation, among other spending hikes, paired with a $264 million reduction in operating revenue. In comparison, USPS saw a net income of $144 million during the first quarter of fiscal 2025. 
    • “USPS, however, experienced a net loss of $9 billion in fiscal 2025, and officials have projected that the postal agency will continue to operate in the red for fiscal 2026. 
    • “At a USPS Board of Governors meeting on Thursday, Postmaster General David Steiner and the board reiterated their argument that legislative and administrative reforms, such as raising the postal agency’s $15 billion statutory debt limit, are necessary to reverse these losses.”

From the Food and Drug Administration front,

  • Fierce Pharma reports,
    • “With online health and wellness company Hims & Hers opening a new front in the GLP-1 compounding showdown Thursday, the United States’ top drug regulator has taken notice.
    • “FDA will take swift action against companies mass-marketing illegal copycat drugs, claiming they are similar to FDA-approved products,” FDA commissioner Marty Makary, M.D., said in a Feb. 5 post on X. “The FDA cannot verify the quality, safety, or effectiveness of non-approved drugs.”
    • “Makary’s comments mark a clear and sharp rebuttal to Hims’ announcement earlier in the day that it had launched a compounded version of Novo Nordisk’s new Wegovy (semaglutide) pill for obesity, which starts at just $49 per month.”
  • and
    • “The FDA removed a prior “limitations of use” restriction it had placed on Gilead Sciences’ CAR-T Yescarta, allowing it to be used in patients with relapsed or refractory (R/R) primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL).
    • “Yescarta is approved for R/R large B-cell lymphoma, but previously wasn’t permitted to treat those with the rare, fast-growing PCNSL subtype. Prognoses related to this disease, which originates in the brain, spinal cord, eye, or cerebrospinal fluid, are typically poor, with a five-year survival rate of about 30%. The cancer type has no standard-of-care treatment options and an estimated 1,500 cases are diagnosed annually in the U.S.
    • “Dana-Farber Cancer Institute ran a phase 1 study to evaluate the safety of Yescarta in patients with PCNSL, as those with the disease had previously been excluded from the clinical trials supporting Yescarta’s initial approval, global head of development at Gilead’s Kite unit, Gallia Levy, M.D., Ph.D. explained in a company release.” 
  • MedTech Dive relates,
    • “Johnson & Johnson is recalling certain Cerepak detachable coil systems due to a higher-than-expected failure to detach rate that has been associated with four serious injuries and one death. The events were reported as of Oct. 14.
    • “The failure to detach could result in hemorrhagic and ischemic stroke, procedural delays or the need for additional surgical intervention, according to the Food and Drug Administration, which posted the recall on Thursday.
    • “J&J issued a letter to customers on Oct. 2 recommending they remove certain Cerepak products from where they are used or sold.”
  • Cardiovascular Business tells us,
    • “Zydus Pharmaceuticals, a New Jersey-based distributor of generic drugs, has recalled nearly 23,000 bottles of its icosapent ethyl capsules due to leakage issues that may have weakened their effectiveness. The prescription-strength capsules were manufactured by Softgel Healthcare in India and are sold in the United States as a more affordable option to name-brand treatment options.
    • “Icosapent ethyl is primarily used to help treat patients with high triglyceride levels in their blood. Taken together with a statin, it can also help significantly reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke or other cardiac complications in certain patient populations.
    • “Use of the affected product may lead to inconsistent therapeutic effects and an increase in potential gastrointestinal side effects in some patients,” according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).”

From the judicial front,

  • Fierce Healthcare reports,
    • “The Department of Health and Human Services has officially backed down on its halted 340B Rebate Model Pilot Program, telling the courts this week that it plans to pull relevant notices and application approvals.
    • “Lawyers for the government and plaintiffs who sued to block the program—several hospitals and hospital groups including American Hospital Association (AHA)—filed Thursday afternoon in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maine a joint motion for vacatur and remand. 
    • “The filing acknowledged the preliminary injunction plaintiffs had secured and the government’s failed bid to have the the temporary pause overturned by the appellate court. Both reflected judges’ belief that the hospitals were likely to succeed on the merits of their claims based on at least two administrative issues—”a failure to provide a reasonable explanation or address significant reliance interests and a failure to consider relevant costs.” 
    • “As such, HHS does not believe providing more administrative documents to the court would change any decisions, according to the joint motion.”
  • The Wall Street Journal relates,
    • “Luigi Mangione will face murder and weapons charges in a Manhattan court in June for the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, three months before jury selection in his federal trial for crimes related to the same killing.
    • “New York state court Judge Gregory Carro set a June 8 trial date during a snap hearing Friday, prompting an outburst from Mangione, who claimed he was being denied double-jeopardy protections.” * * *
    • “The Manhattan district attorney’s office argued the state case should go first because the killing occurred in Manhattan and local prosecutors—working with many NYPD detectives—led the investigation that resulted in Mangione’s arrest.
    • “The State has an overriding interest in trying this defendant for the cold-blooded execution of Brian Thompson on December 4, 2024. It resulted in the tragic death of a guest to our city on our streets,” Assistant District Attorney Joel Seidemann said in a letter to the judge.”

From the public health and medical / Rx research front,

  • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced today,
    • “Seasonal influenza activity remains elevated nationally with most areas of the country reporting stable or decreasing trends. Emergency department visits are stable and highest among children 5-17 years. Hospitalizations trends continue to decrease overall and are highest among those 65 years and older. RSV activity is elevated in many areas of the country. Emergency department visits for RSV are highest among infants under 1 year and children 1-4 years old. RSV hospitalizations are highest among infants less than 1 year old.
    • “COVID-19
      • COVID-19 activity is elevated in some areas of the country.
    • “Influenza
      • “Seasonal influenza activity remains elevated nationally with most areas of the country reporting stable or decreasing trends; however, activity continues to increase in the Pacific Northwest.
      • “Additional information about current influenza activity can be found at: Weekly U.S. Influenza Surveillance Report | CDC
    • “RSV
      • RSV activity is elevated in many areas of the country, including emergency department visits among infants under 1 year and children 1-4 years old. Hospitalizations are highest among infants less than 1 year old.
    • “Vaccination
      • “National vaccination coverage for COVID-19, influenza, and RSV vaccines remains low for children and adults. COVID-19, influenza, and RSV vaccines can provide protection against severe disease this season. It is not too late to get vaccinated this season. Talk to your doctor or trusted healthcare provider about what vaccines are recommended for you and your family.
  • The University of Minnesota CIDRAP adds,
    • “The effectiveness of this season’s flu vaccine in Canada is 40% against medically attended infection with influenza A(H3N2) viruses, 37% against newly emerged and predominant subclade K of the H3N2 strain, and 31% against the H1N1 influenza A strain, an interim analysis estimates.
    • “Researchers from the Canadian Sentinel Practitioner Surveillance Network (SPSN) conducted the test-negative study, which evaluated samples from patients aged one year or older who had acute respiratory illness. Community-based sentinel health care providers in Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario, and Quebec collected the specimens from October 26, 2025, to January 10, 2026, and the findings were published yesterday in Eurosurveillance.”
  • The AP reports,
    • “During the early years of the COVID-19 pandemic, experts worried that disruptions to cancer diagnosis and treatment would cost lives. A new study suggests they were right.
    • “The federally funded study published Thursday by the medical journal JAMA Oncology is being called the first to assess the effects of pandemic-related disruptions on the short-term survival of cancer patients.
    • “Researchers found that people diagnosed with cancer in 2020 and 2021 had worse short-term survival than those diagnosed between 2015 and 2019. That was true across a range of cancers, and whether they were diagnosed at a late or early stage.
    • “Of course, COVID-19 itself was especially dangerous to patients already weakened by cancer, but the researchers worked to filter out deaths mainly attributed to the coronavirus, so they could see if other factors played a role.”
  • Healio informs us,
    • “As the number of home hazards increased, so did the effect of visual function on the odds of falling.
    • “Home safety evaluations and environmental adaptations could be helpful for adults with low vision.”
  • and
    • “Use of SGLT2 inhibitors was associated with lower 5-year risk for chronic kidney disease and AKI compared with GLP-1 receptor agonists for adults with type 2 diabetes, according to data published in JAMA Internal Medicine.”
  • Radiology Business lets us know;
    • “New research suggests that photon-counting computed tomography scans outshine conventional contrasted chest CT for follow-up imaging of lung cancer. 
    • “Patients who have been diagnosed with the disease require routine imaging to monitor treatment effectiveness and ensure their cancer has not progressed or recurred. This is typically done via standard contrast-enhanced CT scans. Though effective, the standard of care comes with caveats, including increased exposure to both radiation and contrast media. What’s more, image quality can vary based on patient size, which can negatively affect lesion detection and characterization. 
    • “Experts believe that emerging photon-counting technology can help address these shortcomings. Published in RSNA’s flagship journal, Radiology, a new paper details numerous benefits photon-counting CT scans have over conventional CTs, including reduced radiation exposure and enhanced lesion visualization. Experts involved in the study went as far as to suggest that the advanced technology could replace conventional CTs in certain settings soon.”
  • Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News observes,
    • “If you zoomed in far enough on a new experimental HIV vaccine, you wouldn’t see the usual protein shell that most vaccines rely on. Instead, you’d find tiny geometric structures folded from strands of DNA—molecular origami designed not to be noticed at all. This “invisible” scaffold may be the key to awakening some of the rarest and most sought‑after cells in immunology: the B cells capable of maturing into broadly neutralizing antibody producers.
    • “Many next‑generation vaccines use virus‑like particles (VLPs)—nanostructures that mimic the outer shape of a virus but contain no genetic material. By displaying many copies of a viral antigen on their surface, VLPs can activate B cells far more effectively than free‑floating proteins. The paper is titled “DNA origami vaccines program antigen-focused germinal centers,” and was published recently in Science. 

From the U.S. healthcare business and artificial intelligence front,

  • Fierce Healthcare reports,
    • “Centene is “laser-focused” on improving the performance of its Medicaid business following a difficult 2025.
    • “CEO Sarah London told investors Friday morning on the company’s earnings call that the team made headway in this effort in later part of 2025, with it’s Q4 medical loss ratio of 93% on par with expectations set for analysts in October and showing notable improvement from the second quarter of 2025.
    • “She said that utilization trend patterns seen in the third quarter largely carried into Q4, with behavioral health as the largest driver. Home health services and high-cost pharmaceuticals were also key factors in cost and utilization trends seen in the back half of the year, she said.
    • “And while a spike in flu and other respiratory illnesses generated headlines late in the year, London said that utilization patterns in its Medicaid population were on par with expectations.
    • “As an organization, we have been laser-focused on restoring our Medicaid business to sustainable profitability while maintaining our focus on quality outcomes for our members and the communities we serve,” London said.”
  • and
    • “Molina Healthcare’s share price plunged on Friday as it posted a $160 million loss in the fourth quarter as well as guidance for 2026 that fell short of analysts’ expectations.
    • “Shares in the company were down by about 28% at 11:30 a.m. ET, with its stock tumbling out of the gate at market open on Friday. By comparison, Molina earned $251 million in profit for the fourth quarter of 2024.
    • “For the full year, Molina has posted $472 million in profit, down from $1.2 billion in 2024.
    • “In the earnings report, Molina revealed that it will exit the Part D space in the 2027 plan year due to financial pressure, including Medicare Advantage prescription drug (MAPD) plans. The company will focus on its existing dual-eligible business in Medicare, according to the announcement.”
  • Healthcare Dive relates
    • “Primary care physicians spend a significant amount of time on work in their electronic health records, even when they decrease the number of appointments they schedule with patients, according to new research published in Health Affairs.
    • “Physicians who cut back appointments saw their visit volume decline by 32.6% compared with other doctors. But their EHR time fell by just 21.2% — meaning the number of minutes spent in their records systems actually increased per visit by more than 20%, according to the study. 
    • ‘Primary care physicians need to handle a lot of tasks outside appointments, like responding to patient messages, researchers wrote. So reducing visits doesn’t necessarily eliminate a host of EHR tasks — though it does have repercussions for physicians’ pay and patients’ access to care, they noted.” 
  • and
    • “Epic rolled out an artificial intelligence tool this week that drafts clinical notes, setting up the nation’s largest electronic health record vendor as a major competitor in the ambient scribe market. 
    • “AI Charting, part of Epic’s AI tool called Art geared toward clinicians, listens during patients’ appointments with providers and can suggest orders based on the conversation. The product also allows clinicians to personalize the note’s structure using voice commands, like asking the tool to format current conditions as a bulleted list, according to a press release. 
    • “Epic plans to expand beyond documentation to make the tool “an active assistant in the room,” Corey Miller, Epic’s vice president of research and development, said via email. “This is really just the start for Art,” he said.”
  • Fierce Healthcare adds,
    • “Infinitus has launched a new suite of agentic artificial intelligence tools for healthcare payers that aim to improve member engagement through personalized communications.
    • “Infinitus is an AI company that helps call centers better handle inbound call volumes. For payer organizations, pressured to control costs as call volumes rise and ratings of members demand a modern consumer experience, AI is positioned to solve both issues. 
    • “With the Agentic AI Member Services Suite, health plan members have 24/7 access to an AI agent that can answer simple administrative questions, onboard members, triage questions and navigate care. Through messaging and calling capabilities, Inifinitus’ AI agents can proactively reach out to patients and scale member services without adding team members.”
  • and
    • “Aetna is continuing to build out its digital member experience with the launch of a new onboarding program designed to ease the process.
    • “The insurer said Thursday that the platform will be available to 4 million new members during the welcome period for their enrollment. The program leads on Rich Communication Services, or RCS, to support navigation and connect members with key information and resources they may need after enrolling in a new plan through text messaging.
    • “Nathan Frank, senior vice president and chief digital and technology officer for Aetna, told Fierce Healthcare that building trust with the member requires an end-to-end experience, and tech like the new onboarding program can play a key role in that effort.
    • “Onboarding isn’t just about administration and signing people up and making sure that you have the right information,” he said. “It’s the moment when members decide whether their health plan feels simple, or is it overwhelming?” 

Friday report

David Ermer–CDC, Congress, COVID-19, FDA, Medical / Rx research, NIH, U.S. Healthcare–

From Washington, DC,

  • The Washington Post reports,
    • The Senate passed a bill Friday to fund most of the federal government and buy more time to debate new accountability measures for immigration agents, but many agencies will still shutter this weekend.
    • The vote was 71-29. Five Republicans and 23 Democrats voted against the bill, as did Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vermont), an independent who caucuses with Democrats.
    • The House will not consider the spending legislation until early next week, setting off a partial shutdown just past midnight. The effect of the lapse in funding is expected to be relatively limited compared with the 43-day government shutdown last fall, the longest in history.
  • Govexec adds,
    • “We have been sending guidance to agencies this week, including today, on the likely lapse in funding,” an Office of Management and Budget spokesperson said on Friday. They added that OMB was following the “normal shutdown process” and would send a memorandum later on Friday instructing them to kick off shutdown procedures. Agencies would then notify employees who will be deemed excepted—and would therefore have to work during the shutdown—and who will be furloughed.” * * *
    • “All federal employees who would normally report to work on Feb. 2 would be expected to do so anyway, as is standard practice on the first working day after a funding lapse to initiate “orderly shutdown activities.” Depending on when the House acts, OMB could advise furloughed employees to remain at work or to go home and await an update.” 
  • Per a House of Representatives news release,
    • “U.S. Representative James Walkinshaw (D-VA-11) and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)  called on Donald Trump—who has repeatedly failed to deliver on his promise to provide free IVF for all Americans—to prove his self-proclaimed support for IVF by expanding coverage for the millions of hardworking Americans in our federal workforce. In their letter, the lawmakers called on the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to require all Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program insurance carriers to cover IVF and other fertility treatments to at least the same level of coverage that Members of Congress and their staff currently enjoy.”* * *
    • “Since many FEHB carriers also offer plans through the DC Health Link, these insurance carriers have already invested time and resources improving their plan designs to comply with the DC Health Link’s excellent IVF benchmark requirements,” the lawmakers continued. “The bottom line is that OPM setting FEHB’s required IVF benefit at an identical or equivalent level to the DC Health Link IVF benefit requirements would bring fairness to the Federal workforce; strengthen recruitment and retention; and provide clarity, consistency, and improved IVF access across FEHB.”
  • Today, the Department of Health and Human Services announced certain information from the 2027 Notice of Benefits and Payment Parameters required for administering the Affordable Care Act. Of interest to FEHB and PSHB plans,
    • Maximum Annual Limitation on Cost Sharing for 2027
    • Under 45 CFR 156.130(a)(2), for the 2027 calendar year, cost sharing for self-only coverage may not exceed the dollar limit for calendar year 2014 increased by an amount equal to the product of that amount and the premium adjustment percentage for 2027. For other than self-only coverage, the limit is twice the dollar limit for self-only coverage. Under § 156.130(d), these amounts must be rounded down to the next lowest multiple of $50. Using the premium adjustment percentage for 2027 of 1.8916224814, and the 2014 maximum annual limitation on cost sharing of $6,350 for self-only coverage, which was published by the Internal Revenue Service on May 2, 2013,6 the 2027 maximum annual limitation on cost sharing is $12,000
    • for self-only coverage and $24,000 for other than self-only coverage. This represents an approximately 13.2 percent increase from the 2026 parameters of $10,600 for self-only coverage and $21,200 for other than self-only coverage.
  • The American Hospital Association (AHA) News tells us,
    • “The White House issued an executive order Jan. 29 to address substance use and addiction. The order establishes the White House Great American Recovery Initiative, a federal effort tasked with coordinating the administration’s efforts on the matter. The initiative will be led by the Department of Health and Human Services, which will work in conjunction with other federal agencies and officials. The initiative would advise federal agencies on how to implement programs regarding substance use prevention, early intervention, treatment, recovery support and re-entry, among other efforts. Additionally, the program would advise federal agency leaders on how to direct grants supporting addiction recovery.”
  • and
    • The Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy/Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology released a request for information Jan. 29 on the potential adoption of diagnostic imaging interoperability standards for health IT under ONC’s Health IT Certification Program. Comments on the request are due March 16. 
  • The Labor Department posted a fact sheet about the proposed ERISA PBM transperency rule published in today’s Federal Register.

From the judicial front,

  • Beckers Payer Issues reports,
    • “A federal judge has ruled that Luigi Mangione will not face the death penalty in the federal case stemming from the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
    • “On Jan. 30, U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett dismissed two of the four federal counts against Mangione, including a murder charge that would have made him eligible for capital punishment. Judge Garnett found the charge was technically flawed because it required an underlying “crime of violence,” and she ruled that the government’s stalking allegation did not meet that legal standard under Supreme Court precedent. Attorney General Pamela Bondi directed federal prosecutors to pursue the death penalty in April.
    • “The remaining stalking-related charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison without parole. Mangione, 27, has pleaded not guilty to both federal and state murder charges.
    • “In a win for prosecutors, Judge Garnett denied the defense’s motion to suppress evidence seized from Mangione’s backpack during his December 2024 arrest at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pa. Authorities said the backpack contained a handgun and a notebook describing his intent to target an insurance executive.”

From the public health and medical / Rx research front,

  • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced today,
    • “Seasonal influenza activity remains elevated nationally and increased this week after three weeks of decreasing trends. Emergency department visits among children 5-17 years are increasing. Hospitalization trends continue to decline overall. However, they are increasing among infants less than 1 year old. They remain stable in children 5-17 years old. RSV activity is elevated in many areas of the country. Emergency department visits for RSV are highest among infants under 1 year and children 1-4 years old. RSV hospitalizations are highest among infants less than 1 year old.
    • “COVID-19
      • COVID-19 activity is elevated in some areas of the country.
    • “Influenza
      • “Seasonal influenza activity remains elevated nationally and increased this week after three weeks of decreasing trends.
      • “Additional information about current influenza activity can be found at: Weekly U.S. Influenza Surveillance Report | CDC
    • “RSV
      • “RSV activity is elevated in many areas of the country, including emergency department visits among infants under 1 year and children 1-4 years old. Hospitalizations are highest among infants less than 1 year old.
    • “Vaccination
      • National vaccination coverage for COVID-19, influenza, and RSV vaccines remains suboptimal for children and adults. COVID-19, influenza, and RSV vaccines can provide protection against severe disease this season. It is not too late to get vaccinated this season. Talk to your doctor or trusted healthcare provider about what vaccines are recommended for you and your family.
  • The AHA News informs us,
    • “The South Carolina Department of Public Health announced Jan. 30 that the state’s measles outbreak now has 847 cases. The agency said most cases are close contacts of known cases, but the number of public exposure sites indicate that the disease is circulating through community spread, increasing the risk of exposure and infection for individuals who are not immune due to vaccination or natural infection. The state’s outbreak began in October. Nationally, 588 cases have been reported since Jan. 1 across 17 jurisdictions, according to datafrom the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Of those cases, 94% are outbreak-associated. Additionally, the vaccination status of 94% of cases is classified as unvaccinated or unknown.” 
  • Per an HHS news release,
    • “The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today announced that its Traveler-Based Genomic Surveillance (TGS) program has surpassed one million voluntary participants, marking a significant milestone in the United States’ ability to detect and respond to emerging public health threats at our borders.
    • “TGS is one of many tools the United States uses to strengthen disease surveillance and protect the American people. Through voluntary and anonymous sample collection from arriving international travelers at select U.S. airports, the program provides early insight into emerging pathogens and variants before they spread broadly within the United States
    • “The United States is the world’s leading authority in public health,” said HHS Deputy Secretary and Acting CDC Director Jim O’Neill. “The broad participation of travelers enhances our ability to safeguard the nation using tools that are developed, operated, and governed here at home without reliance on unaccountable global bureaucracies.”
  • Per a National Institutes of Health news release,
    • “National Institutes of Health (NIH)-supported investigators have developed a blood test to find pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, one of the deadliest forms of cancer. The new test could improve survival rates from pancreatic cancer, which tends to be diagnosed at late stages when therapy is less likely to be effective. The findings were published in Clinical Cancer Research.
    • “Overall, only about 1 in 10 pancreatic cancer patients survive more than five years from diagnosis. However, experts expect that when the cancer is found and treated at an earlier stage, survival would improve. While finding the cancer early is key, there are no current screening methods to do so.”
  • The University of Minnesota CIDRAP informs us,
    • “Researchers and clinicians in Michigan have developed new guidance for triage and management of suspected urinary tract infections (UTI) symptoms in patients seeking care via telehealth and virtual visits. * * *
    • “The result is two algorithms for uncomplicated UTI management—one for non-pregnant women and one for men—that clinicians can use in any setting to determine whether urine testing, empiric antibiotics, and further examination are needed. The guidance also addresses patients with more complicated health conditions and symptoms that could indicate a more serious health issue.
    • “The authors of the paper say the guidance is needed because UTIs are one of the most common reasons for antibiotic use in outpatient settings, but far fewer patients are being seen in a setting where a urine sample can be collected to confirm an infection.
    • “We hope that this guide will help both patients and providers be aware that even though they’re now able to take a questionnaire or interact with a provider completely virtually, that alone may not be enough to get the right diagnosis or treatment,” first author Jennifer Meddings, MD, MSc, a clinician and patient safety researcher at VAAAHS and Michigan Medicine, said in a press release.”
  • Per MedPage Today,
    • “Risk of recurrent major adverse limb events was lower in diabetes patients taking GLP-1 agents compared with DPP-4 inhibitors.
    • “Reduction of limb events was most significant for major amputations, where the risk was reduced by 41%.
    • “Researchers suggested the findings support preferential use of GLP-1 drugs for preventing recurrent limb events.”

From the U.S. healthcare business front,

  • Beckers Payer Issues “connected with 17 health plan leaders to learn how their organizations are shifting their priorities in response to continued medical cost trends and affordability concerns.”
  • OptumRx writing in LinkedIn shares its notable new drug report
    • “In our latest edition of this ongoing series that highlights anticipated new drugs, we’ll review:
      • “Anaphylm™ (dibutepinephrine), the first oral drug for emergency treatment of severe allergic reactions.
      • “Sotyktu® (deucravacitinib) for treatment of psoriatic arthritis. This is a new indication for Sotyktu, which is currently approved for plaque psoriasis.
      • “Insulin icodec, the first once-weekly basal (or long-acting) insulin for treating type 2 diabetes mellitus.
    • “These drugs are expected to receive Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval during the first quarter of 2026.”
  • BioPharma Dive reports,
    • “Amgen is backing out of a deal for an eczema drug it spent considerable resources developing, handing rights back to Kyowa Kirin for a medication called rocatinlimab that completed its first Phase 3 studies more than a year ago
    • “Amgen’s decision was based on a “strategic portfolio prioritization,” the Japan-based drugmaker said Friday, adding that it plans to seek regulatory approvals in the first six months of the year. Kyowa Kirin is “confident in the potential of rocatinlimab,” said Abdul Mullick, the company’s president, in a statement.
    • “While the two rocatinlimab trials in eczema achieved their primary goals, investors and Wall Street analysts have viewed them as disappointing compared to leading treatments like Regeneron and Sanofi’s Dupixent. Sanofi, though, is still planning regulatory submissions for a drug in the same class despite results that fell short of expectations.”
  • Modern Healthcare relates,
    • “Clinical teams are increasingly using wearables from consumer companies such as Apple, Fitbit and Samsung.
    • “Involving clinical teams before implementation of these tools has helped combat skepticism.
    • “There’s room for greater collaboration between clinicians and device manufacturers.
    • “Brigham and Women’s Hospital is using Apple Watches to study the connection between physical activity and heart health.”

Midweek report

David Ermer–CMS, Congress, COVID-19, FDA, Federal employment benefits, Medical / Rx research, Medicare, U.S. Healthcare–

From Washington, DC,

  • The Wall Street Journal reports,
    • “Senate Democrats demand an overhaul of immigration enforcement, tying it to passing a $1.3 trillion spending package to avert a government shutdown.
    • “Democrats propose changes including: ending roving patrols, tightening warrant rules and requiring ICE coordination with local law enforcement.
    • “The standoff follows two fatal shootings by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis, with Democrats refusing to fund DHS without revisions.”
  • The Hill adds,
    • “House Republicans are warning the Senate against making any changes to a government funding package that includes funds for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), saying any reforms sought by Democrats would not clear the House and would lead to a government shutdown at the end of the week.
    • “Conservatives also say they would seek significant concessions from Democrats if they were to split up the six-bill funding package and tinker with the DHS spending bill — threatening to seek avenues to fund the department without needing support from Democrats.
  • The House Budget Committee identified highlights from last week’s hearing on how to reverse the healthcare cost curve. One of the experts that the FEHBlog admires, Avik Roy, observed,
    • “Mr. Avik Roy, Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity: I’d encourage you to look at the World Index of Health Care Innovation that my organization puts out every year. FREOP, which looks at a lot of these metrics of how we measure the quality of the health care system, what we can learn from other countries, what they can learn from us. On the point about options other than health insurance, first of all, we have to make health insurance more affordable. You can do a lot to have alternatives to health insurance, and I will talk about that, but we, the people, still need affordable options for health insurance. The fact that the Affordable Care Act made health insurance massively more expensive for people who buy it on their own is a huge problem, because the foundation of free market health insurance is you buying that health insurance for yourself, not depending on your employer to buy it for you, not depending on the government to buy it for you. You buy it for yourself, and maybe the government helps you pay for that premium.“
  • FEHBlog note — The FEHB Program would be a good model for choice but for the fact that the U.S. Office of Personnel Management has been benefit mandate crazy in recent years. OPM needs to revoke those mandates.
  • The Wall Street Journal tells us,
    • “The Census Bureau’s first snapshot of population data for 2025 confirms some big trends, like a major shift in immigration as the U.S. cracks down on border crossings and steps up deportations. 
    • “The estimates, which cover the 12-month period ended in mid-2025, also uncovered some surprises regarding the comings and goings between states. Some places in the Midwest, for example, are seeing a net influx of people from within the U.S. for the first time in years.” ***
    • “The U.S. added slightly more babies, but not enough to move the needle significantly on population growth. Births ticked up about 12,200 on the year to 3.6 million. That is better than the decline of 40,700 in the prior year, but it didn’t shift a still-falling birthrate that has become a concern among some Republicans.”
  • The American Hospital Association New informs us,
    • “The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Jan. 28 released a proposed rule that would update conditions for coverage for organ procurement organizations. The proposal would eliminate regulatory requirements that limited the Secretary of Health and Human Services in certifying new OPOs, clarify the OPO designation process, modify the appeals process for OPOs, and update and add certain key definitions, among other changes. CMS also seeks comments on various topics, including a new process to certify OPOs; conflicts of interest in organ and tissue procurement; automated electronic referrals, from donor hospitals to OPOs; and alternative approaches to OPO designation and non-renewal of OPO agreements.”
  • Per an HHS news release,
    • “The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) today announced the appointment of 21 new members to the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC). These appointments reflect the commitment of Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. to support breakthrough innovations in autism research, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention by bringing the nation’s understanding of and policies concerning autism into alignment with gold-standard science.”
  • MedCity News points out,
    • “While the 15 medications selected for the latest round of the federal government’s drug price negotiation program will face steep cuts in what Medicare will pay, the financial impact to pharmaceutical companies is expected to be minimal.
    • “Leerink Partners analyst David Risinger said in a Wednesday research note that Gilead Sciences HIV drug Biktarvy is the only one of the selected products with Medicare exposure that is material to its manufacturer’s sales, accounting for about 8% of Gilead’s 2027 estimated global revenue. Rexulti, a drug approved for schizophrenia among other neurological indications, has the second-largest exposure, with revenue from Medicare estimated to be about 3% of Lundbeck’s global sales. But Risinger said this exposure for Lundbeck is overstated because the company shares in commercialization of the drug with partner Otsuka Pharmaceutical.”
  • Avalere Health explains how this week’s “2027 Advance Notice Materially Alters Part D Risk Adjustment.”
  • Tammy Flanagan, writing in Govexec, discusses “how federal employees can protect a spouse in retirement”
    • “To better understand their potential benefits and financial risks in retirement, both spouses should be aware of some benefits planning realities.”

From the Food and Drug Administration,

  • Fierce Pharma reports,
    • “Even as Johnson & Johnson’s oncology superstar Darzalex Faspro racks up megablockbuster sales and reshapes the multiple myeloma treatment paradigm, the drug is still finding ways to consolidate its position. This week, the drug is doing just that with an FDA nod for a more powerful regimen in newly diagnosed patients who are ineligible for autologous stem cell transplant.
    • “The Jan. 27 approval enables Darzalex Faspro’s use within a quadruplet combination that includes Takeda’s Velcade, Bristol Myers Squibb’s Revlimid and the steroid dexamethasone (VRd), which is altogether referred to as D-VRd. Before that, the triplet regimen of D-Rd has been allowed to treat first-line, transplant-ineligible patients since 2019. 
    • D-VRd is now the only anti-CD38 antibody-based regimen that can treat newly diagnosed patients regardless of transplant eligibility, J&J said in a Jan. 27 press release.”
  • BioPharma Dive adds,
    • “Regenxbio lost almost a fifth of its value Wednesday after the Food and Drug Administration placed a clinical hold on two of the company’s experimental gene therapies.
    • “Regulators acted after researchers found a case of brain cancer in a 5-year-old child who had received one of the treatments, RGX-111, four years earlier. The agency decided to extend the hold to the second therapy, RGX-121, because of similarities between the two and “shared risk between the clinical studies,” Regenxbio said Wednesday.
    • “The company said there has been no causal link between RGX-111 and the child’s condition and emphasized that RGX-121 is a separate therapy with years of safety data. “We are surprised by FDA’s decision to place our RGX-121 program on hold while the investigation of this single, inconclusive incident in RGX-111 continues,” CEO Curran Simpson said in the statement.”

From the public health and medical / Rx research front,

  • Infectious Disease Advisor reports,
    • “Millions of COVID-19-associated illnesses and outpatient visits as well as thousands of hospitalizations and deaths continued to occur annually in the United States from late 2022 through 2024, despite the formal end of the public health emergency, according to a cross-sectional analysis published in JAMA Internal Medicine.
    • “To provide updated national estimates during a period marked by evolving SARS-CoV-2 variants, changes in testing practices, and increasing population immunity, investigators analyzed data from the COVID-19 Hospitalization Surveillance Network. Using hierarchical Bayesian modeling and probabilistic multiplier methods, the investigators estimated the national burden of symptomatic illnesses, outpatient visits, hospitalizations, and deaths across 2 surveillance periods aligned with influenza seasons: October 2022 to September 2023 and October 2023 to September 2024.”
  • The Wall Street Journal informs us,
    • “A recent email ad from a telehealth company selling weight-loss medications features tennis-superstar Serena Williams.  
    • “If you’re carrying 15-20 extra pounds,” it says, “medications like Wegovy can help jumpstart your progress.”
    • “For obesity doctors and researchers, this kind of messaging is problematic. The blockbuster drugs—known as GLP-1s—are increasingly marketed as lifestyle fixes to help take off some weight. But they are actually designed as lifelong treatments for chronic diseases, namely obesity and Type 2 diabetes. 
    • “That distinction matters.
    • “While nearly 18% of U.S. adults have taken a GLP-1 drug for weight loss or to treat a chronic condition, about half of people will stop taking it within a year. Often, they don’t understand what is likely to come next. 
    • “Studies show that after stopping the drugs, people typically regain lost weight within about 1.5 years. And any improvements in blood sugar, blood pressure or cholesterol are reversed.
    • “People who take GLP-1s regain weight four times faster than those who lose weight through lifestyle interventions, according to a recent analysis published in the British Medical Journal.
    • “The depressing results raise the question: Are the drugs worth starting if you can’t stay on them long-term? Doctors largely say yes but caution the need for proper counseling and lifestyle changes.
    • “The medications, which include Ozempic, Mounjaro and Zepbound, mimic naturally occurring gut hormones such as GLP-1, suppressing appetite and making people feel full faster.”
  • Cardiovascular Business calls attention to five takeaways from new stroke guideline.
    • “The American Stroke Association (ASA), a division of the American Heart Association, has developed an updated ischemic stroke guideline that highlights the importance of coordinated care and expands patient access to critical treatments. The new document, published in full in Stroke, also includes the first detailed recommendations for treating stroke in pediatric patients.
    • “This update brings the most important advances in stroke care from the last decade directly into practice,” Shyam Prabhakaran, MD, MS, chair of the writing group behind the guideline and chair of the department of neurology at the University of Chicago Medicine, said in a statement. “New recommendations in the guideline expand access to cutting-edge treatments, such as clot-removal procedures and medications, simplify imaging requirements so more hospitals can act quickly, and introduce guidance for pediatric stroke for the first time.”
  • MedPage Today lets us know,
    • “Unhealthy alcohol use ranks among the top three causes of preventable deaths in the U.S., yet less than one-third of patients who visit a primary care clinician ever discuss alcohol use.
    • “A tailored practice facilitation strategy was linked to increased adoption of evidence-based screening and counseling for unhealthy alcohol use among adults at small and medium-sized primary care practices.
    • “Studies in two other states documented similarly positive findings.”

From the U.S. healthcare business front,

  • Healthcare Dive reports,
    • “Elevance became the second major insurer to predict declining revenue in 2026 on Wednesday, as for-profit payers continue to shave off members to try and recover margins.
    • “The Indianapolis-based insurer estimated its operating revenue will drop by a low-single digit percentage next year. The guidance comes one day after UnitedHealth forecast an annual revenue decline for the first time in more than three decades, sparking a selloff of managed care stocks that continued into Wednesday.
    • “Elevance also projected adjusted diluted earnings per share of at least $25.50, compared to the $30.29 it posted in 2025. Analysts said the insurers are setting attainable guidance to rebuild investor confidence after a difficult few years for the sector.”
  • Cigna released on LinkedIn a white paper about the healthcare landscape facing employers this year.
  • Bio Pharma Dive notes,
    • “Eli Lilly is expanding its footprint in genetic medicine, announcing Wednesday an agreement with Germany-based startup Seamless Therapeutics to develop treatments for hearing loss. 
    • “The alliance gives Lilly access to a type of next-generation gene editing technology. Seamless engineers and programs “recombinases,” or enzymes that rearrange DNA, in such a way that they can precisely pinpoint and modify specific areas of the genome. Through the deal, Seamless will design certain recombinases to correct mutations in unspecified “genes of interest” in hearing loss, the companies said.
    • “Lilly didn’t specify how much guaranteed cash Seamless will receive initially. But the startup is eligible for over $1.12 billion in total payouts, which includes an upfront payment and a variety of unspecified milestones.
    • “The deal adds to a concerted push by Lilly, which recently flirted with a $1 trillion market value thanks to its diabetes and obesity medicines, into the field of genetic medicine.”  
  • Per Fierce Healthcare,
    • “Premise Health and Crossover Health plan to merge, creating a large employer-focused advanced primary care company serving more than 400 organizations and operating 900 clinics across the country.
    • “Both companies offer primary care and occupational health services for employers, unions, tribes and health plans with worksite or near-worksite clinics. The companies also offer virtual care services.
    • “Financial details of the agreement were not disclosed. The deal is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approval.
    • “After closing, the combined company will approach $2 billion in annual revenue, according to a Premise Health spokesperson.”
  • and
    • “Reperio Health, a provider of at-home health screenings with instant results, is teaming up with Amazon One Medical to expand access to primary care. 
    • “This marks Amazon’s first partnership in the at-home preventive screening space. 
    • “Reperio was founded in 2020, working with employers to offer at-home health screenings with instant results. Now, it is launching ReperioCare, which adds an on-demand virtual visit with a contracted clinician to interpret those results. Employees using the service can then take advantage of an included One Medical membership for ongoing primary care. 
    • The partnership’s goal is to streamline the path from early detection to ongoing primary care, particularly in rural areas.” 
  • Per Beckers Hospital Review,
    • “Fort Wayne, Ind.-based Parkview Health has signed a letter of intent with Goshen (Ind.) Health to explore a partnership.
    • “The partnership would make Goshen Health Parkview’s largest hospital outside of Fort Wayne and establish it as a regional hub for care, access and growth, according to a Jan. 27 Goshen Health news release.
    • “Goshen and Parkview plan to collaborate to strengthen clinical services, expand care access and build a sustainable healthcare system. The process begins with a 90-day due diligence period, followed by regulatory review and final board approval.”
  • and
    • “Walmart has moved 3,000 of its pharmacy technicians into pharmacy operations team lead roles and expanded pay ranges for the workforce.
    • “Pharmacy technician hourly rates average $22, which can increase to $40.50 depending on location and certification, according to a Jan. 28 news release from Walmart. The 3,000 recently promoted pharmacy operations team leads receive an average hourly pay of $28 with the potential to earn up to $42 per hour. Walmart operates about 4,600 locations in the U.S.
    • “The two largest U.S. pharmacy chains by prescription dispensing revenue, Walgreens and CVS, have made similar investments in their pharmacy technicians. In April, Walgreens said it would pay for pharmacy employee’s prerequisite coursework for a PharmD degree. A few months later, CVS opened a workforce development center in Texas for pharmacy technicians, customer service representatives and other pharmacy employees.” 

Notable Obituary

  • The New York Times reports
    • “Thomas Fogarty, 91, Who Helped Revolutionize Vascular Surgery, Dies
    • “Drawing on his love of fly-fishing, he developed a balloon catheter that removes blood clots from patients’ limbs in a minimally invasive way. It has saved millions of lives.”
  • RIP

Friday report

David Ermer–CDC, Congress, COVID-19, FDA, Federal employment benefits, Medical / Rx research, OPM, Patient safety, U.S. Healthcare–

From Washington, DC

  • MedCity News offers four takeaways from yesterday’s House of Representatives hearings with health insurance CEOs.
    • Everyone agrees healthcare affordability is a problem.
    • Everyone has different ideas for addressing the affordability problem.
    • Vertical integration [bad per a bipartisan group of members of Congress]
    • Prior authorization and denials [bad per a bipartisan group of members of Congress]
  • Roll Call adds,
    • “The House left Thursday night after barely shooting down another war powers resolution and passing a last slate of funding bills, leaving it up to the Senate to avert a partial government shutdown by next week’s deadline.
    • “But with a major winter storm predicted to blanket Washington and other swaths of the country in double digits of snow this weekend, senators are already facing delays that make for tight timing. A spokesman for Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., announced Friday that Senate votes originally slated for Monday would be postponed until 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday [due to the impending winter storm].”
  • The Wall Street Journal offers the Medicare-eligible community helpful information about Medicare Part B and D’s income adjustment premiums, which are known as IRRMA.
  • OPM Director Scott Kupor added to his Secrets of OPM blog with a post about improving claims administration for the complex federal employee retirement systems.
    • “Here’s the reality: OPM does not receive a fully completed application and cannot begin its work – on average – for about 120 days from when the applicant starts the application process.
    • “So, where are those 107,000 total [online retirement] applications [(ORA)} sitting today? 
    • Roughly half are at OPM (more on that later), but 30% are sitting with the payroll providers; 12% are sitting with agency HR teams, and 8% are sitting with the applicant.
    • That matters, because when cases do reach OPM, we move quickly. We are issuing interim pay immediately in about 75% of cases, and on average within seven days in 100% of cases. That means, on average,  within seven days of receiving the application, annuitants will be getting 80% of their expected final post-adjudication payout. Making sure retirees have money in their bank accounts as fast as possible is our first priority, and our performance there is strong.
    • And we are also seeing huge dividends from ORA in the time it takes for us to complete the final review of an annuitant’s case and deliver them 100% of their earned pension. As of today, we are completing ORA applications in less than 40 days from when we receive them in OPM. To give you a reference point, it takes at least twice as long for us to adjudicate paper-based cases. So, we are moving in the right direction.
    • But we are not complacent with the status quo and will continue to do even better.
  • FedWeek reports,
    • “The Postal Service has launched a new bid solicitation platform allowing businesses to submit proposals to access its last-mile delivery network, something Postmaster General David Steiner has touted as a key to turning around the service’s finances.
    • “Competitive bidding is now open for its 18,000 delivery destination units (DDUs) for same day or next day service, something that had become increasingly likely as contract renewal talks with Amazon stalled late last year – and with Amazon reportedly threatening to directly compete with it own, expanded, fleet.
    • “USPS officials said the move responds to growing demand for speed and convenience in the shipping market and to better leverage agency’s last-mile capabilities. Accepted bids are expected to be formalized through negotiated service agreements, with winning bidders notified in the second quarter of 2026 and service beginning in the third quarter.
    • ‘The news is bitter sweet for some postal carriers that have been wrestling Amazon packages to their final destinations for years, as any relief could be short lived and potentially result in the same volume but dealing with multiple carriers instead of one.”
  • The American Hospital Association News tells us,
    • “The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration has released a guide to improve coordination between 988 lifeline and 911 emergency services. It outlines strategies to reduce legal risk, clarify roles and strengthen partnerships to ensure appropriate care in crisis situations. The guide also includes resources to help achieve interoperability between the services.” 

From the Food and Drug Administration front,

  • BioPharma Dive reports,
    • “Sanofi said Friday it will ask regulators around the world to review its new eczema drug amlitelimab following mixed study results that could lead to a clearance in the U.S. but spell trouble in Europe.  
    • “A combination of amlitelimab and topical steroids helped between one-quarter and one-third of people with eczema completely or almost completely clear their skin lesions, depending on the dose frequency received and trial they’d participated in. Amlitelimab met all its objectives in one late-stage study. too. But in a second trial, amlitelimab missed a statistical threshold sought by European regulators. A safety study also uncovered one case of a type of skin cancer in a drug recipient.
    • ‘The results show amlitelimab is “a U.S. file-able drug that can differentiate on convenience,” Jefferies analyst Michael Leuchten wrote in a note to clients. Sanofi said it intends to move forward with global submissions based on the “totality of the data.”
  • MedTech Dive informs us,
    • “Integra LifeSciences has recalled wound and burn treatments over issues linked to 14 serious injuries, the Food and Drug Administration said Thursday.
    • “The FDA published an early alert after Integra wrote to customers about packaging failures that affected the sterile barrier and could lead to patient infection.
    • “Integra wrote to customers last week, around five months after recalling other wound and burn devices because of inadequate sealing of sterile barrier packaging.”

From the judicial front,

  • Beckers Payer Issues reports,
    • “Jury selection in the federal murder trial of Luigi Mangione is scheduled to begin Sept. 8, U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett said Jan. 23.
    • “The 27-year-old is accused of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside the New York Hilton Midtown in late 2024. Mangione has pleaded not guilty to four federal charges, including murder through use of a firearm, as well as state murder charges.
    • “The next milestone in the federal case will depend on Judge Garnett’s decision on whether Mangione will face the death penalty, which Attorney General Pamela Bondi directed federal prosecutors to pursue in April. If Judge Garnett removes capital punishment as an option, the trial would begin Oct. 13; if she allows the case to proceed as a capital case, the trial would start in early 2027, according to reporting from The Guardian.“
  • MedPage Today points out,
    • “The American Psychiatric Association (APA) is suing a New York State health plan over its alleged use of “ghost networks” that list mental health providers that are not in their network or aren’t taking new patients.
    • “The class action lawsuit, filed on Dec. 30 in federal court against EmblemHealth, alleges that the ghost network directory “constitutes unlawful deceptive acts and practices, false advertising, and violations of statutory and regulatory requirements,” according to an APA press releaseopens in a new tab or window. “It also alleges that their provider directory violates federal trademark law by falsely advertising and misusing the names, identities and reputations of mental health clinicians.”

From the U.S. healthcare and medical / Rx research front,

  • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced today,
    • “Seasonal influenza activity remains elevated nationally but has decreased for three consecutive weeks. Among children 5–17 years, hospitalizations are stable and emergency department visits are increasing. RSV activity is elevated in many areas of the country. Emergency department visits for RSV are highest among infants under 1 year and children 1-4 years old. RSV hospitalizations are highest among infants less than 1 year old.
    • “COVID-19
      • COVID-19 activity is elevated in some areas of the country.
    • “Influenza
      • “Seasonal influenza activity remains elevated nationally but has decreased for three consecutive weeks. Among children 5–17 years, hospitalizations are stable and emergency department visits are increasing. Activity is increasing or stable in the Midwest, Central, and West Coast regions.
      • “Additional information about current influenza activity can be found at: Weekly U.S. Influenza Surveillance Report | CDC.
    • “RSV
      • “RSV activity is elevated in many areas of the country, including emergency department visits among infants under 1 year and children 1-4 years old. Hospitalizations among infants less than 1 year old are elevated.”
    • “Vaccination
      • “National vaccination coverage for COVID-19, influenza, and RSV vaccines remains suboptimal for children and adults. COVID-19, influenza, and RSV vaccines can provide protection against severe disease this season. It is not too late to get vaccinated this season. Talk to your doctor or trusted healthcare provider about what vaccines are recommended for you and your family.”
  • The University of Minnesota’s CIDRAP adds,
    • “The South Carolina Department of Public Health (DPH) today confirmed 54 new measles cases in just three days, raising the size of its outbreak, which DPH first reported in October, to 700 cases.
    • “The news comes as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed 416 total US cases so far this month—an increase of 245 infections in the past week—and as US health officials downplay the burgeoning outbreak and the key role that vaccines play in preventing illness.”
  • and
    • “Routine childhood vaccinations, nor the aluminum used as vaccine adjuvants, are not associated with an increased risk of epilepsy in young children, according to a new case-control study published this week in The Journal of Pediatrics. 
    • “The study, led by a team from the Marshfield Clinic Research Institute in Marshfield, Wisconsin, examined whether being up to date on recommended vaccines or having higher cumulative exposure to vaccine-related aluminum was linked to the development of epilepsy in children under age four. 
    • “Analyzing a decade of pediatric health data from the Vaccine Safety Datalink, which is a collaboration between the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and several health care sites that monitor vaccine safety, the team identified 2,089 children diagnosed as having epilepsy from age 1 year to less than 4 years and matched them with 20,139 children without epilepsy based on age, sex, and health care site. 
    • “Most participants were boys (54%) and between the ages of 1 year and 23 months (69%). White non-Hispanics composed the largest ethnicity group in the study (40%).”
  • STAT News tells us,
    • “The number of ongoing prescription drug shortages rose slightly in the last quarter of 2025, but remained significantly lower than the all-time high reached in the beginning of 2024. Moreover, the number of new shortages identified last year marked the lowest level in nearly 20 years, according to a new report from the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists.
    • “As last year drew to a close, there were 216 prescription medicines in short supply in the U.S., which was slightly more than earlier in the year, but this was significantly less than the 323 prescription drug shortages recorded in the beginning of 2024, the report found.
    • “The number of new shortages identified last year was just 89, the lowest figure since 2006, and considerably less than 130 medicines that were in shortly supply in 2024. And notably, long-standing shortages are beginning to resolve; 75% of all the active shortages started in 2022 or later.”
  • Per MedPage Today,
    • “People with the lowest serum vitamin D levels were 33% more likely than those with the highest levels to be hospitalized for respiratory tract infections.
    • “Researchers found no evidence that the association between vitamin D status and respiratory tract infection risk differed by race or ethnicity.
    • “Obesity, being male, older age, statin use, and lower income were all linked to a greater risk of hospitalization for respiratory infections.”
  • and
    • “Arthritis can be disabling enough to prevent people from working, but the factors influencing employability in this population have not been well studied.
    • “This study used data from the long-running Health and Retirement Study to estimate “healthy working life expectancy” (HWLE) for people with arthritis, including major subgroups.
    • “HWLE was found to be markedly diminished for people with arthritis, and especially so for arthritis patients not finishing high school, those with obesity, and Black individuals.”

From the U.S. healthcare business front,

  • Fierce Pharma reports,
    • “With just a few months to go before Eli Lilly expects to launch its own oral GLP-1 obesity drug, Novo Nordisk is making the most of its head start with the Wegovy pill.
    • “In the second week of oral Wegovy’s launch, which ended Jan. 16, the pill logged roughly 18,400 total prescriptions, according to IMS data cited in a Friday note from analysts at Jefferies. Other tracking data put the second week of Wegovy pill prescriptions closer to 20,000, the analyst team pointed out.
    • “The quick uptake of Novo’s new oral obesity offering is impressive and appears “numerically higher” than both injectable Wegovy (roughly 1,600 prescriptions) and its Lilly counterpart Zepbound (around 7,300 prescriptions) in the first two weeks of their respective launches, the Jefferies team said.”
  • The FEHBlog ran across this Health Care Cost Institute website which “shows average price data for bundles of health services to help you better understand the cost of care in your area.” Check it out.
  • Fierce Healthcare informs us,
    • “CommonSpirit Health and Altru Health System are considering a deal to transfer three North Dakota hospitals to the latter, the organizations announced Thursday.
    • “The pair’s signed letter of intent outlines plans to evaluate a potential deal for the facilities, a process they said would run “the next several months” before a potential definitive agreement might be struck.
    • “In the balance are CHI St. Alexius Health Bismarck, a multispecialty acute care medical center in the state’s capital, and two smaller critical access hospitals, CHI St. Alexius Health Turtle Lake and CHI St. Alexius Health Garrison. All three are Catholic facilities within CommonSpirit’s regional healthcare system CHI St. Alexius Health.”
  • Beckers Hospital Review notes,
    • “Newly released data from KFF show there were an average of 422 emergency room visits per 1,000 population nationally in 2024, the most recent year for which data are available. KFF used  data from the American Hospital Association’s annual survey of community hospitals  — which accounts for 85% of all U.S. hospitals — and population estimates from the Census Bureau to compile ED visits per 100,000 population for every state.
    • “ED utilization rose in many states compared to data from 2023. The latest figures offer a preview of where added strain from rising coverage losses and reduced access to preventive care may hit hardest. 
    • “[The article includes] a state-by-state breakdown of total emergency department visits per 1,000 population in 2024, including the District of Columbia, starting with states where rates are highest.” 
  • Beckers Health IT lets us know,
    • “Walmart is set to open four clinical research sites in spring 2026, including at its former healthcare centers.
    • “The Walmart Healthcare Research Institute is launching the facilities in collaboration with clinical research company Care Access at three ex-Walmart Health locations and a rural Walmart store. The sites will offer health screenings and explore study opportunities with patients.
    • “Clinical research should feel practical and approachable, not distant or intimidating, especially for communities that have had difficulty participating in opportunities for innovative treatments,” Walmart Chief Medical Officer Emily Aaronson, MD, said in a Jan. 22 news release.”

Friday report

David Ermer–CDC, CMS, Congress, COVID-19, Medical / Rx research, Medicare, Mental health care, OPM, SCOTUS, Telehealth, U.S. Healthcare–

From Washington, DC,

  • Beckers Payer Issues offers three takeways from the President’s healthcare plan that was announced yesterday.
    • “President Donald Trump released a sparsely detailed healthcare policy framework Jan. 15 that calls on Congress to codify voluntary drug pricing agreements with major pharmaceutical companies, direct payments to Americans over extending enhanced ACA subsidies, and expand price transparency requirements for insurers and providers. The proposal does not identify how most of its provisions would be implemented or enforced.”
  • Rick Pollack, the American Hospital Association’s President, points the healthcare cost increase finger at health insurers.
  • Healthcare Dive adds,
    • “The federal government will pay an estimated $76 billion more to cover Medicare Advantage seniors this year than it would if those same seniors were in traditional Medicare, according to new estimates from an influential advisory group.
    • “It’s a smaller sum than last year thanks to the continued phase-in of a new risk adjustment model. Overpayments were estimated to reach $84 billion in 2025.
    • “Still, the report released Friday by the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission is likely to add more fuel to concerns about overpayments in the privatized Medicare program, which has grown to cover more than half of all Medicare enrollees.”
  • The American Hospital Association News tells us,
    • “The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission Jan. 15 voted to recommend that Congress update Medicare payment rates for hospital inpatient and outpatient services by the current law amount for 2027 and reiterated its recommendation to distribute an additional $1 billion to safety-net hospitals by transitioning to a Medicare safety-net index policy. The AHA Jan. 9 urged the commission for higher updates.
    • In other action, MedPAC recommended that Congress update 2027 Medicare payments for physicians and other health professional services by current law plus 0.5%. The commission also recommended reducing the 2027 payment rates for home health agencies by 7%, skilled nursing facilities by 4% and inpatient rehabilitation facilities by 7%.
  • and
    • The White House hosted a roundtable on rural health Jan. 16 that included health care leaders, legislators and administration officials. The event included discussion on the Rural Health Transformation Fund and the “The Great Healthcare Plan,”with a focus on “most favored nation” prescription drug pricing and other topicsimpacting rural health. Speakers included President Trump, CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz, M.D., Andrew McCue, M.D., a cardiologist at AdventHealth, Senator Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, Gov. Jim Pillen, R-Neb., Reps. Rob Bresnahan, R-Pa., Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., and Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins.”
  • Per Medical Economics,
    • “Telehealth adoption did not increase overall office visit volumes among traditional Medicare patients, with visit volumes remaining stable or declining through mid-2024.
    • “Researchers categorized specialists into low, medium and high telehealth usage groups, finding declines in outpatient office visits across all groups.
    • “The study suggests telehealth serves as a substitute for in-person visits, not increasing total utilization among Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries.
    • “Congress must decide on extending Medicare’s telehealth coverage standards, impacting patient access to virtual care.”
  • Per a Senate news release,
    • “U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) support the Trump administration taking action to implement the No Surprises Act, which protects patients from surprise medical bills and ensures they know the cost of care before receiving it.
    • “Since the bipartisan legislation, led by Cassidy and Hassan, was signed into law by President Trump in 2020, the No Surprises Act has protected American patients from more than 25 million surprise medical bills. This would not be possible without the work of the Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and the Treasury.
    • “We are writing to express our support of the Department’s efforts to improve the implementation of the No Surprises Act and encourage the pursuit of additional solutions to ensure that the process established under the law to resolve payment disputes between providers, facilities, and health plans is effective,” wrote the senators. “We look forward to continuing to work with the Department and stand ready to assist to ensure that the implementation of the No Surprises Act continues to be successful.”
  • An HHS news release informs us,
    • “The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), a division within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), announced today [January 13] a $231M funding opportunity to administer the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. The 988 Lifeline is comprised of a national network of more than 200 local crisis contact centers managed by a SAMHSA-funded 988 network administrator. In 2025, 988 received more than 8 million contacts from help seekers via call, text, chat and ASL videophone.”
  • NCQA calls our attention to its 2026 trends.
    • “Re-Thinking Our Approach to Population Health”
    • “Understanding Health Differences Within Populations and Communities”
    • “Shaping the Future of Primary Care”
    • “Integrating Primary Care and Behavioral Healthcare”
    • “Advancing the Transition to Digital Quality Measurement”
    • “Expanding Use of Clinical Data in HEDIS®”
    • “Improving Quality of Care for Patients with Cardiovascular-Kidney-Metabolic Syndrome”
    • “Defining High Quality Diabetes Care”
    • “Reducing the Administrative Burden of Utilization Management”

From the judicial front,

  • Bloomberg Law reports,
    • “The US Supreme Court agreed to hear Bayer AG’s appeal taking aim at thousands of lawsuits targeting its top-selling Roundup weedkiller for causing cancer. 
    • “The high court agreed Friday to hear Bayer’s challenge to a $1.25 million Missouri jury verdict against the company’s Monsanto unit over Roundup on the grounds some of the claims in the 2023 case were preempted by federal law. Bayer officials hope the justices’ ruling will help knock out thousands of Roundup cases that include failure-to-warn claims.”
  • and
    • “The US Supreme Court will hear generic drug maker Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA Inc.’s challenge of an appeals court holding that it induced doctors and pharmacists to prescribe its heart medicine for off-label treatments that would infringe a rival’s patents. (Case no.
      24-1068)
    • “The government urged the high court to reverse the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit’s ruling reviving a lawsuit from Amarin Pharma Inc. Amarin claimed that Hikma infringed its patents despite the generic company’s use of a “skinny label” instructing users only to take the drug to treat severe hypertriglyceridemia, a method-of-use no longer covered by any Amarin patent.” (Case No. 24-889).

From the public health and medical / Rx research front,

  • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced today,
    • “Seasonal influenza activity remains elevated across the country. RSV activity is elevated in many areas of the country. Emergency department visits for RSV are highest among infants under 1 year and children 1-4 years old and RSV hospitalizations are highest among infants less than 1 year old. COVID-19 activity is low but increasing nationally.
    • “COVID-19
      • “COVID-19 activity is low but increasing nationally.
    • “Influenza
      • “Seasonal influenza activity remains elevated across the country, but influenza activity has decreased or remained stable for two consecutive weeks. CDC will continue to monitor closely. A second period of increased influenza activity does often occur after the winter holidays.
      • “Additional information about current influenza activity can be found at: Weekly U.S. Influenza Surveillance Report | CDC.
    • “RSV
      • RSV activity is elevated in many areas of the country, including emergency department visits among infants under 1 year and children 1-4 years old and hospitalizations among infants less than 1 year old.
    • “Vaccination
      • “National vaccination coverage for COVID-19, influenza, and RSV vaccines remains suboptimal for children and adults. COVID-19, influenza, and RSV vaccines can provide protection against severe disease this season. Talk to your doctor or trusted healthcare provider about what vaccines are recommended for you and your family.”
  • Beckers Hospital Review offers five notes about dipping numbers of hospital admissions for flu.
  • The University of Minnesota’s CIDRAP relates,
    • “Two new analyses, one from France and one from China, suggest that seasonal influenza vaccination provided moderate protection during the early months of the 2025–26 flu season, despite the rapid spread of influenza A(H3N2) subclade K viruses, which differ from the strains anticipated during vaccine development for the current flu season.”
  • STAT News notes,
    • “Reported measles cases in South Carolina surged by almost 30% in the last few days, state health officials said Friday.
    • “The South Carolina health department reported 124 new cases since Tuesday, bringing the state’s total to 558 in a wave of infections centered around an outbreak in Spartanburg County.”
  • The AP informs us,
    • “Wastewater testing can alert public health officials to measles infections days to months before cases are confirmed by doctors, researchers said in two studies published Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
    • “Colorado health officials were able to get ahead of the highly contagious virus by tracking its presence in sewer systems, researchers wrote. And Oregon researchers found wastewater could have warned them of an outbreak more than two months before the first person tested positive.
    • “The findings add to evidence that wastewater testing is a valuable weapon in tracking disease, including COVID-19, polio, mpox and bird flu.”
  • The American Hospital Association News points out,
    • “The AHA has published a webpage that highlights facts, causes, effects and solutions that hospitals and health systems can use for reducing the risk and severity of postpartum hemorrhage. Resources include how to prepare for, train, measure and support the workforce and patients during maternal care. LEARN MORE“
  • The Washington Post reports,
    • “A sweeping new study of psychiatric and genetic records has the potential to change treatment for millions of psychiatric patients, finding that many conditions involve similar genes and may not need to be treated as distinct illnesses.
    • “In essence, the study suggests that bolstering the traditional emphasis on patient behavior with a deeper understanding of the biology of mental illness could lead to better treatment.
    • “Published in Nature, the paper addresses the boundaries psychiatry uses to separate similar conditions like bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. The research also suggests that linking genes to the brain processes they influence will provide psychiatrists with greater insight into their patients, and guide researchers toward new therapies.”
    • “The findings could also spare patients the burden of carrying multiple different diagnoses that require an assortment of different pills.”
  • Per Healio,
    • “People with hypertension who meet guideline-directed levels of weekly physical activity in just 1 or 2 days may derive similar mortality benefit vs. those who are consistently active, researchers reported.
    • “The 2020 WHO guidelines on physical activity and sedentary behavior, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, recommended 150 minutes or more of moderate to vigorous physical activity per week for people with chronic conditions such as hypertension.”
  • Per Fierce Pharma,
    • “Just days after AbbVie unveiled a major new oncology play in the form of its high-dollar RemeGen collab, the Illinois drugmaker closed out the week with some mixed news for its marketed cancer offering Epkinly.
    • “Friday afternoon, the company and its partner Genmab shared word that the phase 3 Epcore DLBCL-1 trial missed on its primary endpoint of overall survival. Specifically, the partners’ Epkinly failed to mount a statistically significant OS benefit among patients with relapsed/refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL).” 

From the U.S. healthcare business front,

  • Fierce Healthcare reports,
    • “Despite ongoing pushback, the University of Nebraska Board of Regents on Jan. 15 unanimously approved a proposed deal to bring jointly operated Nebraska Medicine under its full ownership and governance.
    • The deal would see co-owner Clarkson Regional Health Services offload its 50% share of the independently run system for $500 million plus another $300 million for owned land and buildings. Nebraska Medicine’s board is staunchly opposing the plan, and launched a public messaging campaign warning that sole governance, among other possibilities, would allow the university to redirect healthcare funds to cover its own budget gaps.
  • Beckers Hospital Review tells us,
    • “Nashville, Tenn.-based Vanderbilt Transplant Center completed 960 solid organ transplants in 2025 — the most ever performed by a single center in one year — making it the largest transplant center by volume in the U.S. 
    • “In addition to the record number of solid organ transplants, the center set a world record for the performing 210 adult and pediatric heart transplants in 2025, according to a Jan. 14 news release from Nashville-based Vanderbilt University Medical Center.” 
  • MedTech Dive informs us,
    • “Intuitive Surgical executives said this week that general surgery, particularly in after-hours care, drove procedure growth for the da Vinci robotic platform. U.S. procedures increased 15% in the fourth quarter compared with a year ago.
    • “After-hours procedures such as gallbladder removal and appendectomy using a da Vinci robot grew 35% in the fourth quarter, CFO Jamie Samath said in a presentation at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference.
    • “Intuitive has been ramping up the launch of its latest system, da Vinci 5, making it broadly available in the U.S. in the third quarter of 2025. Da Vinci 5 is also cleared in Korea, Japan and Europe. 
    • “The strong launch has exceeded the company’s expectations, with about 1,200 da Vinci 5 systems installed and 270,000 procedures performed globally, CEO Dave Rosa said at the conference.”

Friday report

David Ermer–CDC, CMS, COVID-19, FDA, Generative AI, Medical / Rx research, Medicare, Mental health care, U.S. Healthcare–

From Washington, DC,

  • Beckers Payer Issues tells us,
    • “CMS has become more aggressive with its rollout of new payment and care delivery models.
    • To provide healthcare leaders with an outlook for 2026, research firm ATI Advisory compiled observations from 2025 to gain a sense of CMS’ plans for its Innovation Center.” 
  • Modern Healthcare reports,
    • “Safety-net providers got a reprieve from a controversial plan to replace discounts with rebates under the 340B Drug Pricing Program, but they aren’t in the clear.
    • “The Health Resources and Services Administration intended to launch a pilot program this month that would allow nine pharmaceutical companies to give 340B providers rebates on 10 prescription drugs, rather than upfront discounts, for at least a year.”
    • “340B providers cried foul, and the American Hospital Association sued to block the initiative, which it contends would enrich drugmakers at its members’ expense. Last month, the U.S. District Court for the District of Maine directed HRSA to suspend the program while it considers the case. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit upheld that preliminary injunction Wednesday.” * * *
    • “Yet even if the AHA wins the case, the rebates plan could resurface. 
    • “Separate court rulings last year affirmed that HRSA has the authority to institute rebates under 340B, so the agency could simply try another approach. “Congress clearly gave defendants that option,” Walker wrote.
    • “HRSA remains committed to the rebates pilot and other actions on 340B, and the pharmaceutical industry aims to do its part to fight back against the lawsuit and against what it views as a bloated program that has grown beyond its original scope. The Health and Human Services Department declined to comment on ongoing litigation.”
  • Per an NCQA news release,
    • “The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) today announced the appointment of Sarah E. Saxton, MBA, as Senior Vice President of Quality Services. Saxton brings more than 20 years of experience advancing quality, performance measurement, and large-scale transformation across public and private health systems.
    • “In this role, Saxton will lead NCQA’s Quality Solutions Group, driving research and implementation efforts that underpin NCQA’s evidence-based standards and performance measures. She will also deepen collaboration with federal agencies to advance initiatives that deliver measurable improvements in healthcare systems and patient outcomes.”

From the Food and Drug Administration front,

  • BioPharma Dive reports,
    • “A biotechnology firm hatched by two prominent researchers publicly debuted on Friday, aiming to use a new regulatory framework to quickly develop many gene editing treatments for rare diseases.
    • “Called Aurora Therapeutics, the startup was co-founded by Nobel laureate Jennifer Doudna and genetic medicine expert Fyodor Urnov and seeded by Menlo Ventures. It intends to simultaneously work on multiple therapies for the same condition, each of which target different genetic mutations, and quickly advance them with the help of the Food and Drug Administration’s recently unveiled “plausible mechanism” pathway.“
  • Cardiovascular Business relates,
    • “AccurKardia, a New York-based medtech company, has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clearance for the latest version of its AccurECG Analysis Software, a fully automated platform that delivers rapid electrocardiogram (ECG) interpretations.
    • “AccurECG 2.0 was designed to interpret a total of 13 different rhythm classifications, including atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter and ventricular tachycardia. According to AccurKardia, it was developed to be used by cardiac monitoring companies, device makers, hospitals and independent diagnostic testing facilities alike. 
    • “AccurECG 2.0 was designed to be device agnostic, meaning these artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms can be utilized by a wide range of stakeholders. The software can interpret test results originating from patches or any other traditional ECG devices.” 

From the public health and medical / Rx research front,

  • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced today,
    • “Seasonal influenza activity remains elevated across the country. RSV activity is elevated in many areas of the country with emergency department visits and hospitalizations increasing among children 0-4 years old. COVID-19 activity is low but increasing nationally.
    • “COVID-19
      • “COVID-19 activity is low but increasing nationally.
    • “Influenza
      • “Seasonal influenza activity remains elevated across the country.
      • “Although some indicators have decreased or remained stable this week compared to last, this could be due to changes in the number of people seeking healthcare, testing or reporting during the holidays rather than an indication that influenza activity has peaked. The country is still experiencing elevated influenza activity and elevated influenza activity is expected to continue for several more weeks.
      • “Additional information about current influenza activity can be found at: Weekly U.S. Influenza Surveillance Report | CDC.
    • “RSV
      • “RSV activity is elevated in many areas of the country with emergency department visits and hospitalizations increasing among children 0-4 years old.
    • “Vaccination
      • “National vaccination coverage for COVID-19, influenza, and RSV vaccines remains suboptimal for children and adults. COVID-19, influenza, and RSV vaccines can provide protection against severe disease this season. Talk to your doctor or trusted healthcare provider about what vaccines are recommended for you and your family.”
  • Beckers Clinical Leadership offers “four things to know from the CDC’s latest FluView report.”
    • Flu positivity dipped but remains high.
    • Pediatric deaths increased.
    • A(H3N2) continues to dominate.
    • Hospitalizations continue to climb.
  • and
    • “The annual number of deaths in the U.S. is projected to exceed the annual number of births beginning in 2030, according to a January report from the Congressional Budget Office.
    • “The projections are based on existing laws and policies as of Sept. 30, as well as recent demographic trends, and serve as a benchmark for assessing how potential legislation could affect the size and structure of the U.S. population.” * * *
    • “The population is expected to become older on average between 2026 and 2056. The cohort of Americans 65 and older is expected to grow through 2036 at an annual average rate of 1.6% — faster than the average growth rates projected for younger cohorts. The group ages 24 and younger is expected to decrease in each of the next 30 years.
    • “An older population presents a dual challenge for hospitals and health systems: increasing demand for more complex care and exacerbating workforce shortages as more Americans retire.
    • “The aging trend is driven by longer life expectancies and baby boomers reaching age 65 or older by 2030, according to Maria Ansari, MD, co-CEO of The Permanente Federation and CEO of three of Oakland, Calif.-based Kaiser Permanente’s medical groups.”
  • The American Hospital Association News lets us know,
    • “A study published Jan. 7 by the University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center examined the availability of hospital-based obstetric services in the U.S. by county from 2010-2023. It found 293 counties (8.6%) nationwide lost all hospital-based obstetric services during that period. Among those, 26 counties experienced a recent loss between 2022 and 2023, 21 of which are rural counties. Among the 148 rural counties with a town population of 10,000 or fewer people, 11% lost all hospital-based obstetric services from 2010-2023. Overall, 60% of rural counties and 38% of urban counties did not have any hospital-based obstetric services by 2023.” 
  • The University of Minnesota’s CIDRAP tells us,
    • “The influenza and tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis (whooping cough; Tdap) vaccines are an estimated 69.7% and 88.6% effective against flu- or pertussis-related hospitalizations or emergency department (ED) visits, respectively, among the infants of vaccinated mothers, although with considerable uncertainty, per an observational study published yesterday in JAMA Network Open.”
  • Per HCPLive,
    • “Exercise is as effective as psychological therapy in alleviating depressive symptoms, with no significant difference in outcomes.
    • “Moderate-intensity exercise, especially between 13 and 36 sessions, provides the greatest benefit for reducing depressive symptoms.
    • “Many trials exhibited biases, emphasizing the need for more high-quality, large-scale studies with clinically diagnosed participants.
    • “The study suggests exercise could complement or serve as an alternative to traditional depression treatments, though further research is necessary.”
  • Per the Genetic Engineering and BioTechnology News,
    • “Some parts of the body can recover from injury fairly rapidly. The cornea, for example, can heal from minor scratches within a single day. The human brain, however, is not one of these fast-healing tissues or organs. Adult brain cells are stable and last for a lifetime— barring trauma or disease—while some cells lining the gut last only five days and must be continually replaced.
    • “Scientists would like to use stem cell therapy to boost the brain’s ability to regenerate following damage resulting from concussion or stroke. To date, such treatments have been stymied due to injury-related changes in the brain, as well as with difficulties integrating regenerated cells into existing brain circuits to restore functions such as memory retention or motor skills.
    • “Scientists headed by a team at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute and Duke-National University of Singapore (NUS) Medical School now report the results of testing a regenerative therapy derived from human stem cells. Their studies showed that when transplanted into mice, the cells matured, integrated into existing circuits and restored function. By tracing the cells and sequencing their gene expression patterns, the researchers also revealed how transplanted cells find where they need to go and form connections with the nervous system. The studies showed that the cells contain their own intrinsic codes for navigation, and once they become neurons, this code instructs the cell to send its axons to a specific area of the brain.
    • “Headed by Su-Chun Zhang, MD, PhD, the Jeanne and Gary Herberger Leadership chair in neuroscience and the director of and professor in the Center for Neurologic Diseases at Sanford Burnham, the researchers reported their findings in Cell Stem Cell, in a paper titled “Transcriptional code for circuit integration in the injured brain by transplanted human neurons.” In their paper the team concluded, “Our finding opens a promising strategy for treating neurological diseases through promoting regeneration and neural transplantation.”

From the U.S. healthcare business and artificial intelligence front,

  • The Wall Street Journal reports,
    • “Merck MRK is in talks to acquire Revolution Medicines in a deal that could value it at around $30 billion, according to people familiar with the matter. 
    • “A deal for the cancer-drug biotech could come as soon as later this month, the people said, cautioning the talks could still fall apart or another suitor could prevail. 
    • “Merck has been discussing a deal valued between $28 billion and $32 billion, the people added.” * * * 
    • “Revolution is developing drugs that target a molecular driver of cancers known as RAS. Revolution’s experimental drugs seek to block the driver, thereby thwarting cancers including lung, pancreatic and colon. 
    • “If it proves to work safely, the pancreatic-cancer drug candidate could generate $10 billion in 2035 worldwide sales, Mizuho Securities analysts estimate.” 
  • Digital Commerce 360 informs us,
    • “CVS Health has outlined a broad digital and artificial intelligence (AI) strategy aimed at simplifying health care delivery.
    • “The strategy deepens consumer engagement and supports multiyear earnings growth. It positions technology as a core driver of the company’s next phase rather than a back-office function.
    • “At its 2025 investor day in December, the health care and pharmacy company introduced what it described as an AI-native consumer engagement platform. It designed the platform to connect interactions across CVS Pharmacy, CVS Caremark, Aetna and its health care delivery businesses into a single digital interface. Executives said the company intends for the platform to reduce friction for consumers by navigating prescriptions, benefits, and care, while also improving operational efficiency across the enterprise.”
  • Per a LinkedIn post by a Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center executive,
    • “Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center has entered into a one-year trial partnership with OpenAI on its new HIPAA-compliant version of hashtag#ChatGPT, “ChatGPT Healthcare”. This collaboration is designed to accelerate responsible AI adoption at MSK by providing new a range of tools and access to expertise in support of our clinical, research, and operational workflows. As an early launch partner, we’re also looking forward to shared learning alongside peer institutions across the country. Importantly, this partnership reflects a strong, shared commitment to rigorous governance, privacy, and security. We see this as a meaningful opportunity not only to advance our own work, but also to help shape the broader conversation on how AI can thoughtfully and responsibly enhance cancer care and research.”
  • Fierce Healthcare points out,
    • “Pittsburgh-based insurer Highmark is further expanding its drug offerings through CivicaScript and leaning on biosimilars as pharmaceutical costs continue to rise for many.
    • “Highmark is a founding member of the drug company, which manufactures lower-cost alternatives to high-cost generic products. CivicaScript is a sister to Civica Rx, a drugmaker cofounded by health systems that makes key products for care facilities, which are often in short supply.
    • “The insurer first made abiraterone acetate, a drug for treating prostate cancer, available through CivicaScript in 2023, and found that members are saving $90 each month on average thanks to this partnership and its relationship with specialty pharmacies.
    • “Highmark said that more than 300 members are benefiting from the savings—across both individual and group customers, the plan has collectively saved $8 million.
    • “And as of September 2025, Highmark is now offering four additional CivicaScript products: dimethyl fumarate and dalfampridine, which are both used to treat multiple sclerosis; droxidopa, which is used for neurogenic orthostatic hypotension; and capecitabine, a cancer drug.”
  • Per MedTech Dive,
    • “Haemonetics will acquire Vivasure Medical, an Ireland-based firm that makes a patch device for percutaneous vessel closure, the companies announced Friday.
    • “Haemonetics will pay 100 million euros upfront ($116.3 million), or about 52 million euros when including the value of certain previous investments and loans. Vivasure will be able to get an additional 85 million euros if it meets certain sales growth and other milestones.
    • “The acquisition is expected to bolster Haemonetics’ presence in the large-bore closure market, giving the company a bigger impact in fast-growing structural heart and endovascular procedures, Ken Crowley, general manager of interventional technologies at Haemonetics, said in a statement.”
  • Per MedCity News,
    • “Health tech may be getting a new heavyweight — though the deal is still in its early stages.
    • “Last month, reports emerged that Matt Holt, former managing director and president of private equity at New Mountain Capital, had left the New York City firm to start a new venture combining five of its health tech portfolio companies in a deal valued at more than $30 billion. 
    • “The creation of the new company — apparently to be named Thoreau after essayist and naturalist Henry David Thoreau — is not yet finalized, but steps are underway to move the process forward, an anonymous source familiar with the transaction told MedCity News. The source said significant diligence, analysis and capital-raising efforts are still underway.
    • “The five New Mountain-backed startups that Holt is in discussion to acquire are Datavant, Machinify, Office Ally, Smarter Technologies and Swoop. Anonymous sources close to the deal told media outlets that the new entity, called Thoreau, is being backed by London-based alternative asset manager ICG Strategic Equity.” * * *
    • “Though Thoreau is not yet a done deal, experts think the move represents a major bet on scale and integration in the health tech sector.”