Thursday report

Federal employment benefits

Thursday report

David Ermer–CDC, CMS, Congress, FDA, Federal employment benefits, Medical / Rx research, Medicare, OPM, Telehealth, U.S. Healthcare–

Happy Lincoln’s Birthday

From Washington, DC,

  • The Wall Street Journal reports,
    • “The Department of Homeland Security is on the verge of a shutdown after Senate Democrats voted to block a bill to fund the agency, saying negotiations with Republicans to put new restrictions on immigration enforcement hadn’t made enough progress.
    • “A bill to fund DHS through September failed to advance with 52 in favor and 47 opposed, short of the 60 votes required. Republicans control the Senate 53-47 but need Democratic support to pass most bills due to the longstanding filibuster rule.
    • “Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania voted with Republicans to advance the bill, while Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R., S.D.) switched his vote from yes to no to preserve his ability to bring the bill up again. Sen. Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) was absent.
    • “DHS oversees Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection as well as the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Transportation Security Administration and the U.S. Coast Guard. While the failed vote sets the stage for funding to lapse at DHS for at least a week, there isn’t expected to be any significant impact on border enforcement from the shutdown.”
  • The Washington Post adds,
    • “The Senate is not expected to hold any more votes before a shutdown starts at 12:01 a.m. Eastern time on Saturday, and many senators were set to leave town Thursday to travel to the Munich Security Conference. Schumer and Thune have said they are prepared to bring senators back early if a deal comes together.” * * *
    • “This shutdown would affect only DHS — but it would not shutter U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement or Customs and Border Protection, because Republicans sent those agencies tens of billions of dollars in additional funding last year that would allow them to continue to operate.
    • “Instead, the brunt of a shutdown would fall on the Transportation Security Administration, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Coast Guard and other agencies within DHS. It would affect about 13 percent of the federal civilian workforce, most of whom would be forced to work without pay, according to data from DHS and the Office of Personnel Management.”
  • The Wall Street Journal tells us
    • “The White House and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. have shaken up the top ranks at his department, a move meant to install more disciplined messengers and smoother operations ahead of the midterm elections.
    • “Kennedy and White House officials tapped Chris Klomp, the head of Medicare and a former healthcare executive, to lead the department as its No. 2 under Kennedy, administration officials said. Klomp will have responsibility for operations and messaging, and he will be aided by at least three other agency lieutenants to take senior counselor roles under him, the officials said.
    • “We’re structuring in such a way that we can move faster and we can make sure the quality is uniform,” Klomp said in an interview.” * * *
    • “The three other senior advisers tapped to help Klomp include John Brooks, who currently heads policy at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services; Grace Graham, who leads the Food and Drug Administration’s policy office; and Kyle Diamantas, who heads FDA’s food division. Brooks will oversee CMS matters, while Graham and Diamantas will have roles managing the FDA.”
  • Beckers Payer Issues informs us,
    • “Fourteen health insurers have voluntarily committed to CMS’ “Advancing Chronic Care with Effective, Scalable Solutions” model, according to a Feb. 12 CMS news release shared with Becker’s.
    • “The insurers that are on board will work toward achieving alignment with the model by 2028. The plans represent 165 million Americans.
    • “With a decade-long evaluation period beginning in July, ACCESS will explore whether linking payments to clinical outcomes can facilitate technology in chronic disease management, focusing on Medicare beneficiaries. Targeted conditions include high blood pressure, diabetes, chronic musculoskeletal pain and depression. The agency began accepting applications, which are due in April, on Jan. 12.
    • “The FDA’s “Technology-Enabled Meaningful Patient Outcomes for Digital Health Devices Pilot” will operate in conjunction with ACCESS, allowing expanded availability of relevant devices.”
  • The Internal Revenue Service issued a draft of Publication 969 Health Savings Accounts and Other Tax-Favored Health Plans For use in preparing 2025 Returns.
  • The American Hospital Association News lets us know,
    • “A bipartisan letter supported by the AHA was sent by members of Congress Feb. 11 to the Department of Homeland Security, urging the agency to grant health care workers an exemption from the $100,000 filing fee for H-1B visas. The letter, led by Reps. Yvette D. Clarke, D-N.Y., and Michael Lawler, R-N.Y., was signed by 100 lawmakers. “Imposing a $100,000 fee for new H-1B visa petitions will exacerbate hospitals’ existing staffing challenges and could push chronically underfunded hospitals to their financial brink,” the legislators wrote. “If these hospitals cannot petition for new H-1B visas to address their staffing needs without also having to pay this fee, it will further damage their financial viability. Critically needed open positions will simply go unfilled, leaving rural and high-poverty urban areas without adequate access to care.”
  • and
    • “The Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response has launched a $100 million competition to support the development of antiviral drug therapies targeting viruses in the Togaviridae and Flaviviridae families, such as dengue, Zika, West Nile and Chikungunya. The initiative, called the Small Molecule Approaches for Rapid and Robust Treatment Prize, will be coordinated by ASPR’s Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority. BARDA plans to include input from experts in drug development, virology, artificial intelligence, medicinal chemistry and public health for the program. A series of virtual information sessions will be held in the coming weeks on the initiative, which has a May 11 application deadline.” 
  • Federal News Radio interviews Tammy Flanagan about federal employee retirement benefits.
  • Per an EEOC news release,
    • “The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), together with the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), today provided federal agencies with a joint technical assistance document addressing telework as a reasonable accommodation for federal employees with disabilities.”

From the Food and Drug Administration front,

  • The Wall Street Journal reports,
    • “In an hour-long meeting in January, Food and Drug Administration career staff laid out their objections to a plan to block a new flu shot from vaccine maker Moderna. They argued that refusing to even consider the vaccine was the wrong approach to address any concerns about the product.
    • “Vinay Prasad, the head of the FDA vaccine and biologics division, overruled them—despite the agency earlier signing off on Moderna’s approach to studying the shot. Prasad told Moderna earlier this month he wouldn’t review its flu application, arguing that its clinical trial was inadequate.
    • “The Moderna decision is part of a pattern of regulatory U-turns and overruling of FDA staff by Prasad, a Covid-vaccine critic elevated by FDA Commissioner Marty Makaryand Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. At least nine companies, many of them focused on rare or hard-to-treat diseases, have said Prasad’s team has surprised them in recent months with rapid shifts in its decisions, in some cases rejecting their products after previously blessing their approaches.”
  • Per FDA news releases,
    • “The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved a first-of-its-kind device for the treatment of adult patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer. Optune Pax, developed by Novocure, is a portable, non-invasive device that delivers alternating electrical fields, known as tumor treating fields (TTFields), to the abdomen. TTFields work by physically disrupting the rapid cell division that is characteristic of cancer cells, while minimizing damage to healthy tissue.”
  • and
    • “The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved drug labeling changes to six menopausal hormone therapy products, also known as hormone replacement therapy (HRT), to clarify risk considerations for these drugs. Specifically, risk statements related to cardiovascular disease, breast cancer and probable dementia were removed from the “boxed warning,” the agency’s most prominent safety-related warning.”

From the judicial front,

  • Fierce Pharma reports,
    • “In response to last month’s list of the 15 drugs chosen by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) for upcoming price cuts under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), AbbVie is the latest to join the flood of industry litigation over the law.
    • “While AbbVie’s lawsuit contends that the CMS pricing negotiations mandated for Botox step on the company’s constitutional rights—a common thread woven into much of the industry’s legal complaints about the program—the Illinois-based drugmaker also takes a unique position that specifically relates to the formulation of its offering.”
    • “When the IRA was signed into law by former President Joseph Biden in 2022, the law made clear that only certain products are eligible to make the list of drugs that will go through negotiations to determine maximum fair prices paid under Medicare. The IRA specifically excludes “low-spend drugs,” or those with Medicare spending of less than $200 million, certain orphan rare disease drugs and plasma-derived products. 
    • “AbbVie is hedging its argument around the IRA’s “express statutory exclusions” for plasma-derived products, it said in its complaint, which was filed in a Washington D.C. District Court on Feb. 11 and names the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), CMS and their respective leaders, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Mehmet Oz, M.D.”

From the public health, medical and Rx research front,

  • Cardiovascular Business reports,
    • “Interest in lipoprotein(a), or Lp(a), is on the rise thanks to mounting evidence that the genetically inherited lipid particle may be a key missing link in unexplained heart attacks and strokes. While current treatments are limited, experts say that will likely change in the near future when new drugs begin to enter the market.
    • :Nathaniel Lebowitz, MD, who leads preventive cardiology at Hackensack University Medical Center and serves as an assistant professor of internal medicine at Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine, has spent two decades studying this biomarker. He is now part of the American Heart Association (AHA) Lp(a) Discovery Project, a national initiative aimed at expanding physician and patient awareness as new therapies move closer to market. Lebowitz spoke with Cardiovascular Business at length about this important topic.
    • “Lp(a) is a major, major killer. And most of the population, and even most doctors, don’t know the exact degree of how dangerous it really is,” he explained.
    • “Lebowitz noted that Lp(a) is often responsible when patients suffer cardiovascular events despite not showing any of the normal warning signs.
    • “When somebody who you wouldn’t expect to have a stroke or a heart attack has one and does not have traditional risk factors to speak of, check Lp(a), because it will be positive,” he said.
    • “Lp(a) is genetic and present in about 20% of the general population. Guidelines from the AHA, American College of Cardiology and National Lipid Association now emphasize screening in individuals with a family history of premature heart disease, as well as cascade screening of first-degree relatives when Lp(a) is identified. Levels typically do not fluctuate significantly, so testing once is believed to be generally sufficient.
    • “I consider it a risk elevator. It’s a risk multiplier,” Lebowitz said. “So if somebody is considered low risk for cardiovascular disease, but they have Lp(a) now, I would consider them intermediate risk. If they’re intermediate risk, but they have Lp(a), I would now consider them high risk and treatment should ensue accordingly.”
    • “Currently, there are no approved therapies specifically targeting Lp(a), but that may soon change. Several investigational agents are in late-stage clinical trials, including small interfering RNA (siRNA) therapies designed to silence the gene responsible for producing Lp(a).”
  • The New York Times provides a look at what alchohol does to your body.
    • “Dry January has come and gone, but Americans’ relationship with drinking is undergoing a more lasting change. According to one recent poll, just 54 percent of U.S. adults said they consume alcohol, the smallest percentage in nearly 90 years of data collection. That may be because more people are taking alcohol’s negative health consequences seriously.
    • “Drinking alcohol can have profound effects on the brain and body. In the moment, some of those effects can be pleasurable. But in the long term, especially when it’s consumed in large quantities, alcohol can cause serious health harms.”
  • and tells us,
    • “Fertility experts know that the more eggs retrieved from a woman, the better the chances that one of them will lead to a viable embryo that will result in the birth of a baby.
    • “Now, a new study suggests something startling, even to many in the field: the conventional method of searching for eggs often fails to find all of them, and a new technology that automates the process may significantly increase the number recovered.
    • Using the conventional method, embryologists use high-powered microscopes to search the follicular fluid extracted from women in fertility clinics. The fluid is then discarded. The study, published in Nature Medicine on Thursday, reported that a device that uses microfluidic technology to sift through follicular fluid found additional eggs for more than half of the patients.
    • “It’s very, very surprising,” said Dr. Mitchell Rosen, who directs the reproductive laboratories at the University of California, San Francisco and was not involved in the study. “They were finding eggs that we wouldn’t otherwise have had the potential to use.”
  • MedPage Today informs us,
    • “Receiving an mRNA SARS-CoV-2 vaccine during or shortly before pregnancy had no impact on kids’ neurodevelopmental outcomes, a multicenter prospective observational study found.
    • “Kids between ages 18 and 30 months scored similarly on the Ages & Stages Questionnaire, 3rd Edition (ASQ-3) (adjusted median difference -3.4, 95% CI -9.7 to 3.0) as well as in each of the five specific ASQ-3 domains, reported George Saade, MD, of Eastern Virginia Medical School in Norfolk, Virginia, during a presentation at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM) annual meeting.
    • “Scores on other neurodevelopment assessments that evaluated emotional and behavioral problems, risk for autism spectrum disorder, and temperament were also similar between groups.
    • “We conclude that the primary neurodevelopmental outcome was equivalent between children of mothers who received and did not receive mRNA SARS-CoV-2 vaccination during or immediately prior to pregnancy, and there was no association with secondary neurodevelopmental outcomes,” Saade said during his presentation.
    • “Our results provide reassurance regarding the safety of mRNA SARS-CoV-2 vaccination and pregnancy,” he added.
    • “Indeed, much research has found no link between COVID vaccination in pregnancy and adverse outcomes for children, including at least two studies showing no increase in birth defects.”
  • BioPharma Dive observes,
    • “An experimental medicine from BridgeBio Pharma, the San Francisco-area biotechnology company, has succeeded in a late-stage clinical trialas a treatment for the most common type of dwarfism, results which could tee up an approval and greater competition for two other closely watched therapies.
    • “The trial enrolled around 110 children with achondroplasia, who, over a main treatment period of a year, were given either a placebo or BridgeBio’s drug, called infigratinib. On Thursday, BridgeBio announced that those in the drug arm were growing taller faster. Depending on the measure, this “annualized height velocity” was, on average, between 1.74 and 2.1 centimeters greater per year than what researchers observed in the control group.
    • “Not only did infigratinib meet the trial’s central goal, it also scored so well on a couple other height and growth tests that BridgeBio said it set records for a randomized study of achondroplasia patients. The drug was well tolerated, too, as no serious adverse events were tied to it. No one dropped out of the trial because of side effects either. BridgeBio did disclose three cases of patients having abnormally high levels of phosphate in their blood, but all were mild, transient, asymptomatic, and didn’t require the dose given to be changed or stopped.”
  • Beckers Hospital Review notes,
    • “The number of active drug shortages has declined sharply since June, according to the FDA’s drug shortage database.
    • “Eighty drugs were in shortage as of Feb. 12, down from 194 in mid-June.
    • “The decline reflects updates to the FDA’s database, which is modified daily to reflect manufacturing recoveries, regulatory actions and how shortages are classified — not solely day-to-day availability at the hospital level.”
    • The article also points out “12 recent drug shortages, according to the FDA database.”

From the U.S. healthcare business front,

  • Per an Institute of Clinical and Economic Review news release,
    • “Institute for Clinical and Economic Review Publishes Final Evidence Report on Medication for Smoking Cessation
    • “Independent appraisal committee votes reflect a net health benefit for cytisinicline alone, but uncertainty when compared to varenicline; Manufacturer setting a price for cytisinicline to align with value would help ensure public health goals for smoking cessation are met.”
    • Downloads: Final Evidence Report | Report-at-a-Glance | Policy Recommendations 
  • Beckers Payer Issues reports,
    • “Most of the country’s largest insurers reported year-over-year increases in medical cost ratios in 2025.
    • “Centene reported the highest medical loss ratio at 91.9%, driven by higher marketplace medical costs, Medicaid cost pressures in behavioral health and home health, and program changes in the Medicare prescription drug plan business.”
    • The article provides the largest insurers MLRs for 2023, 2025 and 2025.
  • Healthcare Dive relates,
    • “Hospital operator Tenet Healthcare expects the expiration of more generous Affordable Care Act subsidies to lower its earnings growth this year by about $250 million.
    • “Still, Tenet’s expected loss is smaller than those of some of its peers, including HCA Healthcare, which last month said it expects to lose up to $900 million from the lapse of the enhanced tax credits in 2026.
    • “Excluding the ACA headwind and the impact of some Medicaid state supplemental payments, Tenet anticipates it will grow adjusted earnings before taxes and other non-operating expenses by about 10% this year compared to 2025, executives said on a Wednesday call with investors.”
  • BioPharma Dive tells us,
    • “Sanofi on Thursday announced the ouster of CEO Paul Hudson after a six-year tenure that included a major transformation of the French drugmaker and the rise of Dupixent into one of the world’s best-selling medicines.
    • “Hudson will be replaced by current Merck KGaA CEO Belén Garijo, who is leaving her post at the German company at the end of April as part of a planned transition. Olivier Charmeil, executive vice president for general medicines, will serve as interim CEO after Hudson’s departure at the close of business on Feb. 17, Sanofi said.
    • “Belén Garijo will bring an increased rigor to the implementation of Sanofi’s strategy and accelerate the preparation of the group’s future,” Sanofi said. “Her priority will be to strengthen the productivity, governance and innovation capacity of research & development.”
  • Fierce Healthcare informs us,
    • “Maven Clinic, a virtual women’s and family health provider, is teaming up with health tech company Color Health to support family building after a cancer diagnosis. 
    • “The partnership’s goal is to expand access to oncofertility care, helping patients of childbearing age going through the cancer journey to understand and preserve their fertility options. Members will receive access to oncologists, dietitians, mental health providers, fertility preservation specialists and care advocates. The services will be available to cancer patients through employers and payers to start. 
    • “Both of us have seen the attention being paid by employers to what it really looks like for their team members going through a cancer diagnosis, because it’s happening at such a rapid clip now,” Caroline Savello, president at Color, told Fierce Healthcare. A quarter of Color patients are between the ages of 18 and 45.”
  • and
    • “Specialty care company Lantern revealed it will expand its cancer care navigation platform through a new partnership with AccessHope.
    • “Through the partnership, Lantern’s platform will now include expert review at each point in a patient’s care journey, preventing misdiagnoses and ensuring treatments meet clinical guidelines. Reviews will be conducted by experts at National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated cancer centers, according to the announcement.
    • “Lantern said the reviews will be available for both adult and pediatric cancers as well as solid tumors and blood-based disease.
    • “Dickon Waterfield, president of Lantern, told Fierce Healthcare that the “beauty of this partnership” lies in the ability to allow people to seek care in their local communities while also providing them supports at the standard of an NCI-designated facility.”

Midweek report

David Ermer–CDC, Congress, FDA, Federal employment benefits, Medical / Rx research, Mental health care, Telehealth, U.S. Healthcare–

From Washington, DC,

  • Roll Call reports,
    • “Republicans and Democrats sparred Wednesday on the potential real-world harms of a partial shutdown for the Department of Homeland Security, as Congress marched toward a funding deadline for the agency amid a dispute over immigration enforcement policies.
    • “The House Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee held a hearing with officials from five national security and emergency management agencies to highlight what would happen if a continuing resolution expires Saturday without further action from Congress.”
  • and
    • “Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle on Wednesday came down hard on various sectors of the U.S. prescription drug supply chain during a hearing to shed light on the reasons for rising costs. 
    • “At a House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee hearing, Rep. Brett Guthrie, R-Ky., touted changes in the fiscal 2026 spending package enacted this month to improve pharmacy-benefit manager pricing transparency and reduce incentives for PBMs to promote higher-priced drugs to Medicare Part D beneficiaries.
    • “But Guthrie stressed that further changes could be forthcoming.
    • “Historic PBM reform is just the beginning,” said Guthrie, who chairs the full Energy and Commerce panel. “More needs to be done throughout the drug supply chain to improve affordability.”
    • “Rep. Morgan Griffith, R-Va., chair of the Health Subcommittee, said after the hearing that he hopes to mark up affordability legislation before Memorial Day, but acknowledged the appetite for bipartisan cooperation will be “tough” given the political climate.” 
  • Beckers Payer Issues adds,
    • “Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Josh Hawley, R-Mo., have introduced legislation that would ban health insurers and pharmacy benefit managers from owning medical providers, and would force companies in violation to divest within one year of the bill’s enactment.
    • :The “Break Up Big Medicine Act” would also prohibit a parent company of a prescription drug or medical device wholesaler from owning a medical provider or management services organization.”
  • The American Hospital Association tells us,
    • “The Senate Special Committee on Aging held a hearing Feb. 11 on issues impacting physician burnout. The AHA provided a statement for the hearing and urged Congress to pass legislation to address burnout, including the Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act (H.R. 3514/S. 1816), legislation that would streamline prior authorization requirements under Medicare Advantage plans by making them simpler and more uniform, and the Save Healthcare Workers Act (H.R. 3178/S. 1600), a bill that would make it a federal crime to assault a hospital employee. The AHA also urged Congress to pass the Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act of 2025 (H.R. 3890/S. 2439), which would add 14,000 Medicare-funded residency positions over seven years.”
  • Per OPM news releases,
    • [On February 10, 2026], the US Office of Personnel Management (OPM) convened senior administration officials, federal agency leaders, and industry executives at the White House for a US Tech Force (Tech Force) roundtable focused on strengthening the federal government’s technology workforce and accelerating innovation across agencies.
  • and
    • “US Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Director Scott Kupor appeared on Fox Business to discuss the administration’s launch of the U.S. Tech Force, a new initiative aimed at strengthening the federal workforce with top technical talent and modernizing critical government systems.” You can watch the Director’s appearance here.
  • Govexec discusses the tax implications of making Roth IRA conversions in the Thrift Savings Plan.
    • “Beginning Jan. 28, the Thrift Savings Plan now allows participants to convert traditional (pre-tax) balances into Roth (after-tax) balances inside the TSP itself. This long-awaited change gives federal employees and retirees more flexibility over how and when they pay taxes on retirement savings.
    • “While the mechanics of the change are straightforward, the implications are not. A Roth in-plan conversion is a tax event and not just a retirement planning decision. Once it is made, it cannot be reversed. Knowing this beforehand helps you choose effective planning tools and avoid costly errors.”
  • Per an HHS news release,
    • “Today, HHS, through the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy/Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ASTP/ONC), announced progress made in executing on President Trump’s, Secretary Kennedy’s, and Deputy Secretary O’Neill’s directive to lower the cost of healthcare for all Americans by leveraging and coordinating the nation’s strategic advantages in technology, artificial intelligence (AI), and healthcare infrastructure.” * * *
    • “Today, HHS, through the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy/Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ASTP/ONC), announced progress made in executing on President Trump’s, Secretary Kennedy’s, and Deputy Secretary O’Neill’s directive to lower the cost of healthcare for all Americans by leveraging and coordinating the nation’s strategic advantages in technology, artificial intelligence (AI), and healthcare infrastructure.” * * *
    • “ASTP/ONC released the draft USCDI v7 on January 29, 2026, proposing 29 new data elements and one significantly revised element to strengthen nationwide interoperability. Draft USCDI v7 expands standardized health data to support more efficient adverse event reporting, nutrition information exchange, and quality improvement, ultimately modernizing how health information is used across the entire health care system to Make America Healthy Again.”
    • “In the coming days, ASTP/ONC will launch the EHIgnite Challenge, a two-phase prize competition to improve the usability, readability, and actionability of single-patient electronic health information (EHI) exports. The EHIgnite Challenge will catalyze the development of tools and workflows, focused on the application of AI, that transform raw EHI into clear, usable information to better support care transitions, provider onboarding, and patient understanding and engagement. Awards will support both concept development and prototype solutions through 2027.”

From the Food and Drug Administration front,

  • Fierce Pharma reports,
    • “For all its success across a wide range of cancer types, Merck’s PD-1 superstar Keytruda has never been able to crack the code for one of the toughest-to-treat indications in oncology—ovarian cancer.
    • “But now, 13 years after the FDA initially blessed it for skin cancer, the U.S. regulator has approved Keytruda as a second- or third-line treatment for patients with a certain type of ovarian cancer.
    • “With the green light, Keytruda becomes the first immune checkpoint inhibitor approved for this indication. 
    • “Keytruda is to be used in combination with the chemotherapy paclitaxel and with or without Roche’s targeted cancer therapy Avastin. The endorsement covers those with platinum-resistant recurrent ovarian, fallopian tube or primary peritoneal carcinoma with PD-L1-positive tumors. 
    • “The nod also covers infused Keytruda and its subcutaneous version, Keytruda Qlex, which the FDA blessed five months ago.” 

From the public health and medical / Rx resarch front,

  • STAT News reports,
    • “Food fights pitting low-carbohydrate diets against low-fat diets are off the mark when they aim at heart health, a large new study suggests. To reduce heart disease risk, it’s the quality, not the quantity, of those carbs or fats that matter. Diets high in plant-based foods, whole grains, and unsaturated fats led to better heart health, the researchers found. Low-fat dairy also got a nod when part of a diet featuring whole grains, vegetables, and fruits.
    • “Not all carbs are created alike; nor are all fats. Whole grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes, and olive oil are associated with lower risk of coronary heart disease (CHD), whether they contain carbohydrates or fats. But diets high in refined carbohydrates and animal proteins and fats were associated with a higher risk of heart disease, according to the new study, published Wednesday in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.” 
  • MedPage Today relates,
    • “The CDC excludes homicide, suicide, and overdose in defining “maternal mortality,” instead focusing on more medical causes.
    • “An analysis of 2018-2023 data showed that drug overdoses, homicides, and suicides accounted for more than a quarter of all deaths among pregnant and postpartum women.
    • “Violence and overdose accounted for 2,018 deaths, while cardiovascular causes, hypertension, infection, and hemorrhage together accounted for 2,141 deaths [over the period 2018-2023].” * * *
    • “Maeve Wallace, PhD, MPH, of the Mel & Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health at the University of Arizona in Tucson, told MedPage Today that the results were not surprising.
    • “Research dating back decades finds that rates of violent death exceed obstetrical causes of death for pregnant women,” Wallace said. “What is disheartening is that this continues to be the case.”
    • “This analysis “can help policymakers concerned with maternal health understand pregnancy as a dangerous condition,” and can encourage policy-level solutions to promote women and girls’ health and safety, she added.”
  • and
    • “A meta-meta-analysis of randomized trials showed exercise reduced depression and anxiety symptoms.
    • “Group aerobic exercise appeared to be most effective for depression, while exercise of shorter duration and lower intensity was most associated with reductions in anxiety symptoms.
    • “The researchers concluded that tailored exercise programs are an “accessible and cost-effective” treatment option for depression and anxiety.”
  • Healio informs us,
    • “Statin use had a statistically significant protective effect against acute asthma exacerbations in mild asthma among Black adults and adults with obesity, according to data published in Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. 
    • “The pleiotropic effects of statins may extend beyond cholesterol control due to their anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory properties, prompting interest in their potential use for chronic airway diseases, William Crawford, MD, physician with the department of allergy, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, and colleagues wrote.
    • “But mixed results in prior research including beneficial and null effects in asthma outcomes indicate that determining the patient subgroups that may benefit most from treatment is vital in determining the role that statins may have in asthma management.” 
  • The American Journal of Managed Care observes,
    • “More than half of patients with long-term conditions (LTCs) surveyed said they preferred a remote consult vs an in-person visit with their referring physician, particularly for discussion of results and medication renewal, according to a new study
       published in JAMA Network Open.”

From the U.S. healthcare business front,

  • The Wall Street Journal reports,
    • “The U.S. economy added 130,000 jobs in January, its strongest growth in over a year, and a sign that the labor market may be shaking off its recent stagnation.
    • “January’s robust gains surprised forecasters, blowing far past consensus expectations, while solidifying expectations the Federal Reserve will keep rates on hold for the foreseeable future. The unemployment rate dipped to 4.3% from 4.4% in December, the Labor Department said Wednesday. And workers’ wages rose.
    • “The gains were highly concentrated in healthcare and social-assistance fields, which includes jobs like home health aides and residential care workers. Such jobs tend to grow regardless of the economy’s health and have long been an engine of U.S. job growth.”
  • Fierce Healthcare relates,
    • “Humana CEO Jim Rechtin acknowledged the noise around the latest Medicare Advantage rate notice and said that while the flat proposal is a concern, the company will continue to push forward on its performance improvements.
    • “He said that part of the challenge for policymakers, regardless of political alignment, is managing the program as it “sits at the intersection of U.S. fiscal pressures and a program that is incredibly popular with seniors.”
    • “Every administration wrestles with how to balance these two forces,” Rechtin said.
    • “We are committed to always protecting our consumers the best we can, and we are very aware that we must do that within the constraints of the annual funding environment,” he continued. “If that funding environment cannot fully support our benefit structure, then we will adapt as we have in the past.” * * *
    • “Humana reported a $796 million loss in the fourth quarter of 2025, with its losses growing year over year as increased utilization continues to drag Medicare Advantage (MA) plans.
    • “By comparison, Humana reported a $693 billion loss in the fourth quarter of 2024. The company did post a profit for the full year of $1.2 billion, flat from the company’s $1.2 billion haul in 2024.”
  • and
    • “Hinge Health’s shares were up 13% in after-hours trading Tuesday after the digital health company reported a strong fourth quarter and a bright outlook for 2026.
    • “The digital musculoskeletal (MSK) care provider, which went public in late May, brought in fourth-quarter revenue of $171 million, up 46% from the same period a year ago and easily topping Wall Street analyst estimate of $155 million for fourth-quarter revenue. The company posted fourth-quarter adjusted earnings of 49 cents per share, significantly exceeding analyst estimates of 14 cents per share. Hinge Health’s non-GAAP income from operations increased 124% to $48 million during quarter.
    • “Free cash flow for the quarter was $61.5 million, representing a free cash flow margin of 36%.
    • “The company’s full-year 2025 revenue jumped 51% year over year to reach $588 million compared to revenue of $390 revenue in 2024, according to its fourth-quarter and full-year financial results.” 
  • KFF lets us know,
    • “National spending on health has increased rapidly over time—rising to $5.3 trillion and 18% of GDP in 2024—and is projected to continue to do so into the future. Growth in health spending contributes to higher costs for families, employers, Medicare, Medicaid, and other payers. In 2025, average annual premiums for employer-sponsored family coverage reached $26,993, with workers paying $6,850 for their coverage, according to KFF’s annual survey of employers.  Hospital care accounted for nearly one-third of national health expenditures in 2024, and more than doubled in nominal terms over the preceding two decades, making hospitals a major driver of health spending growth over time.” * * *
    • “National health expenditures increased by $692 billion between 2022 and 2024, from $4.6 trillion to $5.3 trillion. During this period, spending on hospital care alone accounted for $277 billion of spending growth, or 40% of the total increase in national health spending (Figure 1). The large contribution of hospital care to overall health spending growth reflects the fact that hospital spending accounted for nearly a third of national health expenditures in 2022 (30%) and grew more quickly than national health expenditures overall in both 2023 (10.6% versus 7.4%) and 2024 (8.9% versus 7.2%).”
    • FEHBlog note — Hospitals and health systems are not included in the Break Up Big Medicine bill discussed above.
  • Beckers Hospital Review tells us,
    • “Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare reported $21.3 billion in revenue in 2025, up from $20.7 billion in 2024, as the system posted strong fourth-quarter results and outlined a positive outlook for 2026. For the fourth quarter, Tenet reported net operating revenue of $5.5 billion, compared to $5.1 billion during the same period in 2024.
    • “2025 extended Tenet’s track record of strong revenue growth, disciplined operations, improved margins and robust free cash flow generation,” Tenet Chair and CEO Saum Sutaria, MD, said in a Feb. 11 news release. “We see continued demand for acute care and ambulatory surgical services in our markets and are confident in our ability to execute on our strategy and achieve our full-year 2026 expectations.”
  • and
    • “There are 417 rural hospitals that are vulnerable to closure, according to a Feb. 10 report from Chartis, a healthcare advisory services firm. 
    • “Chartis’ Rural Hospital Vulnerability Index assesses more than a dozen indicators to identify which are statistically significant for determining the likelihood of closure.
    • “The number of overall rural hospitals vulnerable is down from 432 last year, but Chartis said there are “notable shifts at the state level.” In Tennessee, the percentage of vulnerable hospitals increased from 44% to 61%. In South Dakota, the percentage increased from 28% to 42%. Mississippi, which Chartis said has long been a “weak spot in the rural health safety net,” saw an improvement from 49% to 42%. Kansas also saw an improvement from 47% to 44%. 
    • “”Chartis’ analysis found that 17 states have 10 or more rural hospitals vulnerable to closure this year. Texas has the most with 50, followed by Kansas (44), Tennessee (27), Georgia (25), and Mississippi (24). These states are receiving a combined $1.1 billion in the first round of CMS’ Rural Health Transformation Fund initiative.”  
  • BioPharma Dive informs us,
    • “Shares of Gilead Sciences slid after the stock market closed Tuesday in spite of a fresh earnings report in which the company’s top products beat Wall Street forecasts.
    • “Gilead recorded $7.9 billion in product sales over the final three months of 2025, a 5% increase from the same period a year prior. Brian Abrahams, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets, called it a “strong commercial quarter” with “major beats” in Gilead’s HIV business, which was up 6% year-over-year.
    • “Biktarvy, a three-in-one pill for HIV treatment, and Descovy, a daily tablet often used to stave off infections from the virus, respectively brought in $4 billion and $819 million during the quarter. That’s higher than the roughly $3.84 billion and $720 million the average analyst had penciled in, according to Abrahams.”
  • MedTech Dive notes,
    • “Edwards said study data supporting earlier use of its Sapien heart valves to treat patients who have severe aortic stenosis without symptoms is changing clinical practice and helping to accelerate sales of the devices.
    • “The company on Tuesday posted a second consecutive quarter of double-digit sales growth in its transcatheter aortic valve replacement business.
    • “CEO Bernard Zovighian said momentum is coming from long-term data presented last fall confirming the durability of the Sapien valves and the “practice-changing” EARLY TAVR trial results that showed asymptomatic patients who had the procedure fared better than those who remained under clinical surveillance alone. Edwards is the only TAVR system with asymptomatic approval.”

Thursday report

David Ermer–Congress, FDA, Federal employment benefits, Generative AI, Medical / Rx research, OPM, Rx coverage, U.S. Healthcare–

From Washington, DC

  • Govexec reports,
    • “The House Oversight and Reform Committee on Wednesday unanimously advanced legislation aimed at updating the federal government’s buyout programs to encourage employees to leave.
    • “Voluntary Separation Incentive Payments are one of the government’s main tools for reducing agency headcounts, alongside Voluntary Early Retirement Authority and reductions in force. But VSIP offerings max out at $25,000, where the cap has sat since the 1990s.
    • “The Federal Workforce Early Separation Incentives Act (H.R. 7256), introduced by Rep. Nick Langworthy, R-N.Y., would remove the $25,000 hard cap on VSIP payments and replace it with a maximum of six months of a federal worker’s salary, subject to agency head approval. The new model is based off how federal agencies already calculate severance pay for laid-off feds.
    • ‘Langworthy said an update to the federal government’s buyout program was long-overdue, and that the changes will allow agencies to move more agilely—and humanely—in workforce planning.”
  • The Wall Street Journal relates,
    • “The Trump administration is planning to make it easier to discipline—and potentially fire—career officials in senior positions across the government, a move that would affect roughly 50,000 federal workers. 
    • “The U.S. Office of Personnel Management, which oversees the federal workforce, issued a final rule on Thursday that creates a category of worker for high-ranking career employees whose work focuses on executing the administration’s policies. Workers who fall into that category would no longer be subject to rules that for decades have set a high bar for firing federal employees.
    • “While political appointees at agencies are considered at-will employees who serve at the discretion of the president, career employees have long enjoyed strong job protections, including the ability to appeal firings, suspensions, or disciplinary action to an independent board. Workers that fall under the new category wouldn’t be able to appeal to the board.”
  • An OPM news release adds,
    • “The final rule was published for public inspection in the Federal Register on February 5, 2026, and will take effect 30 days after publication. Following the rule’s effective date, specific positions may be placed in Schedule Policy/Career by presidential executive order. Read Director Kupor’s blog post on the rule here.”
  • Tammy Flanagan, writing in Govexec, points out “the federal leave options employees can use when annual and sick time run out.”
    • “From unpaid leave to parental and military leave, federal workers have multiple options for time off under specific circumstances.”
  • STAT News informs us,
    • “President Trump on Thursday night is planning to announce the launch of TrumpRx, the website that he and his aides have touted for months as a platform aimed at lowering prescription drug prices. 
    • “The website, which uses technology from health care company GoodRx, is expected to display the cash prices — that is, the prices available when paying without insurance — for certain drugs and direct patients to other sites where they can buy the therapies. It’s part of Trump’s plan to lower drug prices in the U.S., but some experts are skeptical the platform will meaningfully affect affordability.” * * *
    • “TrumpRx will not sell medications. It is expected to be a searchable website that links to other sites through which patients can directly buy brand drugs. That might be a drug company’s own website, such as Eli Lilly’s LillyDirect or Novo Nordisk’s NovoCare Pharmacy, or an online pharmacy that partners with a drugmaker, such as Amazon Pharmacy and Truepill.”
  • The American Hospital Association News notes,
    • “The Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy/Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology announced the selection of nine pilots as part of the Behavioral Health Information Technology Initiative to help improve behavioral health data exchange across care settings. The BHIT Initiative is a $20 million effort led by ASTP/ONC in coordination with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to support standard data elements and foster data exchange. The pilots, which will be completed by the end of this year, will be used to inform future standards, technical specifications, guidance and policy considerations. The pilots span across 45 exchange partners and eight states and Washington, D.C. The states are Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Oregon and Rhode Island.”
  • Healthcare Dive calls our attention to the fact
    • “More than one-fourth of doctors enrolled in Medicaid didn’t actually deliver care to any Medicaid beneficiaries in 2021, according to new research adding to worries about low physician participation in the safety-net insurance program.
    • “Almost 28% of doctors enrolled in Medicaid were “ghost providers” and didn’t treat a single patient that year, the study published in Health Affairs on Monday found. Another 10% treated fewer than 10 patients, while the remaining 62.2% were standard or “core” providers treating the brunt of Medicaid enrollees.
    • “Participation varied widely by specialty, with psychiatrists most likely to be ghost providers and primary care physicians and cardiologists least likely to be ghost providers, the study found.”

From the Food and Drug Administration front,

  • STAT News reports,
    • “The nation’s top drug regulator said he wants to do away with pharmaceutical ads that employ “dancing patients, glowing smiles, and catchy jingles that drown out the fine print.” On Super Bowl Sunday, the drug industry will treat him to lounging football stars, a shouting DJ Khaled, and the soothing tones of Enya.
    • “Sunday’s game, the annual zenith of American advertising, is the first since Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary began a self-described “crackdown” on drug marketing last year. And, based on the ads released in advance, little has changed in the eyes of the industry.” 
  • Per an FDA news release,
    • “Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration took additional steps to support the transition of our nation’s food supply from the use of artificial petroleum-based colors to alternatives derived from natural sources. Companies will now have flexibility to claim products contain ‘no artificial colors’ when the products do not contain petroleum-based colors. In the past, companies were generally only able to make such claims when their products had no added color whatsoever — whether derived from natural sources or otherwise.
    • “The agency sent a letter to industry providing notice of the FDA’s intent to exercise enforcement discretion related to these voluntary labeling claims.”

From the public health and medical / Rx research front,

  • The AP reports,
    • “Chronic exposure to pollution from wildfires has been linked to tens of thousands of deaths annually in the United States, according to a new study. 
    • “The paper, published Wednesday in the journal Science Advances, found that from 2006 to 2020, long-term exposure to tiny particulates from wildfire smoke contributed to an average of 24,100 deaths a year in the lower 48 states.
    • “Our message is: Wildfire smoke is very dangerous. It is an increasing threat to human health,” said Yaguang Wei, a study author and assistant professor in the department of environmental medicine at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. 
    • “Other scientists who have studied the death toll from wildfire smoke were not surprised by the findings. 
    • “The estimates they’re coming up with are reasonable,” said Michael Jerrett, professor of environmental health science at the University of California, Los Angeles who was not involved in the study. “We need more of them. It’s only if we’re doing multiple studies with many different designs that we gain scientific confidence of our outcomes.”
  • Bloomberg Law tells us,
    • “Chris Womack is one of a dwindling number of Texas ranchers who can remember fighting the New World screwworm, a once-vanquished pest threatening to make an unwanted encore in the US after its recent return to northern Mexico. 
    • “You never forget the smell,” Womack, 60, said of his first encounter with a calf being devoured by screwworm maggots. It was one of many he and his father would treat in the early 1970s as an outbreak of the parasite — which can kill cattle in less than two weeks — devastated Texas ranchers.
    • “More than 50 years later, Womack and other Texas cattlemen are bracing for the screwworm’s potential comeback. Cases are proliferating in a Mexican state that borders Texas, with the pest having escaped containment by an international eradication program that banished it for decades. Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued a disaster declaration last week to open up state resources for the screwworm response.
    • “The pest’s resurgence would squeeze the $130 billion US cattle industry, which is already struggling with a record-low herd and rising costs. The screwworm prompted the US to ban cattle imports from Mexico for much of the last 14 months, crimping American beef producers at a time when record prices for the meat are adding to the pressure on shoppers angry about the cost of food.”
  • MedPage Today lets us know,
    • “New research challenged the longstanding belief that autism is much more common in males versus females.
    • “In a Swedish study of 2.7 million people, male-to-female ratios in autism diagnoses were nearly equal by age 20.
    • “Diagnosis rates peaked earlier for males, but females experienced a significant catch-up in adolescence.”
  • Genetic Engineering and BioTechnology News relates,
    • “Some types of CD8+ T cells (killer T cells) may play a role in the development of multiple sclerosis (MS). This is according to data from a new study published in Nature Immunology. Specifically, scientists found specific T cells that are abundant in people with MS, which also target the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). They suggest that this points to a possible role for the virus in triggering the immune response seen in the autoimmune disease.   
    • “Full details are published in a paper titled “Antigen specificity of clonally enriched CD8+ T cells in multiple sclerosis.” For Joe Sabatino, MD, PhD, senior author on the study and an assistant professor of neurology at University of California, San Francisco’s Weill Institute for Neurosciences, “these understudied CD8+ T cells [connect] a lot of different dots.” That is because scientists have known for several years that EBV, a common virus carried by about 95 percent of adults, is present in virtually everyone who develops MS. This data “gives us a new window on how EBV is likely contributing to this disease,” he said.” 
  • Per BioPharma Dive,
    • “Bayer’s experimental blood thinner asundexian cut the relative likelihood of a repeat stroke by 26% without increasing the risk of internal bleeding, the company said Thursday, boosting hopes that the company might become a new option for “secondary treatment” of the disorder.
    • “The news could also elevate the outlook for medicines like asundexian, which are called Factor XIa inhibitors and are being advanced by a handful of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies.
    • “Members of that drug class, including asundexian and a similar therapy from Bristol Myers Squibb and Johnson & Johnson, have previously suffered clinical setbacks in different types of cardiovascular illnesses. But asundexian’s success, first announced in November, lifted Bayer shares and indicated the drugs might be able to fulfill at least some of their commercial potential.
    • “The German drugmaker released full data from its positive study, “Oceanic-Stroke,” at the International Stroke Conference in New Orleans on Thursday.” 
  • Per the AP,
    • “A new kind of pill sharply reduced artery-clogging cholesterol in people who remain at high risk of heart attacks despite taking statins, researchers reported Wednesday.
    • “It’s still experimental but the pill helps rid the body of cholesterol in a way that today can be done only with injected medicines. If approved by the Food and Drug Administration, the pill, named enlicitide, could offer an easier-to-use option for millions of people.
    • “Statins block some of the liver’s production of cholesterol and are the cornerstone of treatment. But even taking the highest doses, many people need additional help lowering their LDL, or “bad,” cholesterol enough to meet medical guidelines.
    • “In a major study, more than 2,900 high-risk patients were randomly assigned to add a daily enlicitide pill or a dummy drug to their standard treatment. The enlicitide users saw their LDL cholesterol drop by as much as 60% over six months, researchers reported in the New England Journal of Medicine.”

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

  • Healthcare Dive reports,
    • “Cigna posted fourth quarter 2025 results Thursday morning that outperformed analysts’ consensus expectations, with adjusted revenue of $72.5 billion up more than 10% and adjusted operational income of $2.1 billion up 16%.
    • “Cigna Healthcare, the company’s insurance division, saw its revenue drop 16% in the quarter due to the sale of its Medicare Advantage business to Health Care Service Corporation. Cigna Healthcare’s operational income rose 44% year over year, however, after the company jacked up premiums for its stop-loss products after seeing those costs spike in the fourth quarter of 2024.
    • “But the lion’s share of attention on Thursday morning’s call was devoted to Express Scripts, and how the FTC settlement might impact the massive PBM’s profits.
    • “Short answer? It won’t, executives said.”
  • BioPharma Dive relates
    • “Hims & Hers Health is launching a copycat form of Novo Nordisk’s newly launched obesity pill, ushering in the latest contentious battle between the makers of branded weight loss medications and their drug-compounding counterparts. 
    • “Hims said Thursday that it’s now enabling healthcare providers to prescribe a compounded pill with the same active ingredient, semaglutide, as Novo Nordisk’s oral Wegovy. That treatment will be sold as part of treatment plans that begin at $49 for the first month — $100 lower than the price Novo is charging under a deal with the Trump administration. Hims also claimed that its treatment is formulated differently and involves a different delivery method to protect the active ingredient during digestion. 
    • “In a statement issued in response to Hims’ announcement, Novo spokesperson Ambre James-Brown called Hims’ move “illegal mass compounding and deceptive advertising” and threatened litigation. The compounder is “unlawfully” mass-marketing an “unapproved, inauthentic, and untested knockoff” of Novo’s medication, she said.” 
  • Modern Healthcare tells us,
    • “Adtalem Global Education has become Covista, the Chicago-based education company said, with a plan to expand its healthcare career network.
    • “Covista serves nearly 100,000 students and has a community of 385,000 alumni across its five accredited institutions.
    • “Covista touts it puts 24,000 new professionals annually into the healthcare workforce — more than any other U.S. institution — including 10% of America’s new nurses.”
  • Beckers Payer Issues lets us know,
    • “Participating Medicare Part D plans can officially begin covering weight-loss treatment in 2027. 
    • “The initiative falls under CMS’ voluntary “Better Approaches to Lifestyle and Nutrition for Comprehensive hEalth” — or BALANCE — model. The December news followed President Trump’s negotiations with Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk to secure most-favored-nation pricing for drugs that treat obesity, diabetes and related conditions.
    • “To better understand Medicare usage and spending shifts, KFF analyzed CMS data from 2019 through 2024 [as discussed in the article].
  • and
    • “Here are 12 payer tools that achieved “Best in KLAS” recognition for 2026:
      • “Care management solutions: Cognizant (TriZetto CareAdvance Enterprise) 
      • “Claims & administration platforms: Cognizant (TriZetto Core Claims/Administration Solutions)
      • “CMS payer interoperability: Edifecs (XEngine Server for FHIR)
      • “Data analytics platforms: Innovaccer (Healthcare Data Platform)
      • “Payer/provider data exchange: Moxe (Digital ROI)
      • “Post-payment accuracy & integrity solutions: Trend Health Partners (TRENDConnect) 
      • “Pre-payment accuracy & integrity solutions: HealthEdge (Source)
      • ‘Quality measurement & reporting: Inovalon (Converged Quality) 
      • “Risk adjustment (coding, retrieval & compliance solutions): Datavant (Risk Adjustment Suite)
      • “Risk adjustment (POC & in-home health assessments): Cozeva (PayerOne Risk)
      • “IT consulting services: Huron
      • “Employer-sponsored healthcare services: Premise Health
    • “The full report is accessible from KLAS Research here.“
  • Per Beckers Hospital Review,
    • “Chicago-based CommonSpirit Health now has 242 artificial intelligence applications live across its hospitals, up from 230 last year.
    • “We are expanding our use of AI across CommonSpirit by deploying new capabilities and scaling the most impactful of our existing tools,” CIO Daniel Barchi told Becker’s.
    • “In 2025, the health system generated more than $100 million in annual savings through its use of AI and robotic process automation tools across multiple areas of the organization. Mr. Barchi said the value generated in fiscal year 2026 is expected to exceed last year’s total.
    • “More important than the financial impact is the expanded clinical and operational value we are seeing from these tools — value that is not measured only in dollars,” he said. “Our sepsis surveillance tool has contributed to continued reductions in sepsis-related mortality. Screening tools for colon and breast cancer are helping us identify high-risk patients, leading to thousands of additional screenings. AI tools for imaging are reducing scan times by up to 50%, supporting a better experience for patients and providers.”
    • “As CommonSpirit expands its AI footprint, Mr. Barchi said the health system has also declined or scaled back AI tools that failed to deliver expected value.”

Tuesday report

David Ermer–Congress, Federal employment benefits, Generative AI, Medical / Rx research, Mental health care, NCQA, Patient safety, SCOTUS, Uncategorized–

From Washington, DC,

  • Federal News Network reports,
    • “The House [of Representatives] passed a spending package to end a short-term partial government shutdown and fund most federal agencies through the end of the fiscal year.
    • “The spending deal, which includes a two-week continuing resolution for the Department of Homeland Security, was passed by the Senate last Friday.
    • “President Donald Trump signed the spending package into law on Tuesday afternoon.” * * *
    • “The spending package includes language guaranteeing back pay to federal employees who were briefly furloughed during the partial shutdown.” * * *
    • “After Trump signed the spending plan into law, OPM directed furloughed employees to return to work.”
  • The Wall Street Journal notes,
    • Twenty-one Republicans voted against the package [on the final vote [217-214] for passage], largely hard-liners who wanted to use the spending package as a vehicle to tighten election procedures. Twenty-one Democrats—mostly a collection of appropriations-committee members and centrists—voted for it.
  • Fierce Healthcare adds,
    • “The legislation finalizes several key healthcare extenders including provisions of the Medicare telehealth program and Acute Hospital Care at Home waiver as well as major supplementary funding programs for rural hospitals and those with high proportions of government-covered patients. The bill provides a five-year extension of the Acute Hospital Care at Home program and a two-year extension for Medicare telehealth flexibilities. The telehealth provisions in the bill include removing Medicare’s geographic requirements for telehealth and expanding the types of practitioners able to furnish telehealth services for the government health program.
    • “The bill also introduces reforms to pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) practices, including elements that would prevent PBMs from tying compensation in Part D to the list price of drugs, and boost price transparency for employers in their PBM contracts.
    • “Other provisions in the bill require that Medicare Advantage plans provide accurate provider lists, addressing so-called “ghost networks” that have come under fire in recent years. It would also require that health systems establish unique identification numbers for outpatient services, allowing the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to track pricing in these facilities.”
  • Rep. Jodey Arrington (R TX), the chairman of the House Budget Committes, writing in Real Clear Health, shares his vision of a second reconciliation bill that would focus on healthcare.
  • The HHS Office of Inspector General posted “Medicare Advantage Industry Segment-Specific Compliance Program Guidance.”
  • Per an AHIP news release,
    • “Public and private payers are delivering greater value to Americans and the health care system by advancing value-based care (VBC). AHIP, in collaboration with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), today released the results of the 2025 Alternative Payment Model (APM) Adoption Survey. The findings reaffirm the commitment of the federal government and private health plans to advance VBC and APM models that shift away from fee-for-service (FFS) models toward payment arrangements that reward quality, efficiency and improved patient outcomes.
    • “This year’s survey highlights how health plans continue to work hand-in-hand with providers to advance value-based care and drive meaningful improvement for patients. These innovative payment models reward outcomes, resulting in patient-centered, high-quality, coordinated care that is more affordable for Americans,” said Danielle Lloyd, MPH, AHIP’s senior vice president of private market innovations and quality initiatives for Clinical Affairs.” * * *
    • To view the full 2025 survey findings, click here.
  • NCQA announced today,
    • “Every year, NCQA seeks public comment about proposed changes to HEDIS Volume 2.
    • “Public comment is your opportunity to weigh in on the relevance, scientific soundness and feasibility of new and revised measures for HEDIS. Your feedback helps us determine changes to our programs, procedures and processes.
    • “This year’s public comment is open February 13–March 13.
    • We’d like input on:
      • Seven new HEDIS measures.
      • Revising three HEDIS measures.
    • “This year’s public comment will go live Friday, February 13, at 9:00a.m. ET.
    • “We’ll post the link and more details here, so check back on February 13.”
  • The Washington Post relates,
    • “The American Society of Plastic Surgeons has issued a broad recommendation against gender transition surgeries for youths, becoming the first major medical association in the United States to narrow its guidance on pediatric gender care amid a crackdown by the Trump administration.
    • “A statement sent Tuesday to the group’s 11,000 members and obtained by The Washington Post recommends surgeons delay gender-related chest, genital and facial surgery until a patient is at least 19 years old. Fewer than 1,000 minors in the United States receive such surgeries every year, according to research published in JAMA, the American Medical Association’s journal, and the vast majority of the procedures are mastectomies, not genital surgeries.”

From the Food and Drug Administration front,

  • The American Hospital Association News reports,
    • “The Food and Drug Administration Feb. 3 released an early alert on a heart pump issue from certain Abiomed products. The agency said Abiomed found its Impella RP with SmartAssist and Impella RP Flex with SmartAssist devices could display inaccurate information due to a malfunction of the differential pressure sensors. The company reported 22 injuries associated with the issue since Jan. 15.” 
  • MedTech Dive relates,
    • “Abbott received a warning letter from the Food and Drug Administration related to its FreeStyle Libre continuous glucose monitors.
    • “The warning letter, dated Jan. 23 and posted to the FDA’s website on Tuesday, concerns performance specifications and testing for the glucose sensors’ accuracy. An Abbott spokesperson wrote in an email that the company is implementing corrective actions and providing ongoing updates to the FDA.
    • “The warning letter does not affect Abbott’s ability to manufacture, market or distribute Libre products, wrote Leerink Partners analyst Mike Kratky and J.P. Morgan analyst Robbie Marcus.”
  • The Wall Street Journal informs us,
    • “AstraZeneca AZN said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration rejected an initial submission for its Saphnelo lupus drug in injection form, and vowed to work with the regulator to move forward with an updated application.
    • “The U.K. pharmaceutical company said Tuesday that the FDA issued a complete response letter, which indicates that a new drug application can’t be approved in its present form, regarding Saphnelo for subcutaneous administration. The company said it subsequently provided information requested in the letter and that it was committed to working with the FDA to progress the application as quickly as possible.
    • “A decision on the updated application is expected in the first half of 2026, AstraZeneca said.
    • “The drug, a treatment for the autoimmune disease systemic lupus erythematosus, is already approved as an intravenous infusion and that form of administration remains commercially available, AstraZeneca said.”
  • Fierce Biotech tells us,
    • “As the first CAR-T treatment for an autoimmune disease draws ever closer, officials at the FDA have signaled a willingness to support the development of these novel cell therapies with a flexible regulatory approach.
    • “While interested in CAR-T therapies’ potential to achieve durable, drug-free remission in serious autoimmune conditions, the FDA is equally wary of their “unpredictable long-term toxicity,” according to an article published Monday in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
    • “In the article, Vinay Prasad, M.D., director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, and two other regulators said that, recognizing the complexity of autoimmune conditions in terms of seriousness and type, the agency will work with CAR-T makers “on a case-by-case basis to encourage appropriate study populations in rheumatologic autoimmune disease.”
    • “Simultaneously, citing a need to monitor a drug’s effect on fertility, the FDA officials recommended that industry conduct long-term follow-up studies for CAR-T products in the autoimmune setting, “as is standard for genetic therapies and CAR T-cells for oncologic indications.”
    • “While the FDA “shares enthusiasm for this class of products,” it will “carefully shepherd” the advancement of clinical studies “focused on the development, durability, and long-term safety of CAR T-cell therapies,” the regulators wrote.”
  • STAT News lets us know, “AI could soon renew prescriptions without clinician help. Should the FDA make sure it’s safe? Doctronic claims its AI doctor doesn’t need FDA approval. Experts aren’t so sure.”

From the public health and medical / Rx research front,

  • Nature reports,
    • “Nearly 40% of new cancer cases worldwide are potentially preventable, according to one of the first investigations1 of its kind, which analysed dozens of cancer types in almost 200 countries.
    • “The study found that in 2022, roughly seven million cancer diagnoses were linked to modifiable risk factors — those that can be changed, controlled or managed to reduce the likelihood of developing the disease. Overall, tobacco smoking was the leading contributor to worldwide cancer cases, followed by infections and drinking alcohol. The findings suggest that avoiding such risk factors is “one of the most powerful ways that we can potentially reduce the future cancer burden”, says study co-author Hanna Fink, a cancer epidemiologist at the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer in Lyon, France.
    • “The study was published today in Nature Medicine.”
  • The American Journal of Managed Care relates,
    • “The majority (57.5%) of commercially insured patients had at least 1 chronic condition in 2024. The average allowed amount1 for a patient with no chronic conditions was $1590, whereas the average allowed amount for a patient with 1 chronic condition was nearly double ($3039). Of 44 common chronic conditions studied, hyperlipidemia, or high cholesterol, was the most common, with a crude prevalence2 of 21.2%. These and other findings are reported in a new FAIR Health white paper: Chronic Conditions in the United States: A Study of Commercial Claims.” * * *
    • “Many patients had more than 1 chronic condition. For example, 11.5% of patients had 2 conditions, and 9.1% had 3.
    • “Some chronic conditions frequently co-occur. In the commercially insured population, 33.4% of patients had hyperlipidemia, hypertension, obesity, or some combination of these, and 4.3% had all 3.3 Half the patients with any one of these conditions had more than 1.” * * *
    • “For the complete white paper, click here“
  • CNN tells us,
    • “Men develop a greater risk of cardiovascular disease years earlier than women — starting at around age 35, according to a new long-term study.
    • “The report, published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Heart Association, followed more than 5,000 adults from young adulthood and found that men reached clinically significant levels of cardiovascular disease about seven years earlier than women.
    • “Experts advise both men and women to monitor their heart health in early adulthood and to see their doctor regularly.
    • “Heart disease doesn’t happen overnight; it develops over years. One of the things I think oftentimes people aren’t aware of is that it can start really early in your 30s or 40s,” said study coauthor Dr. Sadiya Khan, professor of cardiovascular epidemiology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago.
    • “Even if you don’t have heart disease at that time, your risk can start at that time.”
  • MedPage Today adds,
    • “National data showed 79% of adults with hypertension didn’t have their blood pressure within the blood pressure goal recommended by guidelines.
    • “Most of those uncontrolled hypertension cases went untreated by blood pressure medication.
    • “These findings highlight a large gap in hypertension control that treating hypertension earlier and more intensively could address.”
  • The New York Times observes,
    • “For much of the 20th century and beyond, social scientists attributed a range of chronic mental health problems to dysfunction between infants and their mothers, who were categorized as overbearing, rejecting, domineering or ambivalent.
    • “But a team of researchers from Pennsylvania State University has found that at times the early parenting behavior of fathers may have a greater impact on children’s health.
    • “For a study published recently in the journal Health Psychology, the scientists observed three-way interactions between 10-month-old infants, their fathers and their mothers, and then checked in on the families when the children were 2 and 7.
    • “They found that fathers who were less attentive to their 10-month-olds were likely to have trouble co-parenting, instead withdrawing or competing with mothers for the children’s attention. And at age 7, the children of those fathers were more likely to have markers of poor heart or metabolic health, such as inflammation and high blood sugar.
    • “Mothers’ behavior did not have the same effect, said Alp Aytuglu, a postdoctoral scholar at Penn State’s College of Health and Human Development and an author of the paper.
    • “We of course expected that family dynamics, everybody in the family, fathers and mothers, would impact child development — but it was only fathers, in this case,” Dr. Aytuglu said.”
  • Per Health Day,
    • “More than one-quarter of young children experience persisting symptoms after concussion (PSaC), according to a study published online Jan. 26 in Pediatrics.
    • “Sean C. Rose, M.D., from The Ohio State University in Columbus, and colleagues assessed the frequency of PSaC after early childhood concussion and identified potential predictors of PSaC. The analysis included 235 young children (ages 6 months to <6 years) with concussion, 108 with orthopedic injury, and 75 community controls.
    • “The researchers found that at one month postinjury, PSaC were documented in 28 percent of children with concussion, higher than in the orthopedic injury group (10 percent) and the community control group (2 percent). PSaC were documented in just under one-quarter of children at three months postconcussion (24 percent) and 16 percent at 12 months. PSaC at one month postconcussion was predicted by total symptom burden in the emergency department (odds ratio, 1.108). There were no associations for age, loss of consciousness, receiving brain imaging in the emergency department, attending daycare or school, or parent education with PSaC.”
  • and
    • “The symptoms women experience on the verge of menopause could be vastly different from what they might expect, a new study says.
    • “Women in perimenopause – the time leading up to their final period, as well as the year after – expect to be plagued with hot flashes and night sweats.
    • “However, these women reported symptoms like exhaustion and fatigue far more frequently than those typically associated with menopause, researchers reported Jan. 28 in the journal Menopause.
    • “This study shines a light on how little we still understand about perimenopause and how much it affects people’s daily lives,” lead researcher Dr. Mary Hedges said in a news release. She’s a community internal medicine physician at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida.”
  • Per BioPharma Dive,
    • “An experimental obesity shot Pfizer got through a buyout of Metsera helped enrollees in a mid-stage trial lose significantly more weight than a placebo, spurring up to an 11% reduction over 28 weeks using a regimen that switched from a weekly to monthly dose after 12 weeks.
    • “When including only participants who completed the trial, the shot helped people lose up to 12 percentage points more of their body weight than those who received a placebo. Though cross-trial comparisons can be misleading, the results “look slightly inferior” to what was seen in testing of Eli Lilly’s blockbuster Zepbound at a similar timepoint, wrote Leerink Partners analyst David Risinger.
    • “Pfizer executives noted on a conference call that, going forward, they intend to test a far higher dose than they did in Phase 2 testing. Phase 3 trials starting later this year will involve a dose that’s double the highest one used in the Phase 2.”

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

  • Fierce Healthcare reports,
    • “Kaiser Permanente and Renown Health have wrapped the paperwork on a deal forming an insurance and outpatient care joint venture in northern Nevada. 
    • “The arrangement announced last September (see below) represents an entry into the geographic market for Kaiser, the country’s largest nonprofit health system. It brings Hometown Health—an existing health plan run by Renown Health, a Reno-based, two-hospital nonprofit system—plus an existing primary care medical office under joint ownership. The partners have plans to open two more facilities in 2026, plus retail pharmacies in 2027. 
    • “This joint venture with Renown Health allows us to extend our value-based care model and nation-leading health outcomes to northern Nevada, in collaboration with Renown Health’s trusted local teams,” Greg Adams, chair and CEO of Kaiser, said in a Tuesday announcement. “Together, we will improve health outcomes; expand access to affordable, high-quality care; and serve the needs of this growing community.”
    • “Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.” 
  • and
    • “Primary care company Carbon Health filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy relief in Texas. 
    • “The company, which offers both in-person care at nearly 100 clinics and virtual care services, said Monday it reached a restructuring agreement with its existing lenders that establishes a “clear path to recapitalization and new ownership.”
    • “Carbon Health intends to pursue a dual-track, court-supervised process that allows it to enter a Chapter 11 plan premised on a debt-for-equity exchange, and a post-petition marketing and sale process for all or a portion of its assets, the company said in a press release issued Monday.
    • “This structure is intended to maximize value while preserving flexibility as the process moves forward,” Carbon Health executives said.
    • “To implement the restructuring, Carbon Health and certain affiliates have filed voluntary petitions for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas.”
  • Healthcare Dive relates,
    • “Humana is launching an artificial intelligence tool that aims to help its call center workers answer beneficiaries’ questions about their coverage, the insurer said Tuesday. 
    • “Agent Assist, developed in partnership with Google Cloud, can summarize conversations between workers and enrollees in real time while highlighting relevant information, like the member’s benefit and eligibility details and important context from the call, Chris Sakalosky, vice president of strategic industries at Google Cloud, said via email.
    • “The insurer began rolling out Agent Assist in October, and plans to implement the tool across Humana’s service centers this year.”
  • Per MedCity News,
    • “About 50 million people in the U.S. are affected by autoimmune disease, and about 80% of them are women. When women give birth, they often experience significant hormonal changes that can trigger new diagnoses or symptoms of autoimmune disease.
    • “That’s why WellTheory, a platform focused on autoimmune disease, launched a new program last week aimed at supporting women in the postpartum period.
    • ‘Atherton, California-based WellTheory treats autoimmune conditions such as Addison’s disease, celiac disease, multiple sclerosis and lupus. Using a collaborative care model, it partners with patients’ physicians to deliver personalized plans focused on nutrition, stress, sleep and movement. The company offers video sessions, unlimited expert messaging and diagnostics. It serves both employers and health plans.
    • “The new postpartum program includes personalized care plans and one-on-one support with autoimmune and hormonal health experts. WellTheory also provides advanced hormonal testing if appropriate, including assessment of sex hormones, cortisol levels and metabolites. This helps identify root causes of conditions like postpartum depression.”
  • Adam Fein writing in his Drug Channels blog lets us know,
    • “The boffins at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently dropped the latest National Health Expenditure (NHE) data, which track all U.S. spending on healthcare. (Links below.)
    • “We spent an astounding $5,278,588,000,000 on healthcare in 2024. Yes, that’s $5.3 trillion!
    • “Retail outpatient prescription drugs accounted for less than 9% of that total. More than half of net outpatient drug spending was paid by federal, state, and local government programs. Below, we delve into the spending trends, which reveal the impact of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) on Medicare spending, the boom in healthcare marketplaces, and the post-pandemic bust in Medicaid. 
    • “Contrary to what you might read, the government’s data show that drug spending growth was not driven by purportedly “skyrocketing” drug prices. In reality, nearly all of the increase in drug spending reflected higher utilization—more people treated, more prescriptions dispensed, and shifts among drugs dispensed—rather than higher net prices.”
  • Per Fierce Pharma,
    • “Armed with what CEO Robert Davis called the “broadest and widest pipeline we’ve had in years,” Merck is preparing for its post-Keytruda future with what it foresees as a host of major sales opportunities over the next decade.
    • “Thanks in part to its recent acquisitions of Verona Pharma and Cidara Therapeutics, the company sees new growth drivers delivering potential annual revenue of more than $70 billion by the “mid-2030s,” Merck said in its fourth-quarter and full-year earnings presentation (PDF).
    • “To put the $70 billion number into context, Davis pointed to the figure as being more than double the $35 billion Keytruda is expected to pick up during its peak sales year in 2028. The oncology superstar is slated for a loss of exclusivity (LOE) in 2028, and a growing pipeline of Keytruda biosimilars is already lining up to take a shot at the drug’s massive market.
    • “Our belief in our ability to have substantial growth once we get closer to the LOE is as high as it’s ever been,” Davis emphasized on a conference call. “And we’re not done.”
  • and
    • “During the first six months of Maziar Mike Doustdar’s tenure as Novo Nordisk’s CEO, the company enjoyed a run of positive momentum highlighted by the launch of its Wegovy pill and a recent stock-price runup. But investor optimism came to a sudden halt Tuesday as the company warned of significant sales and earnings declines in 2026.
    • “Tuesday, Novo put out word that it’s expecting sales and earnings to slide between 5% and 13% this year. In 2025, Novo generated sales growth of 10% and operating profit growth of 6%, the company said.
    • “A few factors are playing into the 2026 guidance. For one, the company said it’s expecting sales to decline in the U.S. amid “intensifying competition” and lower prices in some areas of its business. Novo is also warning of a sales hit from the recent “Most Favored Nation” pricing deal it struck with the Trump administration.
    • “The company is also forecasting a currency hit as the U.S. dollar has lost value against the Danish krone, Novo’s local currency.”
  • Per MedTech Dive,
    • “Medtronic plans to acquire CathWorks, which makes tools to help detect coronary artery disease, the companies announced on Tuesday. Medtronic will pay up to $585 million, with the potential for undisclosed earn-out payments after the acquisition closes.
    • “The companies have worked together since 2022, when Medtronic agreed to co-promote CathWorks’ FFRangio System in the U.S., Europe and Japan.
    • “The FFRangio System uses artificial intelligence and computational science to provide an assessment of the entire coronary tree using routine angiograms, a type of X-ray for imaging blood vessels. The system can provide fractional flow reserve, or FFR, values that help detect what lesions are causing a reduction in blood flow. The system can also help physicians measure the dimensions of a lesion during an operation.”
  • Per Radiology Business,
    • “RadNet Inc. is entering the Midwest by acquiring a 60-year-old private practice’s outpatient imaging assets. 
    • “The Los Angeles company has reached a deal to acquire six freestanding centers, all operated by Indianapolis-based Northwest Radiology, for an undisclosed sum. 
    • “Founded in 1967, NWR is one of Indiana’s largest independent imaging groups, employing 18 physicians. They will continue to provide contracted services across the practice’s former locations. 
    • “The centers are primarily located in Carmel, a growing northern suburb of Indianapolis recently recognized by Travel & Leisure magazine for its livability. RadNet—which, as a publicly traded company, will eventually disclose the purchase price in a future regulatory filing—expects to net $18 million in annual revenue from the sale. 
    • “Steve Forthuber, president and CEO of Eastern Operations for RadNet, said the practice has built “remarkable trust and confidence” among the local physician community. The company plans to work closely with NWR radiologists to further expand their “clinical reach and capabilities.” 

Thursday report

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

From Washington, DC

  • The New York Times reports,
    • “Senate Democrats have struck a deal with Republicans and the White House to pass five spending bills to fund a large portion of the government for the remainder of the fiscal year, as well as a stopgap measure to fund the Department of Homeland Security for two weeks while they continue negotiating guardrails to rein in immigration agents. Republicans had pushed to fund the department for several weeks, but Democrats insisted on a shorter-term measure. It is unclear how quickly the House can and will process those funding bills after the Senate passes them. The shutdown deadline is midnight on Friday.”
  • The Washington Post lets us know which government operations will remain open in the event of a partial shutdown.
  • Per an HHS press release,
    • “The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. today announced the appointment of a new Chair and 10 new public members to the Advisory Council on Alzheimer’s Research, Care, and Services. Established in 2011 under the National Alzheimer’s Project Act (NAPA), the Advisory Council meets quarterly to advise the Secretary on reducing the burden of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.” * * *
    • “The new Chair is Michelle Branham, Secretary of the Florida Department of Elder Affairs. Appointed by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in 2021, Secretary Branham leads the state agency serving nearly 6.5 million Floridians. She brings more than 25 years of experience in Alzheimer’s disease public policy, public health, and public relations.”
  • Healthcare Dive tells us,
    • “The Trump administration has negotiated deals with major Medicaid systems vendors that it says will save states hundreds of millions of dollars as they hustle to implement massive changes to the safety-net insurance program from the GOP’s “Big Beautiful Bill.”
    • “On Thursday, CMS officials shared a list of 10 companies that have agreed to provide IT services and products at low or no cost to states to help them stand up work requirements, a controversial policy tying Medicaid eligibility to work or other approved activities.”
  • and
    • “Almost 23 million Americans signed up for health insurance coverage on the Affordable Care Act exchanges this year, the CMS said on Wednesday. That’s down 5% from last year’s record high, but not the nosedive some market watchers predicted given steep premium increases for ACA plans.
    • “Some 3.4 million people are new to the marketplaces, while 19.6 million already had ACA coverage and re-enrolled.
    • “Enrollment trends differ across the country. Much of the volume was driven by Texas alone, where more than 200,000 additional people signed up for coverage in 2026 compared to 2025. Texas led the pack of 9 states and Washington, D.C. that had more residents sign up for ACA plans. The remaining 41 states experienced enrollment declines, with particularly steep drops in North Carolina, down 22%, and Ohio, down 20%.”
  • Bloomberg Law relates,
    • “President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced the nomination of a veteran federal prosecutor to lead a new Justice Department unit focused on fraud, as the administration looks to refocus attention on the justification for its immigration crackdown in Minnesota that has grown increasingly unpopular.
    • “Trump, in a post on his Truth Social platform, nominated Colin McDonald as “assistant attorney general for national fraud enforcement,” a role that requires Senate approval.”
  • and
    • “The Trump administration proposed a rule Thursday requiring transparency in pharmacy benefit managers’ compensation and referral fees they pay to brokers.
    • “The proposed rule (RIN: 1210-AB37) is part of President Donald Trump’s broader push on price transparency in the health-care sector, where PBMs have come under fire for what critics say is opaque and anticompetitive behavior. 
    • “The Labor Department released the proposal after an executive order Trump signed in February 2025. The rule follows recent updates to a set of price transparency rules for health insurers and hospitals that Trump initially finalized in his first term.” * * *
    • “The rule would require PBMs and affiliated brokers to disclose their compensation to fiduciaries of self-insured health plans under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, so they can “assess the reasonableness of the contracts” required under ERISA and the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 (CAA).”
    • The public comment deadline is March 31, 2026.
  • Tammy Flanagam writing in Govexec, offers a summary of the “annual adjustments to retirement benefits, FEHB costs, Social Security rules and TSP limits are now taking effect” for federal and postal annuitants.

From the Food and Drug Administration front,

  • Fierce Pharma reports,
    • “Combining two eye drops that have been on the market for at least 30 years each has earned Tenpoint Therapeutics an FDA approval (PDF) for Yuvezzi, a treatment for presbyopia, a common, age-related condition that makes it difficult to focus on nearby objects.
    • “Yuvezzi, which is a solution of 2.75% carbachol and 0.1% brimonidine tartrate, becomes the first combination treatment for presbyopia, which affects roughly 2 billion around the world and 128 million in the United States.
    • “Carbachol reached the market in 1972 as Alcon’s Miostat to dilate pupils during cataract surgeries. Brimonidine tartrate was commercialized in 1996 by Allergan as an ocular hypertension eye drop and most recently by Bausch+Lomb as Lumify, a treatment to reduce eye redness.”

From the public health and medical / Rx research front,

  • The Wall Street Journal reports,
    • “Life expectancy in the U.S. reached a record high in 2024 following a substantial decline of drug-overdose deaths, according to figures released by the federal government Thursday.
    • “The life expectancy at birth for the average American was 79 years old in 2024, up 0.6 year from the year prior, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics. The increase signals a rebound from declines in life expectancy during the coronavirus pandemic and progress in combating the opioid crisis.
    • “The agency reported that deaths related to drug overdose decreased by more than 26% between 2023 and 2024, marking the largest year-to-year drop in those types of fatalities recorded by the federal government.
    • “You’ve got those two things working together: improvements coming out of the pandemic and then declines in overdose deaths,” said Robert Anderson, chief of the Statistical Analysis and Surveillance Branch at the National Center for Health Statistics. “The result is increased life expectancy to a level a little bit higher than what we saw prepandemic.”
  • The New York Times tells us,
    • “Your potential life span is written in your genes, according to a new study. You can lengthen it a bit with a healthy lifestyle. But if your genetic potential is to live to be 80, for example, it is unlikely that anything you do will push your age at death up to 100.
    • “That, at least, is the conclusion of a paper published Thursday in Science.
    • ‘Uri Alon of the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel and other researchers drew the data for the study from three sets of data from pairs of Swedish twins, including one set of twins that was reared apart. To test how generalizable the results are, the group also examined data from a study of 2,092 siblings of 444 Americans who lived to be over 100. Their goal was to identify outside factors that can affect how long someone lives, like infections or accidents, separate from the intrinsic factor of genetics.
    • “They report that aging is mostly hereditary, a conclusion that flies in the face of much conventional medical wisdom regarding dieting, exercising and healthy habits. These habits are important for the quality of a person’s life, but they run into another form of conventional wisdom: You can’t make someone into a centenarian, unless that person also has a genetic inheritance of longevity.”
  • NBC News adds,
    • “The early bird may not only catch the proverbial worm but also have a healthier heart, new research suggests.
    • “People who naturally stay up late, self-described night owls, are likelier to have poor heart health than people with more traditional sleep-wake schedules, according to a study published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
    • “The findings were particularly strong among women.”
  • MedPage Today notes,
    • “Roughly 126 million U.S. adults ages 20 and older are projected to have obesity by 2035, according to estimates from a cross-sectional analysis.
      “In 1990, 19.3% of U.S. adults had obesity; in 2022, this rose to 42.5%. By 2035, 46.9% of the adult population is expected to have obesity, reported Catherine O. Johnson, PhD, MPH, of the Hans Rosling Center for Population Health in Seattle, and colleagues.
      “The results, with data collected over three decades, provide insight into future levels of persons living with obesity, if past trends continue. Effective policies may be identified by examining populations with consistently lower rates of obesity,” Johnson and her team wrote in JAMA.”
  • Genetic Engineering and BioTechnology News points out,
    • “Organoids have helped create a comprehensive map showing how eight different genetic mutations associated with autism spectrum disorder affect early brain development. This work provides new insights into the ways diverse genetic causes may lead to shared features and symptoms of the disorder.
    • “Over the past two decades, more than 100 genes harboring rare mutations linked to autism have been identified. This genetic heterogeneity has raised a fundamental question: if autism can be caused by so many different genetic changes, why do individuals with autism often share common features?
    • “A new study published in Nature in the paper, “Developmental convergence and divergence in human stem cell models of autism,” provides new insights by demonstrating that while different mutations affect the developing brain in initially distinct ways, they increasingly impact overlapping molecular pathways as development progresses.”

From the U.S. healthcare business front,

  • The Health Care Cost Institute reports,
    • “Urgent care spending among people with employer-sponsored insurance increased by more than 50% from 2018 to 2022, according to a new analysis released today by the non-profit Health Care Cost Institute (HCCI). Unlike most health care categories where rising prices have driven spending growth, this increase was fueled primarily by a sharp rise in utilization.
    • “Urgent care centers have become a critical access point for patients seeking timely care, and this was especially true during the pandemic,” said Katie Martin, president and CEO of HCCI. “Our analysis shows that while prices remained relatively stable, utilization skyrocketed – underscoring the role urgent care plays in meeting patient needs outside traditional settings. While urgent care may be filling a critical gap and easing ER demand, with spending up 50% over five years it deserves close attention from employers, insurers and policymakers.”
  • The Wall Street Journal relates,
    • “Drugmakers are doing something unusual this year: slashing prices for several widely used medicines.
    • “The companies made their typical round of price increases to start the year. In addition, they also made big cuts to U.S. list prices for widely used drugs for diabetes, blood clotting and other conditions.
    • “A big factor: federal government policy changes, including lower prices that Medicare negotiated and took effect for the first time this year.
    • “All told, 20 brand-name drugs had list-price cuts this month, ranging from 9.8% to 91.7%, according to 46brooklyn Research, a Dayton, Ohio-based firm that analyzes drug pricing.
    • “Among them were a 43% cut to the list price for bloodthinner Eliquis from Pfizer and Bristol-Myers Squibb and a 44.4% drop for diabetes treatment Jardiance from Boehringer Ingelheim and Eli Lilly.
    • “These are heavyweight drugs, and to see them crater in price like this is historic,” said Antonio Ciaccia, chief executive of 46brooklyn.
    • “For patients who have to pay the full price or a copay based on a percentage of list price, the price cuts will mean lower costs. Patients with insurance who pay a fixed monthly copay might not see much of a change.”
  • Modern Healthcare tells us,
    • “Hospitals discharge about 40% of patients to post-acute care, but not always to the most appropriate setting.
    • “Some health systems have special teams to ensure patients go to the correct place for additional care.
    • “Providers are successfully appealing some denials by insurers for referrals to nursing homes and inpatient rehab facilities.”
  • Per Beckers Hospital Review,
    • “The Pennsylvania Department of Health on Jan. 28 approved Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems’ plan to sell its three Pennsylvania hospitals to the Tenor Health Foundation. 
    • “The approval comes after CHS, a for-profit system, signed a definitive agreement in October to sell Commonwealth Health to Tenor, a newly formed nonprofit organization. 
    • “Under the deal, Tenor will acquire Regional Hospital of Scranton (186 beds), Moses Taylor Hospital in Scranton (122 beds) and Wilkes-Barre General Hospital (369 beds).
    • “The sale would see CHS exit the Pennsylvania market. CHS previously attempted to sell the hospitals to WoodBridge Healthcare for $120 million in 2024, but the deal collapsed because WoodBridge was unable to satisfy the funding requirements.  
    • ‘CHS and Tenor will now work to finalize the transaction “as quickly and smoothly as possible,” a CHS spokesperson told Becker’s in a statement. The terms of this deal were not disclosed.”
  • Per Radiology Business,
    • “Premier Radiology Services is acquiring another rival teleradiology group, the private equity-backed imaging outfit announced on Wednesday. 
    • “The Deerfield Beach, Florida-based company said it has reached a deal to buy National Radiology Solutions, or NRad, for an undisclosed sum. Founded in 2013 by industry veteran Robb Kolb, MBA, Premier said NRad is a “highly regarded teleradiology provider,” known for its “deep expertise” across all subspecialties. 
    • “Adding the Winter Garden, Florida-based firm will allow Premier Radiology to grow its national footprint, strengthen clinical coverage and enable more efficient interpretations.
    • “Welcoming the NRad team marks another important milestone for Premier and meaningfully expands the scale and capabilities of our platform,” CEO Andy Copilevitz, MBA, said in a statement Jan. 28. “Our organizations share a deep commitment to advancing the practice of teleradiology and supporting the physicians who make it possible.”
  • Per Fierce Healthcare,
    • “Sword Health, a company that provides an artificial-intelligence-first care model, plans to acquire rival Kaia Health for $285 million, the company announced Wednesday.
    • “Kaia, which has headquarters in New York and Munich, is a digital therapeutics company focused on musculoskeletal (MSK) and pulmonary care.
    • F”ollowing the acquisition, Sword will move Kaia’s U.S. members onto its MSK platform, the company said in a press release. Kaia’s millions of American members will gain access to Sword’s expanded AI Care platform.” 

Notable Obituary

  • The New York Times reports,
    • “Dr. Angella D. Ferguson, a pediatrician whose groundbreaking research aided in the early diagnosis and treatment of sickle cell anemia, a painful and deadly disease that disproportionately afflicts people of African descent, died on Jan. 6 at her home in Chevy Chase, Md. She was 100.
    • “Her death was confirmed by her nephew Roger W. Ferguson Jr., an economist and former vice chairman of the Federal Reserve.
    • “Dr. Ferguson was one of a small group of pediatricians — including Yvette Fay Francis-McBarnette and Doris Wethers — who as Black women physicians were rarities for their time, and who as researchers focused on sickle cell, a field that many white clinicians had overlooked.”
  • RIP

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.”

Thursday report

David Ermer–CDC, CMS, Congress, FDA, Federal employment benefits, Medical / Rx research, Mental health care, OPM, Patient safety, U.S. Healthcare, Uncategorized–

From Washington, DC

  • Healthcare Dive reports,
    • “Republicans and Democrats in the House Budget Committee spent Wednesday blaming each other for the steep cost of healthcare, and arguing for diametrically opposed ideas to lower it. However, a few areas of bipartisan agreement emerged, including targeting healthcare consolidation — once an unheard-of view for members of the GOP.
    • “We got problems in Peoria with consolidation, with too much power and too many assets in too few market participants,” said Chairman Jodey Arrington, R-Texas, referring to a small community in Hill County. “You know how we feel about big government … but the most important thing here is, I think there’s common ground here.”
    • “We ought to huddle up at some point, probably not during a hearing, and figure out where we can deal with big medicine monopolies in pharma, hospital, insurance — the whole gambit. And I just want you to know I’m down with that,” Arrington continued.”
  • AHIP released two more healthcare cost articles today.
  • The Hill reports,
    • “Some of the nation’s top health insurance executives sought to deflect blame for the soaring cost of health care in the U.S., arguing that rising hospital and prescription drug prices were driving premiums higher and making health care less affordable for Americans.
    • “The CEOs of five major health insurers testified before a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on Thursday, the first in a series of back-to-back hearings focused on finding the root causes driving unaffordability in the health care system, including skyrocketing premiums.”
  • and
    • “The House passed its final four appropriations bills Thursday afternoon, bringing Congress one step closer to avoiding a partial shutdown at the end of the month.
    • “A minibus package passed with a convincing 341-88 vote, funding the departments of Defense, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, Health and Human Services, Labor, Education and other related agencies. The House separately passed legislation to fund the Department of Homeland Security with a 220-207 vote.”
  • The House of Representatives will be on recess next week while the Senate returns to Capitol Hill to tackle these appropriations bills.
  • Beckers Payer Issues raises three big questions about Trump’s healthcare policy plan.
  • On the bright side, Modern Healthcare relates,
    • “More than 40 hospitals have converted to rural emergency hospitals since 2023 [under a new federal program]. 
    • “The program has stabilized rural hospital finances but fewer hospitals converted last year.
    • “Hospitals have expanded services to their communities since joining the program.”
  • Federal News Network tells us,
    • “Agencies are getting more information on how to implement the recently finalized “rule of many.” The federal hiring strategy, several years in the making, aims to create broader pools of qualified job candidates while adding flexibility for federal hiring managers.
    • “A series of guidance documents the Office of Personnel Management published earlier this month outlined the steps agencies should take to begin using the “rule of many” when hiring. OPM’s new resources also detail how the “rule of many” intersects with other aspects of the federal hiring process, such as shared certificates, skills-based assessments and veterans’ preference.
    • “Under the “rule of many,” federal hiring managers score job candidates on their relevant job skills, then rank the candidates based on those scores. From there, hiring managers can choose one of several options — a cut-off number, score or percentage — to pare down the applicant pool and reach a list of qualified finalists to select from.”
  • Tammy Flanagan, writing in Govexec, answers “a litany of new questions on how to receive retirement benefits” coming from “an influx of federal retirees due to the Deferred Resignation Program and other separation programs.”

From the Food and Drug Administration front,

  • BioPharma Dive reports,
    • “Drugmakers developing experimental multiple myeloma drugs may have a quicker path to market under new guidance the Food and Drug Administration published this week.
    • “According to the new framework, the regulator may grant accelerated approvals in some settings based on a therapy’s ability to induce “minimal residual disease” or “complete responses,” both of which are achieved when drugs drastically reduce levels of dysfunctional blood cells in people with the disease.  
    • “The FDA has recently handed accelerated approvals to multiple myeloma drugs like Johnson & Johnson’s Tecvayli and Talvey based on the “objective response rate” — a measure of remissions determined by the presence of disease on a scan — observed in clinical testing.” 

From the public health and medical / Rx research front,

  • The New York Times reports,
    • “Despite gains in treatment, cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death in the United States, accounting for nearly three in 10 fatalities — 916,000 — in 2023, according to a report published Wednesday by the American Heart Association.
    • “It outnumbers deaths from the second and third leading causes — cancer and accidental injuries — combined.
    • “The statistics are a sobering reminder that there is “a lot of work to do” when it comes to prevention and treatment of heart disease and stroke, said Dr. Donald Lloyd-Jones, a professor of cardiology at Boston University and former president of the association, who was not involved in the new report.”
  • Cardiovascular Business adds,
    • “Cardiology has been shifting away from reactionary treatment strategies to a greater emphasis on prevention. With a shortage of heart failure specialists in the United States and hospitalization rates on the rise, reducing the number of advanced heart failure cases is a major target of such prevention efforts.
    • “A joint scientific statement from the Heart Failure Society of America (HFSA) and the American Society for Preventive Cardiology (ASPC) about prevention in heart failure was released online in 2025 and then published in the Journal of Cardiac Failure (JCF) to kick off 2026.[1] The goal of the statement is to raise awareness that prevention efforts to stop the advance of heart failure symptoms should start with primary care and general cardiologists before the symptoms of these patients becomes critical. This is part of a wider effort across cardiology and medicine to try and reduce heart failure hospitalizations.”
  • and
    • “Reducing the activity of a specific protein, RBM20, may provide significant relief for certain patients with heart failure, particularly those with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), according to a new analysis published in Cardiovascular Research.[1] 
    • “HFpEF is associated with stiff, rigid cardiac muscles. A team of researchers out of the University of Missouri School of Medicine believe they may be able to improve HFpEF symptoms by limiting RBM20’s influence in the heart and encouraging another protein, titin, to thrive. 
    • “Titin is a protein found in cardiac muscle cells and acts as a ‘spring,’ enabling the heart chamber to recoil and stretch sufficiently,” lead author Mei Methawasin, MD, PhD, said in a statement. “In HFpEF, it’s common for the titin to stiffen and no longer be as flexible. We learned that if we reduced the activity of a different protein, RBM20, it caused longer and more flexible filaments of titin and significantly improved heart filling in mice.”
    • “There are certain risks associated with too much RBM20 inhibition. Methawasin emphasized that it would be critical to find the “right balance” and not taking things too far.”
  • The Wall Street Journal relates,
    • “Colorectal cancer is on the rise among young people. Now it is the leading cause of cancer death in the U.S. for those under 50, according to a new analysis. 
    • “More than 1.2 million people under age 50 died of cancer in the U.S. from 1990 through 2023, American Cancer Society researchers reported Thursday.
    • “Some 3,905 people ages 20 to 49 died of colorectal cancer in 2023, according to Cancer Society statistics, compared with 3,809 for breast cancer and 2,086 for brain and other nervous system cancers.
    • “This is absolutely disconcerting,” said Dr. Madappa Kundranda, division chief of cancer medicine at Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center in Phoenix, who wasn’t involved in the research.” * * *
    • “As colorectal cancer among younger people has emerged as a bigger threat, medical groups have lowered the recommended age for colonoscopies that can detect the disease while there are good odds for effective treatment.
    • “Yet not enough people under 50 are getting the screenings, doctors said, prompting calls for a redoubling of efforts to educate doctors and nurses about the need to talk with patients.”
  • The New York Times points out,
    • “Is there a way to use the body’s way of fighting cancers to make a new drug?
    • “Perhaps, according to preliminary research studies.
    • “The idea is to exploit what is known about the growth of cancers. While many grow and spread and are deadly without treatment, some go away on their own or simply do not progress. They remain in the body, harmless and causing no symptoms. It’s contrary to conventional wisdom.
    • “But Dr. Edward Patz, who spent much of his career researching cancer at Duke, has long been intrigued by cancers that are harmless and has thought they might hold important clues for drug development.
    • “The result, after years of research, is an experimental drug, tested so far only in small numbers of lung cancer patients. The results are encouraging, but most promising experimental drugs fail after larger, more rigorous studies.
    • “That hasn’t stopped Dr. Patz from recently starting a company, Grid Therapeutics, hoping that the experimental drug will turn out to be a new type of cancer treatment.”
  • The Washington Post cautions,
    • Obesity in midlife may cause vascular dementia later in life by raising blood pressure over decades and quietly damaging brain vessels, according to new research released Thursday.
    • The danger could be significant. Having a higher body mass index increases the risk of vascular dementia by roughly 50 to 60 percent, according to the study, published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. An association between obesity and dementia has long been the subject of study, and the new research strongly indicates there is indeed a link.
    • “We add a layer of evidence that suggests causality,” said Ruth Frikke-Schmidt, who was the study’s lead author and is a professor and chief physician at Copenhagen University Hospital Rigshospitalet and the University of Copenhagen. “For public health, this is an important message.”
  • Beckers Clinical Leadership informs us,
    • “Even as patient acuity climbed over the last several years, hospitals posted notable gains in mortality and reductions in two major hospital-acquired infections, a new Vizient report found.
    • “The Jan. 22 report is based on an analysis of the Vizient Clinical Data Base, which includes data from more than 1,000 hospitals nationwide. It compares trends from the fourth quarter of 2019 to the second quarter of 2025 across measures of acuity, mortality performance and select hospital-acquired infections.
    • “These improvements occurred during a period marked by workforce shortages, supply chain instability and rising case complexity, signaling that the system’s quality infrastructure is stronger, more adaptive and more scalable than often recognized,” the report said.”
  • Per MedPage Today,
    • “Ten-year follow-up results showed that 37.8% of patients who received antibiotics versus appendectomy had a true recurrence of appendicitis.
    • “Overall, cumulative complication rates at 10 years were significantly higher in the appendectomy group versus the antibiotic group.
    • “The analysis “reaffirms antibiotics as a safe and feasible alternative to appendectomy,” researchers said.”
  • Per Health Day,
    • “Even brief treatment with Ozempic can improve knee replacement outcomes among people with type 2 diabetes.
    • “Taking semaglutide for as little as two to three months improved a person’s odds of avoiding major surgery complications.
    • “Less than a month’s treatment lowered odds of minor complications.”
  • and
    • “Super agers are likely to have genetic advantages that protect their brain health.
    • “They are less likely to carry a gene linked to increased risk of Alzheimer’s.
    • “They also are more likely to have a gene that appears to protect against Alzheimer’s. * * *
    • “Super agers” are people whose brain power at 80 or older compares to that of people 20 to 30 years younger, researchers said.”
  • Truveta adds,
    • “As of December 2025, GLP-1 RA prescriptions account for more than 7% of all prescriptions.
    • “Tirzepatide continues to be the most prescribed anti-diabetic (ADM) and anti-obesity (AOM) medication (sold as Mounjaro and Zepbound, respectively) and showed the largest increase in total prescribing from September to December 2025.
    • “Overall prescribing rates (GLP-1 RA prescriptions per total prescriptions) increased slightly from September to December 2025 (+5.0%); however, first-time prescribing rates declined over the same period (-6.6%). These trends are consistent with first-time prescribing rates seen around the holidays in previous years.”

From the U.S. healthcare business front,

  • Modern Healthcare reports,
    • “Insurance technology company Sidecar Health is offering health plans to employers in Texas.
    • “The company, which launched in 2018, covers employees in 48 states who work for businesses headquartered in Ohio, Georgia, Florida and Texas.
    • “Insurance technology company Sidecar Health is offering health plans to employers in Texas.
    • The company, which launched in 2018, covers employees in 48 states who work for businesses headquartered in Ohio, Georgia, Florida and Texas. 
    • “Sidecar touts an alternative model promising no prior authorizations, referrals or specific networks. For covered services, the plan will pay for up to a maximum allowable amount based on local market prices, according to the company. If a service is below the benefit amount, members can keep half the savings, Sidecar said in the release. If they receive care that costs more than the benefit amount, members are required to pay the difference.”
  • and
    • “A unique marketing campaign from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont lays out price variations between specific providers for certain services. 
    • “Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont unfavorably compares costs at the University of Vermont Medical Center to other hospitals.
    • “Industry watchers say it could represent a new era in contract negotiations between health insurance companies and providers.”
  • Beckers Health IT tells us,
    • Amazon’s One Medical and Cleveland Clinic have opened their second collaborative primary care office. 
    • The new office, located in Shaker Heights, Ohio, offers preventive care, chronic disease management and treatment for common illnesses such as colds and flu. Patients also have access to on-site lab services and same- or next-day appointments.
    • The office follows the October opening of the organizations’ first joint primary care site in Northeast Ohio, according to a Jan. 22 news release One Medical shared with Becker’s.
  • Fierce Pharma relates,
    • “As Sandoz looks to address the “biosimilar void” created by the scores of lucrative drugs going off patent in the next decade, the generic and biosim specialist sees a multibillion-dollar opportunity up for grabs. 
    • “The company detailed its outlook on the upcoming “‘golden decade’ of affordable medicines” at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference last week. Tallying up expected losses of exclusivity across the industry over that period, the Swiss drugmaker sees a generic drug opportunity of up to $340 billion and a biosim opportunity totaling $322 billion.
    • “More than 50 biologic drugs are set to go off patent in the next seven years and have no biosimilars lined up to launch. This situation has created what’s been coined the “biosimilar void” among industry watchers.
    • “While fully dissipating the void will require participation from many biosim players, Sandoz is committed to the cause: The company boasts a plan to target some 60% of the total biosimilar opportunity in sight.
    • “Still, “we want to do more,” the company’s North American president, Keren Haruvi, told Fierce Pharma in an interview on the sidelines of JPM.”
  • MedTech Dive notes,
    • “Abbott’s fourth quarter sales came in below expectations, as the company navigated challenges in its nutrition and diagnostics businesses. Abbott also reported less growth than expected in its medical devices segment. 
    • “The company’s revenue of $11.46 billion for the quarter fell short of analysts’ consensus of $11.8 billion, Leerink Partners analyst Mike Kratky wrote in a research note on Thursday.”

From the artificial intelligence front,

  • Healthcare Dive shares a mixed bag of reports,
    • “Amazon is launching a health-focused artificial intelligence chatbot for members of its One Medical primary care chain, the tech giant said Wednesday. 
    • “The Health AI assistant uses One Medical members’ medical record information to answer health questions and provide guidance on symptoms and potential treatments. Users can also chat with the assistant to book appointments, decide between care settings and renew prescriptions.
    • “The chatbot is built with “multiple patient safety guardrails,” including protocols that connect patients with a provider through messages or an in-person appointment when their clinical judgment is needed, an Amazon spokesperson said.”
  • and
    • “Healthcare workers are using artificial intelligence tools that haven’t been approved by their organizations — a potential patient safety and data privacy risk, according to a survey published Thursday by Wolters Kluwer Health. 
    • “More than 40% of medical workers and administrators said they were aware of colleagues using “shadow AI” products, while nearly 20% reported they have used an unauthorized AI tool themselves, according to the survey by the information services and software firm.
    • “Those unapproved tools might be useful to individual workers, but their health systems haven’t vetted the products’ risks or considered governance processes, according to Dr. Peter Bonis, chief medical officer at Wolters Kluwer. “The issue is, what is their safety? What is their efficacy, and what are the risks associated with that?” he said. “And are those adequately recognized by the users themselves?”
  • and
    • “Misuse of artificial intelligence-powered chatbots in healthcare has topped ECRI’s annual list of the top health technology hazards.
    • “The nonprofit ECRI, which shared its list Wednesday, said chatbots built on ChatGPT and other large language models can provide false or misleading information that could result in significant patient harm.
    • “ECRI put chatbot misuse ahead of sudden loss of access to electronic systems and the availability of substandard and falsified medical products on its list of the biggest hazards for this year.”

Midweek report

David Ermer–CDC, CMS, Congress, FDA, Federal employment benefits, Generative AI, Medical / Rx research, Mental health care, NIH, U.S. Healthcare–

From Washington, DC

  • The Wall Street Journal reports,
    • “Republicans and Democrats are nearing a deal to extend federal health-insurance subsidies for two years, with abortion coverage remaining a potential stumbling block, GOP lawmakers said.
    • “The proposed framework includes income caps and a new requirement for enrollees to pay at least $5 monthly.
    • “Approximately 20 million Americans previously benefited from enhanced ACA subsidies, which expired at the end of last year.”
  • MSN adds,
    • “Health insurance companies are being summoned to Capitol Hill for a pair of blockbuster hearings as Americans across the country deal with rising costs for their care, Fox News Digital is first to learn.
      “The House Energy & Commerce Committee, which oversees health policy, and the Ways & Means Committee, which has jurisdiction over tax policy, are both holding hearings on the rising cost of healthcare in the U.S.
    • “It’s not immediately clear which companies will be represented or if they will allow executives to appear voluntarily.”
  • Healthcare Dive informs us,
    • “Provider and telehealth groups are urging Congress to take action on Medicare virtual care flexibilities as the sector hurtles toward another deadline when the policies could expire.
    • “The American Medical Association, one of the nation’s largest healthcare lobbying groups, on Monday pressed lawmakers to make the pandemic-era telehealth policies permanent, arguing a “repeated cycle of temporary extensions” has undermined access to care. 
    • “The flexibilities, which expanded reimbursement for telehealth in Medicare, are set to lapse on Jan. 30 — just a few months after the coverage policies were reinstated following the government shutdown this fall.”
  • Modern Healthcare lets us know,
    • “The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services may require Chronic Condition Special Needs Plans insurers to be Medicaid contractors.
    • “CMS is concerned that C-SNP growth could jeopardize efforts to integrate benefits for Medicare-Medicaid dual-eligible beneficiaries.
    • “C-SNPs are the fastest-growing Medicare Advantage product.
    • “Humana, Centene and others that specialize in Medicare and Medicaid plans could benefit.”
  • The American Hospital Association News notes,
    • “The Departments of Health and Human Services and Agriculture Jan. 7 released updated dietary guidelines for Americans. The new guidelines suggest prioritizing protein in each meal; full-fat dairy with no added sugars; whole fruits and vegetables; healthy fats from foods such as meats, seafood, eggs, nuts, seeds, olives and avocados; and whole grains, while reducing refined carbohydrates and limiting highly processed foods, added sugars and artificial additives, among other recommendations. The guidelines also include recommendations for infants and children, adolescents, pregnant and lactating women, older adults, individuals with chronic disease, vegetarians, and vegans.” 
  • The Wall Street Journal explains how the new guidelines would impact American diets.
  • The AHA News further notes,
    • “The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has implemented an online form for providers to submit complaints regarding Medicare Advantage plans. A CMS memorandum issued Dec. 22 announced implementation of the form. Subsequently, CMS has stated that all provider complaints should be submitted using the form effective Jan. 5, 2026. The form requests basic information about the complainant, beneficiary, provider, the Medicare Advantage plan and a complaint summary and provides optional fields for dates of service and the claim number.” 
  • Federal News Network relates,
    • “Updated guidance on federal telework and remote work from the Office of Personnel Management now emphasizes as much in-person presence as possible for the federal workforce.
    • “OPM’s latest revisions aim to better align with the Trump administration’s return-to-office orders from January 2025. The new guidance, which OPM updated in December, now says federal employees should generally be “working full-time, in-person.” And while federal telework and remote work can be “effective” tools on a case-by-case basis, OPM said those flexibilities “should be used sparingly.”
    • “Beyond that, agencies should also have procedures for verifying that employees are working on-site, full-time, unless given an exemption, OPM said. And in the limited cases where employees are teleworking, agencies should have a process to determine whether teleworking is successful, or if it should be revoked.”
  • and
    • “The federal retirement inventory has reached yet another new high. The Office of Personnel Management now has over 50,000 applications still awaiting a finalized annuity. The increase comes after more than 13,000 retirement applications entered OPM’s systems in December. It’s taking OPM about 67 days to process a retirement case from start to finish. But OPM’s numbers don’t include any retirement cases still pending with agencies. Some retirees report major delays in receiving their payments, months after separating from government.”
  • Govexec points out,
    • “Many federal retirees wonder whether their Federal Employees Health Benefits coverage changes when they become eligible for Medicare at age 65. One of the most common concerns is whether FEHB reduces or limits benefits if a retiree chooses not to enroll in Medicare Part B.
    • “The short answer is no – your FEHB plan continues fully, and your coverage does not decrease. However, the way your benefits work can change depending on whether you enroll in Part B. This article explains how FEHB and Medicare coordinate, potential cost implications, and key considerations for individuals and married couples.”

From the Food and Drug Administration front,

  • Biopharma Dive calls attention to “5 FDA decisions to watch in the first quarter of 2026. By the end of March, the agency could approve multiple “national priority” voucher winners, as well as a gene therapy it rejected two years ago.”
  • Cardiovascular Business reports,
    • “Gore, the medical division of W.L. Gore & Associates, has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for a new vent designed to help treat deep venous disease in the inferior vena cava (IVC), iliac and iliofemoral veins. 
    • “The Gore Viabahn Fortegra Venous Stent represents the latest addition to the company’s Viabahn family of medical devices. It includes an open-structure, self-expanding wire-wound frame made of nitinol and a polytetrafluoroethylene polymer lattice. 
    • “According to Gore, the newly approved device was built with conformability, strength and fracture resistance in mind. In addition, it can be used to treat a wide range of patients due to the availability of several sizes.” 
  • MedTech Dive adds,
    • “Johnson & Johnson said Wednesday it has submitted its Ottava soft tissue robotic surgery system to the Food and Drug Administration for de novo classification in general surgery. The company has applied for marketing authorization in multiple procedures within the upper abdomen.
    • “The application is supported by data from the company’s investigational device exemption study in Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, a type of weight-loss surgery that creates a small pouch from the stomach to reroute food to the small intestine.
    • “J&J said it also received IDE approval in late 2025 to begin a U.S. clinical trial to study Ottava in inguinal hernia procedures, one of the most common surgeries in the U.S.”

From the public health and medical / Rx research front,

  • The University of Minnesota’s CIDRAP reports,
    • “Officials have confirmed 20 more measles cases in Utah, raising the state total to 176, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released nationwide totals for 2025, noting 2,144 confirmed cases
    • “Of the 176 infections in Utah, 129 (73%) are in the Southwest Utah health district, which has seen high measles activity alongside neighboring Mohave County, Arizona.
    • “In other hot spot news, three North Carolina siblings who had recently visited Upstate South Carolina now have measles infections, according to an update from the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. 
    • “The family had visited Spartanburg County, South Carolina, where there is a large ongoing measles outbreak approximately 1-2 weeks before the children became sick,” North Carolina officials said.
    • “South Carolina has reported 211 cases associated with an outbreak in the Upstate region.”
  • Per a National Institutes of Health news release,
    • “A research team supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has found that conditions known to cause nerve damage, or neuropathy, disrupt a crucial energy-transfer process between special support cells called satellite glial cells (SGCs) and the sensory neurons they surround. The investigators discovered that the energy producing machinery of cells, known as mitochondria, are transferred through tiny tubes that form between the SGCs and neurons. They found that this transfer became obstructed in animal models of chemotherapy and diabetes, while restoring it attenuated pain behavior and promoted nerve regeneration after nerve injury. 
    • “The results of this study highlight a new avenue for potential neuropathy treatments and provide insight into how some of the body’s most energy-hungry cells are powered.” 
  • Per Cardiovascular Business,
    • “Patients with active cancer who undergo transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) are associated with short- and mid-term outcomes comparable to those without cancer, according to new findings published in the International Journal of Cardiology. Long-term mortality rates appear to be higher for cancer patients, though there is considerable variability from one type to the next.
    • “Cancer and aortic valve stenosis (AS) are among the leading causes of mortality in developed countries,” wrote first author Mark Kheifets, MD, a researcher with the cardiology division at Rabin Medical Center in Israel, and colleagues. “Advances in cancer diagnosis and treatment have significantly improved survival rates in recent years, leading to a growing number of patients diagnosed with both cancer and AS. Additionally, individuals with a history of cancer treatments, particularly those exposed to chest radiation, face an elevated risk of developing AS. Although severe AS portends a similarly poor prognosis as cancer without treatment, managing AS in patients with cancer may pose unique challenges, as these individuals are often frail, burdened with multiple comorbidities, and may experience increased thrombogenicity due to malignancy and its treatments. Furthermore, they are often prone to lower hemoglobin and platelet counts, increasing their risk of bleeding complications.”
  • The Society of Actuaries released a report last month titled “Quantifying the Effects of Mental Health on U.S. Suicide and Mortality Rates.”
    • “Key findings include:
      • “Strong geographic clustering: Neighboring counties show highly correlated mortality and suicide outcomes, confirming that regional social and economic context meaningfully influences risk.
      • “Socio-economic disparities: County-level education, housing prices, and marriage rates are among the strongest predictors of suicide risk, though effects differ by age and sex. Higher education and home values are generally associated with reduced suicide risk for men but have mixed or opposite effects for women in later life.
      • “Mental health as a leading indicator: County-level mental health distress is consistently associated with higher mortality and suicide rates. The relationship is most pronounced among youth and young adults.
      • “Temporal persistence: Spatial and temporal correlations suggest stable, long-term regional patterns in both overall mortality and suicide.”
  • BioPharma Dive tells us,
    • “GSK and Ionis Pharmaceuticals said their experimental hepatitis B medicine succeeded in two Phase 3 trials, offering patients what might be a “functional cure” for the disease.
    • “In releases issued Wednesday, the companies didn’t provide details on the effects seen in the B-Well 1 and B-Well 2 studies. The drug, bepirovirsen, met the primary endpoint in both trials and “demonstrated a statistically significant and clinically meaningful functional cure rate,” the companies said.”

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

  • HHS’s Agency for Healthcare Quality and Research reports,
    • “In 2024, average [U.S. employer sponsored] health insurance premiums were $8,486 for single coverage, $16,931 for employee-plus-one coverage, and $24,540 for family coverage, representing increases of 3.7, 4.9 and 2.5 percent, respectively, from 2023.
    • “Average employee contributions in 2024 increased from the previous year by 9.1 percent for single coverage ($1,789) and 5.2 percent for employee-plus-one coverage ($4,707).
    • Average deductibles for single plans increased by 8.0 percent to $2,085 and average family deductibles increased by 8.8 percent to $4,063 from 2023 to 2024.
    • “The offer rate, total number of enrollees and take up rates did not change significantly overall or by firm size from 2023 to 2024.
    • “Over the period from 2008 to 2024, offer rates declined by over 10 percentage points among small firms, from 61.6 percent in 2008 to 50.5 percent in 2024.
    • “From 2008 to 2024, the overall take-up rate fell by 9.7 percentage points (from 78.7 to 69.0 percent) and take-up rates fell by similar amounts in small and large firms.”
  • BioPharma Dive relates,
    • “Eli Lilly is deepening its investment in inflammatory diseases, spending $1.2 billion to buy Ventyx Biosciences for an experimental drug that has the potential to treat an array of immunological conditions. 
    • “The Indiana-based manufacturer of obesity drug Zepbound announced Wednesday it will spend $14 per share to buy Ventyx, which in October reported promising data for an oral immune disease drug code-named VTX3232.
    • “The per-share figure represents a 62% premium to Ventyx’s average trading price for the 30 days ending Jan. 5. News of the pending acquisition was first reported by the Wall Street Journal on Tuesday, sending shares close to the value Lilly ultimately paid.
  • Fierce Healthcare informs us,
    • “Eli Lilly has dominated headlines in recent months, recently taking the crown as the most valuable company in the biopharma industry by market cap. And the song remains much the same in analytics firm Clarivate’s Drugs to Watch 2026 report.
    • The annual outlook, which identifies (PDF) 11 potential blockbusters and transformative medicines, highlights two cardiometabolic treatments from the Indianapolis company, which have yet to be approved but could ultimately take the place of its current cash cows Mounjaro and Zepbound.
    • “Lilly’s investigational treatments are daily GLP-1 pill orforglipron, which is slated for an FDA decision by March of this year, and triple-action, weekly injection retatrutide, which Clarivate expects will be ready for launch in 2028.
    • “Both assets are under development in obesity, diabetes and a host of other related indications.” 
  • Adam Fein, writing in his Drug Channels blog, lets us know,
    • “For 2025, brand-name drugs’ average list prices grew by only 3.5%, but net prices declined. When manufacturers’ rebates and discounts are factored in, drugs’ average net prices—both before and after inflation—fell. Details and additional commentary below.
    • “As I have been predicting, the gross-to-net bubble is deflating due to the combined impacts of government actions and consumer behavior. 
    • “For 2024 and 2025, manufacturers reduced the wholesale acquisition cost (WAC) list prices for more than 20 brand-name drugs. For 2026, manufacturers will cut prices on at least 15 more drugs, which will reduce gross brand-name revenues by $35 to $40 billion. List prices are dropping by –25% to –85%.
    • “The data leave no doubt: the bubble is finally leaking air. We are entering the Net Pricing Drug Channel (#NPDC)—a market environment in which net prices, not list prices, drive access, economics, and strategy. 
    • “The NPDC will reward simplicity, punish rebate dependence, and force every channel participant to rethink how money actually moves. Time to get ready.”
  • Per Beckers Hospital Review,
    • “PAI Pharma has acquired Nivagen Pharmaceuticals in a move it said was aimed at expanding the domestic supply of sterile injectable drugs.
    • “Nivagen operates a recently built aseptic manufacturing facility in Sacramento, Calif., that produces IV bags, vials, prefilled syringes and cartridges. The acquisition brings more than 20 ready-to-use injectable products into PAI’s pipeline, complementing its existing portfolio of 10 sterile products in development and four currently on the market, according to a Jan. 6 PAI Pharma news release.
    • “Company leaders said the acquisition extends PAI’s focus on quality and reliability into hospital-focused injectable therapies — a drug class frequently affected by shortages in the U.S. healthcare system.”
  • and
    • “Rock Regional Hospital in Derby, Kan., has permanently closed after a federal judge allowed its eviction to proceed, ending a months-long legal battle over unpaid rent, according to NBC affiliate KSN.com.
    • “Rock Regional Hospital is permanently closed,” the hospital wrote in a Jan. 7 Facebook post. “There is no emergency care available at this location. If you are experiencing a medical emergency, please call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department.”
  • Per MedTech Dive,
    • “STAAR Surgical shareholders have voted to reject Alcon’s revised acquisition offer after a contentious proxy battle.
    • “The maker of implantable lenses for the eye intends to terminate its merger agreement with Alcon, STAAR said Tuesday, based on the preliminary results from a special shareholder meeting. Final results from the meeting will be reported in a regulatory filing. Neither company will pay a termination fee.
    • “STAAR said it would remain a stand-alone, publicly traded company.”
  • Fierce Healthcare tells us,
    • “OpenAI continues its push into healthcare with the launch of ChatGPT Health, a new feature that connects its AI chatbot with users’ medical records and wellness apps for more personalized answers to medical questions.
    • “People already are using publicly available AI chatbots to ask healthcare-related questions. More more than 800 million regular users of ChatGPT, 1 in 4 submits a prompt about healthcare every week, according to OpenAI. More than 40 million turn to ChatGPT every day with healthcare questions, according to an OpenAI report.
    • “OpenaI says ChatGPT Health builds on this so the AI chatbot’s responses are informed by users’ health information and context, the company said in an announcement. 
    • “Users can now securely connect medical records and wellness apps—like Apple Health, Function and MyFitnessPal—so ChatGPT can help them understand recent test results, prepare for appointments with their doctor, get advice on how to approach diet and workout routines, or understand the tradeoffs of different insurance options based on healthcare patterns, the company said.
    • “The new feature has additional, layered protections designed specifically for health, including purpose-built encryption and isolation to keep health conversations protected and compartmentalized, OpenAI said. Conversations in Health are not used to train OpenAI’s foundation models, the company said.
    • “The company said it was designed in close collaboration with physicians. ChatGPT Health is designed to support, not replace, medical care, and it is not intended for diagnosis or treatment, the company said.”

First FEHBlog Report of 2026

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

Happy New Year!

From Washington, DC

  • OPM Director Scott Kupor added a post to his Secrets of OPM blog about return to office policies.
  • Federal News Network reports,
    • “The specifics of a larger federal pay raise for law enforcement officers are coming into view, following President Donald Trump’s directive to offer a 3.8% salary increase for certain positions.
    • “In a memo Wednesday, the Office of Personnel Management established new “special salary rates” for federal law enforcement personnel [December 31], as a way to implement the bigger raise for 2026.”
  • MedPage Today tells us,
    • “The FDA approved tradipitant (Nereus), an oral neurokinin-1 (NK-1) receptor antagonist, to prevent vomiting induced by motion in adults, Vanda Pharmaceuticals announcedopens in a new tab or window Tuesday.
    • “The approval marks the first new drug treatment for motion sickness in over four decades and signifies an advancement in understanding motion sickness mechanisms, the company said.”

From the judicial front,

  • Federal News Network reports,
    • “The Trump administration is facing a new legal complaint from a group of government employees who are affected by a new policy going into effect Thursday that eliminates coverage for gender-affirming care in federal health insurance programs.
    • “The complaint, filed Thursday [with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission] on the employees’ behalf by the Human Rights Campaign, is in response to an August announcement from the Office of Personnel Management that it would no longer cover “chemical and surgical modification of an individual’s sex traits through medical interventions” in health insurance programs for federal employees and U.S. Postal Service workers.
    • “The complaint argues that denying coverage of gender-affirming care is sex-based discrimination and asks the personnel office to rescind the policy.” * * *
  • Bloomberg Law informs us,
    • “Drugmakers Eli Lilly & Co., Novo Nordisk Inc., and Sanofi-Aventis US LLC and pharmacy benefit managers such as Express Scripts won’t face certain civil fraud claims in connection with alleged price-fixing of diabetes treatment drugs.
    • “The plaintiff health benefit managers and trusts were barred from asserting civil claims under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act because they didn’t directly purchase the drugs, but rather reimbursed their members for the cost, the US District Court for the District of New Jersey said Tuesday.
    • “The “indirect purchaser rule” developed by the US Supreme Court in the antitrust context holds that Clayton Act plaintiffs may not demonstrate injury by providing evidence only of indirect purchases.
    • “Judge Brian Martinotti said the rule also applies in RICO cases, citing recent decisions from the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit applying it in factual situations similar to that alleged here because RICO’s private cause of action was modeled on the Clayton Act.”

From the public health and medical / Rx research front,

  • Due to New Years Day falling on a Thursday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released their respiratory news update last Tuesday, December 30.
    • “As of December 30, 2025, the amount of acute respiratory illness causing people to seek health care is at a high level for the first time in the current 2025-2026 season.
    • “Seasonal influenza activity is elevated and continues to increase 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.”
  • STAT News relates,
    • “Babies who don’t get their first round of vaccines on time at 2 months of age are much less likely to get vaccinated against measles, mumps, and rubella by age 2, according to a new study that suggests pediatricians may have a narrow window in which to persuade parents to follow the recommended childhood vaccination schedule. 
    • “The study, published Friday in JAMA Network Open, reports that in the post-Covid-19 pandemic period, babies who didn’t get their shots on time at 2 months — the age at which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends babies get vaccines against a host of diseases — were more than seven times more likely not to receive their first measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) shot by age 2, which is months later than when that shot is supposed to be given. Babies are supposed to get their first MMR shot between 12 months and 15 months of age, with a second sometime between the ages of 4 and 6.
    • “There’s evidence from this study that very early vaccination delays lead to later vaccination delays and even missed vaccination for measles,” said Nina Masters, an epidemiologist who is the lead author of the paper. “This shows that hesitancy is really starting early and has a long arc.”
    • “And as we look at a really bad measles year, it’s really important to do whatever we can to try to increase measles vaccination coverage.” 
  • Healio tells us,
    • “Early-onset preeclampsia was associated with increased risk for delayed early-childhood development in the domain of problem-solving among preterm children, researchers reported.
    • “Although other domains of child development were affected by hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) and its subtypes, the relationships were not statistically significant, according to data published in JAMA Network Open.
  • MedPage Today recounts what happened with bird flu in 2025.
  • The Wall Street Journal lets us know,
    • “Move over weight loss and dry January. There’s a new popular New Year’s resolution in town: Enter the digital detox.
    • “Some people are aiming to reduce overall screen-time or social-media use (including yours truly). Others want to carve out regular no-screen days—OK, maybe more like time periods—or days or retreats.
    • “A survey by the digital-wellness app Opal (granted, a bit of a biased audience) found that 33% of 1,306 users said reducing screen times and being more present was their top New Year’s resolution, compared with 28% who aimed to lose weight. 
    • “Even teens are voicing a desire to reduce screen time. A Boston Children’s Digital Wellness Lab report cited results from a survey of more than 1,500 teens and found that 63% said they use their phones too much and 47% said they used apps or tools to manage phone use. 
    • “It’s high time we all cut down. There are growing signals it’s bad for our mental health—especially among adolescents and young adults.
    • “A recent study in JAMA Network Open found that when young adults did a social-media detox for a week they had a reduction in anxiety and depression symptoms, as well as less insomnia.”
  • The Washington Post points out,
    • A fatty particle can clog arteries just as surely as cholesterol but often goes undetected, striking seemingly healthy people unaware of the danger. Though tests are widely available, they aren’t routinely ordered — in part because there are no approved treatments for the genetic disorder.
    • Now, cardiologists waging a campaign against lipoprotein(a) say they are reaching a turning point. Five experimental drugs are in late stages of development and aim to prove that lowering levels of Lp(a) — pronounced “L-P-little-A” — reduces heart attacks and strokes. Results from the most advanced clinical trial are expected in the first half of 2026.
    • “Cardiologists, drugmakers and Wall Street analysts are optimistic that these new drugs can effectively treat a disorder that is estimated to affect about 20 percent of the world’s population. Even if they prove effective, the cost of a novel drug — as well as the scant public awareness of Lp(a) — could be a barrier to treating patients who might benefit.
    • “There are over a billion people on our planet that have elevated lipoprotein levels and that are at increased risk,” said Steve Nissen, a cardiologist at Cleveland Clinic whose team is leading trials on four drugs targeting Lp(a). “We will have a massive educational job to do.”

From the U.S. healthcare business front,

  • Fierce Healthcare reports,
    • “Hartford HealthCare closed its $86.1 million purchase of two Connecticut cate care hospitals, the 249-bed Manchester Memorial and its 109-bed Rockville campus, plus their related assets, from bankrupt Prospect Medical Holdings on Jan. 1.
    • “The transaction comes after the system spent months securing regulatory and state approvals, which involved commitments to maintain certain services and limit its rate negotiations with payers during the next few years. The most recent of these, an agreement with Connecticut Attorney General William Tong, came on Dec. 29
    • “Hartford HealthCare said it also plans to invest $225.7 million over three years into the hospitals and their communities. These efforts, as highlighted in this week’s announcement, include additional hiring, stronger outpatient and ambulatory care services, 24/7 virtual primary care offerings and the reopening of a 30-bed behavioral care unit at Rockville.”
  • Reuters relates,
    • “Drugmakers plan to raise U.S. prices on at least 350 branded medications including vaccines against COVID, RSV and shingles and blockbuster cancer treatment Ibrance, even as the Trump administration pressures them for cuts, according to data provided exclusively by healthcare research firm 3 Axis Advisors.
    • “The number of price increases for 2026 is up from the same point last year, when drugmakers unveiled plans for raises on more than 250 drugs. The median of this year’s price hikes is around 4% – in line with 2025.
  • Genetic Engineering and BioTechnology News calls attention to “Seven Biopharma Trends to Watch in 2026.”
  • Beckers Clinical Leadership tells us
    • “Of the 650 U.S. hospitals designated as “Magnet” hospitals for nursing excellence, about 5% have earned the recognition more than six times. 
    • “The American Nurses Credentialing Center awards Magnet recognition to hospitals based on their quality of patient care and nursing excellence. As of Dec. 31, 33 hospitals have received six or more Magnet designations — representing just 0.54% of the nation’s 6,093 hospitals.”
    • The article lists those 33 hospitals by State.