This week’s top healthcare news.
Healthcare market update.
Coronavirus updates.
The latest numbers.
- 1,535,123 infected; 91,306 deaths in the U.S.
- 4,713,620 infected; 315,185 deaths globally. (View more data)
- Brazil is set to become #2 in coronavirus infections.
Current Status.
All 50 states have started to re-open, but each one has its own plans on how best to do so.
- Here’s a state-by-state guide from the NY Times on which states have re-opened what. States are preparing for a potential second wave of cases.
Testing and Prevention stuff.
An Atlantic report indicated that four states, along with the CDC, were combining antibody tests and viral tests to report COVID cases – which inflates the total number of cases while under-representing mortality rates.
- Apple and Google released contact tracing tech to health authorities this week. Child vaccinations dropped 63% in New York. HHS is allowing pharmacists to provide COVID-19 testing, contrary to state policies. A major study is planning to test people for antibodies in 25 major metro areas.
Economic stuff.
The coronavirus has drastically reduced U.S. healthcare spending.
- States and individuals are shifting their focus from health to economic fallout and jobs lost from the lockdown.
Bailout stuff.
HHS is sending about $5 billion in bailout cash to skilled nursing facilities soon. Each facility will get $50k plus $2,500 per bed.
- Remember that the CARES Act funding comes with strings attached.
Other stuff.
Coronavirus lockdowns succeeded in stopping the flu in its tracks, too.
- And in preparation of a second COVID wave, pharmacies are also ramping up production of flu vaccinations to prevent a double whammy.
Healthy Muse Visuals
In this week’s infographic post, we talk about public healthcare firms receiving relief funds and healthcare market performance by sector.
Healthcare things to know.
SmileDirectClub is frowning at NBC.
SmileDirectClub, the recently-IPO’d direct-to-consumer dental brand, is suing NBC for $2.8 billion claiming that the media giant intentionally made misleading claims about the firm through a series of stories describing customer complaints, safety issues, and dentists’ warnings.
After NBC started its reporting, SmileDirectClub lost $950 million in market cap value.
- Read the full WSJ article here (paywall).
J&J stops selling talc baby powder.
- Amid controversy after controversy involving Johnson & Johnsons talc-based products and their links to cancer, J&J announced its intention to end the sale of talc products in the U.S. I guess they’ve had enough with the court cases.
The return to elective procedures.
Elective surgeries are finally returning to hospitals and health systems.
Hospitals are welcoming this news with open arms: April was the worst month ever for hospital operating margins.
- According to Kaufman Hall, operating margins fell 282%. 282%!!!!
To visualize this loss, just look at this national hospital volume tracker, which analyzed 51 systems in 40 states and found huge losses in almost every volume category.
- Or you can take a look at the Commonwealth Fund’s analysis that shows similar trends.
W.H.O do you think you are?
After suspending the U.S. portion of World Health Organization funding, the White House is threatening to permanently end that funding altogether. I’m sure you’re aware of the politics going on behind the scenes between the U.S. and China.
The latest: HHS along with 116 other countries are calling for an impartial investigation into the WHO’s conduct during the pandemic and whether it handled the situation appropriately.
- With funding up in the air, the World Health Organization is in a PRETTY sticky situation between the U.S. and China.
Will telehealth’s growth continue?
Last week we talked about Teladoc’s stupid high growth during COVID, and they’re not the only telehealth vendor killing it. But will the boom last?
Just this week, patients are returning to in-office visits while telehealth growth plateaus.
- I saw a tweet that summed things up nicely – COVID probably jump-started telehealth adoption by 10 years and while it might not ever replace in-office visits, the service will be a nice and convenient supplement for an increasingly digital world.
The biggest question is whether payors continue to see value in telehealth, and it seems as if they are. Just this week, BCBS of Tennessee made telehealth coverage permanent.
Quick Hits
Biz Hits
- The home health industry is getting closer to reimbursement for telehealth visits.
- ACOs are increasingly being led by physician groups rather than health systems.
- Haven, in disarray after the departure of its two top executives, hasn’t stemmed the rise of employer medical spending.
- Watch this video: why the healthcare industry might not rebound to its former size. (WSJ)
- Optum is buying Navihealth, a post-acute management platform, for over $1 billion.
- Check out Fortune 500’s 2020 list, including the forty largest healthcare companies around.
- Microsoft’s 1st industry-specific cloud product is for healthcare.
State Hits
- Two coasts, one virus. How New York suffered 10x the number of deaths as California. (ProPublica)
- As we’ve talked about in previous editions, states are facing a potential crisis over looming Medicaid growth.
Other Hits
- Inside the underground market of face masks. (WaPo)
- The pandemic is Hurting Pediatric Hospitals, too.
- An unseen side effect from the shutdown: fewer traffic fatalities, and fewer organ donations.
- Google AI system can assess the risk of age-related macular degeneration development.
- Trump’s vaccine chief has ties to the drug industry, posing possible conflicts. (NY Times)
- The health care industry’s winners and losers in the midst of the pandemic. (Fortune)
- Even before COVID-19, U.S. nursing homes were plagued by infection control issues.
- Trump still wants a drug pricing solution.
Thought-Provoking Editorials
- Hospitals are busier than ever – and going out of business. (Stat)
- What the coronavirus crisis reveals about American medicine. (New Yorker)
- Post-Pandemic Solutions: A Public Option for Universal Healthcare (The Healthcare Blog)
- What to expect when a vaccine finally arrives. (NY Times)
My favorite reads from this week:
- Hospitals are busier than ever – and going out of business. (Stat)
- What the coronavirus crisis reveals about American medicine. (New Yorker)
- Amid the Coronavirus Crisis, a Regimen for Re-entry (New Yorker – Atul Gawande)
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