A pilot program backed by the US Businesses Leadership Network, Pfizer, WellPoint and others is hoping to provide additional resources for employers and employees to maintain a healthful and productive return to the workplace after a cancer diagnosis. The Workplace Transitions for People Touched by Cancer is a $250,000 pilot that will take place with […]
A cohort of big players in connected health is joining three former senators in pursuit of policy that supports broad use of telehealth and remote patient monitoring. Former U.S. Senate majority leaders Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) and Trent Lott (R-Miss.), along with former Sen. John Breaux (D-La.), are heading up the Alliance for Connected Care, which […]
Some 10 million Latinos stand to gain health insurance under the ACA, and Univision is positioning itself as a direct path to this potentially lucrative market.
“Coin-toss medicine” was the preferred term that Dr. Samuel Nussbaum used on Wednesday to describe the problems with today’s healthcare system. Nussbaum, the chief medical officer and executive vice president, clinical health policy at WellPoint Inc. (NYSE:WLP), was referring to a study by the RAND Corporation which found that patients treated for asthma and other […]
In an effort to ensure a smooth integration of its most recent acquisition, WellPoint (NYSE:WLP) will reorganize into four business units, including distinct units for Medicare and Medicaid. The Indianapolis insurer agreed to buy Amerigroup in July for $4.9 billion, a move that will boost its presence in the Medicaid market. Bloomberg reported that interim […]
Company name: SoloHealth Inc. Industry: Digital health. Location: Duluth, Georgia. Solution/product: The SoloHealth Station is a free, touch-screen kiosk that lets consumers in high-traffic retail locations monitor their blood pressure, central vision and weight, complete a health-risk assessment and use a symptom checker as well as identify and contact local physicians, or create an account […]
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
In the not-too-distant-future, Dr. Jim Woodburn says, patients can reach their doctors on the phone. If that doesn’t sound too impressive, consider this: The doctor can literally see the patient, access medical histories, listen to heartbeats and check the eyes, ears, nose and throat — all from the other side of the country. “Telemedicine is […]
Highlights of the important and the interesting from the world of healthcare: Wellpoint suffers third security glitch of last 3.5 years: A security glitch at a WellPoint website may have publicly exposed the medical records and credit card numbers of about 470,000 customers, the third such breach the Indianapolis-based health insurer has reported in the […]
Highlights of the important and the interesting from the world of healthcare: Wellpoint bets on telehealth: Wellpoint plans to join UnitedHealthcare in offering online video chat services to members, another signal that telehealth’s long-awaited time might finally be here. Wellpoint’s telehealth program, which uses American Well’s software, will be offered in “select areas”–meaning the company […]
Highlights of the important and the interesting from the world of healthcare: VCs look to skirt proposed tax changes: While it’s far from certain that the proposal will pass Congress, changes may be coming to tax laws that would treat profits by venture capital and private equity firms like profits by, uh, just about everyone […]
Munck Wilson Mandala Partner Greg Howison shared his perspective on some of the legal ramifications around AI, IP, connected devices and the data they generate, in response to emailed questions.
Highlights of the important and the interesting from the world of healthcare: What makes a healthcare expert? The Health Care Renewal blog isn’t happy about the media portraying leaders of healthcare organizations who have no clinical experience as experts in the field of healthcare. The blog’s Dr. Roy M. Poses points to one Boston Herald […]
Highlights of the important and the interesting from the world of healthcare: Why we must change how primary care docs get paid: A study of how primary care doctors at one Philadelphia practice spend their time yields some disturbing results, and further shows why primary care is becoming a less-and-less desirable field to enter. Each […]
“Are you ready to listen about the demise of our industry?” one med tech executive asked another at today’s LifeScience Alley luncheon. “Yes, I’m morbidly interested,” the other joked back. Such gallows humor pervades the medical device industry these days. And not without good reason. For months, I’ve heard panelist after panelist, expert after expert, […]
NovoLogix Inc. is not the easiest company to understand. But it does have a colorful past and an intriguing future. Once a $400 million force in the home-health care market, the former Ancillary Care Management has remade itself into a software-as-a-service company that focuses on helping payers manage claims relating to fast growing demand for […]
In a country seemingly founded on the idea that competition is a universally Good Thing, you'd think the U.S. would have a decent amount of competition in our health insurance markets. Not so much.
