Know What's Happening in Healthcare
Know What's Happening in Healthcare
FDA approves KRESLADI, first CIRM‑backed gene‑editing therapy
The FDA cleared KRESLADI, a gene‑editing treatment from Rocket Pharmaceuticals for severe leukocyte adhesion deficiency‑I in children, eliminating the need for a bone‑marrow donor. It is the first product directly funded by California’s Institute for Regenerative Medicine to receive approval.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Syneron Bio raises $150M Series B
The Hill‑Burton Act funded over 300,000 new hospital beds between 1948 and 1975, doubling U.S. hospital capacity. This public‑sector expansion coincided with a sharp decline in out‑of‑hospital births, falling from 14% to 1%, and a 50% reduction in infant mortality. The authors’ difference‑in‑difference analysis shows that grants to public hospitals drove these improvements, especially for non‑white mothers, while private non‑profit grants had no detectable effect.
President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi discussed a $40 billion U.S. nuclear investment and pledged cooperation on drug‑pricing reform. Japan plans a 4% cut to total drug spending, further lowering reimbursements for new medicines. The article warns that...
Marken UPS Healthcare Precision Logistics argues that sustainability, safety, and precision delivery are the new competitive differentiators in pharmaceutical logistics. The company is rolling out carbon‑neutral transport, renewable‑energy‑powered warehouses, and AI‑driven routing to cut emissions and improve speed. Real‑time IoT...
The Trump administration is moving to curb Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr.'s controversial public‑health agenda as the 2026 midterm elections approach. White House officials have imposed tighter oversight of HHS, citing disorganization, a delayed measles response, and backlash over mental‑health grant...
Scientists led by Anastasia A. Kobelyatskaya and Alexey Moskalev unveiled AI models that estimate biological age from routine blood tests and gut microbiome profiles with a mean absolute error of about six years. The models, validated on 637 participants, promise...
Chinese researchers publishing in Science demonstrated that administering pain medication in sync with the body's circadian rhythm markedly improves analgesic outcomes. The findings link daytime‑heightened pain sensitivity to the hypothalamic clock and explain why 85% of chronic‑pain sufferers also develop...
Enlicitide, a once‑daily oral PCSK9 inhibitor, lowered LDL cholesterol by as much as 60% in a phase 3 trial of 2,909 high‑risk adults. The results, published in The New England Journal of Medicine, could shift cholesterol management from injections to...
Sessa Capital purchased 10.63 million Sotera Health shares for an estimated $175.8 million, giving the firm a controlling interest in the sterilization and testing provider. The deal lifts Sessa’s Sotera position to roughly $206 million, reflecting both the purchase and recent stock gains.
Prenuvo announced that its full‑body MRI service now includes a laboratory blood panel and three new membership tiers ranging from $1,199 to $4,499 annually. The expansion adds 1.3 billion data points per scan and promises earlier detection of life‑threatening conditions in...
A new KFF survey shows 80% of returning Affordable Care Act marketplace enrollees report higher premiums, deductibles or cost‑sharing after enhanced subsidies expired. Average annual premiums are projected to rise 114% to about $1,904, driving 55% of respondents to cut...
Insmed Inc. announced that its Phase 3b ENCORE trial of ARIKAYCE in patients with new Mycobacterium avium complex lung infection met its primary and all secondary endpoints, showing significant improvements in culture conversion and symptom scores. The data sparked a...
Apogee Therapeutics' shares jumped 19% to $78.78 after the company released Phase‑2 APEX Part A results for its atopic dermatitis candidate, zumilokibart (APG777). The data showed 75‑85% of patients maintained EASI‑75 and 78‑86% achieved vIGA 0/1, prompting market enthusiasm and...
Edith Cowan University researchers have piloted a 20‑minute virtual reality de‑escalation program, I‑VADE, with 221 nursing students, finding a statistically significant boost in confidence for managing aggressive patients. The immersive training emphasizes communication, situational awareness, and decision‑making, and captures interaction...
China's National Medical Products Administration has granted approval for the world's first commercially available implantable brain‑computer interface (BCI). Developed by Shanghai's Borui Kang Medical Technology, the system uses implanted electrodes to translate neural signals into commands for an assistive glove,...
My health insurance accidentally coded my annual physical incorrectly, and now I have a $622 bill, and they have rejected my appeal even though they know it's in error. What a wonderful healthcare system we have 😚
Singapore’s National Cancer Centre (NCCS) has launched a S$6 million (≈US$4.7 million) three‑year collaboration with precision‑oncology firm Lucence and A*STAR’s Diagnostics Development Hub to create UNITED 2.0, an AI‑powered cancer profiling test. The platform will combine whole‑exome and whole‑transcriptome sequencing, delivering a comprehensive...
Please give the vitamin K shot to your newborn. Their life (and yours) may just depend on it. pediatrician #newborn #parenting
A potentially game-changing discovery by @UCSF's Justin Eyquem @j_eyquem & colleagues – injecting cancer-fighting immune cells directly into the body kills several types of cancers in mice. Paper in @Nature: https://t.co/EXbsfx7whl Summary/video by UCSF: https://t.co/qLYXXvEDTV
Researchers at the University of Hong Kong have created CardiOmicScore, an AI-driven tool that integrates genomics, proteomics and metabolomics to predict cardiovascular disease risk. Using UK Biobank data, the model achieved C‑index values of 0.69‑0.82, markedly higher than traditional polygenic...
#WhosNext? Surgeons? Sony recently unveiled their new Surgical Robot by having it slice and stitch a kernel of corn. It can also auto-switch between its different tools, and has successfully been tested in animal surgery. #Robotics...
Meanwhile: Anecdotal data: "I spoke lots of doctors, they all said peptides are great and they like them"
Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand launched a two‑year genomics testing pilot with Illumina, targeting over 6,000 cancer and rare‑disease samples. The initiative seeks to localise roughly half of the 4,000 tests currently sent abroad, cutting the current $2.3 million annual overseas...
An internal HSE audit revealed that doctors running special waiting‑list clinics at Naas General Hospital were paid on a fee‑per‑patient basis, costing roughly $4,500 for a single clinic versus $1,200 under normal hourly rates – a $3,300 overpayment. The audit...
A new study in Radiology reveals that radiologists often cannot distinguish AI‑generated X‑ray images from authentic scans, with only 41% initially suspecting synthetic data. After being informed about the presence of deepfakes, participants correctly identified real versus fake images 75%...
A recent Molecular Psychiatry review highlights anesthetics as a promising new class of therapeutics for post‑traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It outlines how NMDA‑receptor antagonists, α2‑adrenergic agonists, GABA‑A modulators and certain opioids can modulate fear circuitry and memory reconsolidation. Pre‑clinical models...
Muse Capital partner Rachel Springate argues that pure direct‑to‑consumer (DTC) models rarely succeed in healthcare because they ignore insurance and system constraints. She highlights a hybrid approach where startups first attract consumers, prove outcomes, then integrate with payers and health...
![Insulin Resistance Is a Survival Mechanism, Not a Broken System [PODCAST]](/cdn-cgi/image/width=1200,quality=75,format=auto,fit=cover/https://kevinmd.com/wp-content/uploads/Design-1-1-scaled.jpg)
In a recent KevinMD podcast, metabolic educator Kevin Whitt argues that insulin resistance is not a disease but a natural survival mechanism explained by the 1963 Randle cycle. He contends that the mixed macronutrient Standard American Diet constantly activates this...
Twelve Senate Finance Committee Democrats unveiled a health‑care plan aimed at reversing recent premium spikes, simplifying enrollment, and curbing insurer profiteering. They cite the expiration of ACA‑enhanced premium tax credits, which caused average premiums to double, as a key driver...
Dana Erickson, CEO of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, resigned from Sutter Health's board on March 15, just before Sutter announced its proposed $26 billion acquisition of Allina Health. Erickson had been recused from any discussion of the deal...
CMS is broadening its accountable care organization (ACO) portfolio, but more than 90% of skilled nursing facilities remain excluded. Administrative hurdles and misaligned design keep fewer than 10% of SNFs in existing ACOs. Industry leaders propose a dedicated long‑term‑care ACO...
I found a Digital Health tool in our patient portal early in my wife's pregnancy. Even though I knew what it was, even though I literally build Digital Health tools for a living - we did NOT use it. Why? Because...
Even small differences in sleep, physical activity and nutrition (SPAN) can have significant favorable impact vs major adverse cardiovascular events @uk_biobank, >53,000 participants, median age 63 yrs https://t.co/iZJjENsOiM https://t.co/WNiGfGGDYL
Approximately 900 nurses at Northern Light Eastern Maine Medical Center have reached a tentative labor agreement, averting a planned March 23 strike. The contract delivers wage increases of 12% to 17% over three years, expands pay differentials, and imposes a...
UCI Health announced it will lay off about 150 workers, roughly 1% of its staff, as part of a strategic restructuring driven by federal funding cuts and shifting insurance reimbursements. The reductions target administrative, support and operational roles across its...
Humana and CommonSpirit Health have finalized a national three‑year Medicare Advantage agreement that restores CommonSpirit’s Colorado and Texas markets to Humana’s network. The deal, the result of nearly a year of negotiations, encompasses services, facilities and providers across the health...
President Trump’s nominee for surgeon general, Dr. Casey Means, faces a stalled confirmation as at least four Republican senators voice doubts about her medical credentials and anti‑vaccine positions. Means, a Stanford‑trained physician who never completed a residency and holds an...
WellSpan Health, now a 10‑hospital system after opening Newberry Hospital, credits its rapid expansion to a tightly knit CEO‑CFO partnership. President and CEO Roxanna Gapstur leverages deep clinical and operational experience, while CFO Laura Buczkowski brings 35 years of healthcare...
Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare has appointed Danielle Buchanan as vice president and chief communications officer. Buchanan previously served as senior marketing director for diagnostic services at Quest Diagnostics and spent nearly a decade leading marketing, communications, and media relations at TMH....
MRI‑guided TULSA ablation matches or exceeds robotic radical prostatectomy for intermediate‑risk prostate cancer. In the CAPTAIN trial of 211 patients, TULSA halved rates of erectile dysfunction and urinary incontinence, eliminated blood loss, and shortened hospital stays. Functional recovery was faster,...
The National Association of ACOs (NAACOS) sent a letter to CMS urging the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) to adopt innovations from other alternative payment models. Key proposals include introducing capitation payments, expanding voluntary beneficiary alignment, modernizing quality reporting with...
Volunteer piano player Jonathan Michael Alvarado was arrested after a Ring camera captured him inside an elderly resident’s room at La Mirada Heights senior living facility, where he allegedly raped a woman with dementia. The victim’s daughter filed a civil...
A new Securian Financial study finds that nearly two‑thirds of U.S. employees now rank cost above all other factors when selecting health benefits, driving a surge toward lower‑premium, high‑deductible plans. While these choices shrink monthly payroll deductions, 22% of respondents...
Medline, the nation’s largest private medical‑supplies maker, went public in December 2025, raising $6.26 billion at a valuation north of $50 billion, making it the year’s biggest IPO. The offering followed a 2021 leveraged buyout that valued the family‑owned firm at roughly...
The CDC’s Traveler‑Based Genomic Surveillance (TGS) program has surpassed one million voluntary participants since its 2021 launch, using anonymous nasal swabs and aircraft wastewater sampling at eight U.S. airports. The effort screens for COVID‑19, influenza, RSV, norovirus, adenovirus and mpox, delivering...
Geisinger CEO Terry Gilliland warned that rural Pennsylvania health systems face mounting pressure as federal HR 1 funding cuts loom. The state received $193 million from the Rural Health Transformation Program, below the $200 million national average, despite housing the third‑largest rural population....
The FDA has added explicit cardiovascular risk information, including heart‑attack warnings, to the labeling and Medication Guide for rosiglitazone (Avandia) and its combination products. The revised label restricts use to patients already on the drug or those whose blood sugar...
Sixteen years after its enactment, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) remains a cornerstone of American health policy. In a new CareTalk episode, the host and guests Diane Archer of Social Security Works and Louise Norris of HealthInsurance.org dissect the law’s...
The American Hospital Association released a new podcast series titled “Rethinking Primary Care to Support Medically Complex Patients,” featuring leaders from John Muir Health, Essentia Health, CommonSpirit Mercy Hospital, Hospital Sisters Health System, Beacon Health System, and the FBI. Episodes...
The Workgroup for Electronic Data Interchange (WEDI) announced a survey to assess how health‑care providers are delivering good‑faith cost estimates to uninsured and self‑pay patients under the No Surprises Act. The questionnaire, which will remain anonymous, seeks insight into implementation...
