Sleep Health: Circadian Rhythms and Sleep Disorders 101
The column highlights the massive burden of sleep disorders in the United States, noting that 83.7 million adults (32.4% of the population) have obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and that 30‑50% of adults suffer from insomnia, with women twice as likely as men. Approximately 80% of OSA cases and many insomnia cases go undiagnosed or untreated, contributing to cardiovascular, metabolic, and mental‑health risks. The piece emphasizes that most patients respond well to behavioral therapies such as CBT‑I and emerging orexin‑antagonist drugs, which can be delivered virtually. It also warns that alcohol, while shortening sleep onset, fragments deep sleep and worsens OSA.
Moderna in Talks with FDA over Phase 4 Covid Vaccine Data
Moderna is actively collaborating with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to submit Phase 4 post‑marketing data on its COVID‑19 vaccines. The company hopes the additional safety and efficacy evidence will persuade regulators to broaden the current, narrowed product labels that...
AI, Gene Therapies Drive Market Trends in Eye Care
In 2026 the ophthalmology market is being reshaped by gene‑therapy breakthroughs and the emergence of agentic AI, according to Boston Consulting Group’s Long Sha. Gene‑based treatments are moving beyond rare retinal disorders into chronic conditions such as wet age‑related macular...
Establishing Good Governance: Start with the Important Basics and Play the Long Game
Healthcare organizations increasingly recognize that robust board governance is essential for navigating financial strain, regulatory change, and emerging technologies like AI. The article outlines four foundational practices: establishing a Governance and Nominating committee, conducting biennial self‑evaluations, implementing proactive succession planning...
Mission, Margin and a Midterm Clock: Healthcare Signals to Watch
Healthcare leaders this week wrestled with the tension between mission and margin. Northwell Health accepted a 1.1% operating margin to fund a new behavioral‑health tower, while Epic’s founder emphasized profit as a side effect of a $6.7 billion revenue business. Tenet...
AI Is Forcing Even Insurance’s Most Cautious Players to Move Fast
AI is reshaping the insurance and healthcare sectors at a speed unprecedented for an industry built on caution. Jake Sloan, Appian’s VP of global insurance, highlighted that insurers can now move from pilot projects to full production in weeks, not...
Common Cholesterol Medications Do Not Alter Long-Term Dementia Risk
A massive target‑trial emulation study of more than 320,000 older adults found that statin use does not change long‑term risk of dementia. While statin users showed a 46% spike in dementia diagnoses during the first year after initiation, researchers attribute...
Battery-Free Skin-Conformal Wearable System Can Measure Electrocardiogram Signals
A research team led by Prof. Jerald Yoo at Seoul National University unveiled SkinECG, a skin‑conformal wearable that records electrocardiogram signals without a battery. The device uses an Orthogonal Energy Harvesting Network to wirelessly deliver power harvested from multiple on‑body...
Sequenex Announces Partnership with MedTech Innovator, Industry’s Leading Startup Accelerator
Sequenex announced a strategic partnership with MedTech Innovator, the world’s largest medtech accelerator, to support early‑stage companies developing connected medical devices. The 2026 accelerator will select 65 startups from a record 1,800 applications, and Sequenex will provide financial backing and...
Surgery Still Outperforms GLP-1 Drugs in Terms of Heart Health
A Mayo Clinic study of more than 800 patients compared metabolic and bariatric surgery (MBS) with GLP‑1 drugs such as semaglutide and tirzepatide. Surgery produced an average 28% weight loss versus 11% for medication and cut lifetime cardiovascular risk by...
Amgen Launches Late-Stage Obesity Trial in Patients Who Switch From Rival Drugs
Amgen is initiating three Phase III trials for its long‑acting obesity injection MariTide, including a pivotal study that enrolls about 1,200 patients switching from Eli Lilly’s semaglutide or Novo Nordisk’s tirzepatide. The primary goal is a minimum 10% body‑weight loss after 68 weeks,...
Faster and Easier Ways to Diagnose Mpox: New Approaches Improve Detection
A review in *Trends in Biotechnology* outlines new point‑of‑care (POC) diagnostic platforms for Mpox, highlighting isothermal amplification, CRISPR‑based assays, biosensors and AI‑enhanced lesion imaging. The authors argue these tools can approach PCR sensitivity while eliminating the need for complex labs....
Nemours Children’s Health Breaks Ground on Multispecialty Facility
Nemours Children’s Health broke ground on a new 34,000‑square‑foot multispecialty pediatric facility in Viera, Melbourne, Florida. The center will host roughly two dozen services, ranging from allergy and cardiology to oncology and orthopedics. Construction is set to begin this summer...
CMS Bets on Tech as US Healthcare Hits ‘Inflection Point’
CMS deputy administrator Chris Klomp told the Chamber of Commerce that the U.S. health system is at an inflection point and urged private‑sector innovators to bring commercial tech solutions to Medicare. He highlighted two new CMS initiatives: the ACCESS Model,...
Harris Teeter Carries More GLP-1 Med Weight
Harris Teeter announced that its pharmacies will now carry a broader selection of GLP‑1 weight‑loss medications and related treatments. The expansion includes pharmacist and registered dietitian counseling, as well as assistance with manufacturer savings programs such as Eli Lilly’s KwikPen card. In‑store...
First Psychiatric Admission Marks the Beginning of a Long-Term Illness for Most Patients
A 20‑year Danish cohort study of 150 young adults found that 95% of individuals admitted to a psychiatric ward either returned for readmission or remained in long‑term treatment. Diagnoses of schizophrenia and schizotypal disorder proved highly stable, while personality‑disorder labels...
High-Intensity Exercise After Breast Cancer Surgery May Help Speed Recovery
A recent study presented to the American Society of Breast Surgeons found that high‑intensity resistance training can accelerate recovery after breast‑cancer surgery. Nearly 200 women who had lumpectomies, mastectomies or lymph‑node removals completed a three‑month program, lifting up to 200 lb....
WHO Member States Agree to Extend Negotiations on Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing Annex
Member States of the World Health Organization agreed to extend negotiations on the Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing (PABS) annex, a cornerstone of the WHO Pandemic Agreement, to allow more time for technical and legal refinement. The outcome will be...
CMS’ Medicare Provider Directory Released Social Security Numbers: Washington Post
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) inadvertently exposed dozens of healthcare providers' Social Security numbers in its publicly accessible Medicare Advantage provider directory. The Washington Post discovered the leak after downloading the database, which had been open for...
Maine Health System Lays Off 38 IT Staff After EHR Upgrades
Central Maine Healthcare in Lewiston is cutting 38 IT positions as it retires legacy systems and rolls out a new Epic MyChart portal for patient scheduling. The layoffs follow Prime Healthcare Foundation’s February acquisition, which has already begun modernizing the...
Trice Imaging Accelerates Growth in Women’s Health Sector
Trice Imaging unveiled a suite of upgrades to its FDA‑cleared Tricefy platform, adding dynamic reports synced with growth charts, expanded patient history capture, and a revamped Single Sign‑On security module. The company announced new market‑access partnerships with ModMed’s synapSYS and...
Breast Cancer in Young Women: Rani Bansal, MD, Discusses Subtypes, Disparities, and the Importance of Self-Advocacy
In a recent AJMC interview, Duke oncologist Dr. Rani Bansal highlighted that breast cancer rates are climbing fastest among women under 50, driven primarily by estrogen‑receptor‑positive tumors. She noted that African‑American patients disproportionately develop aggressive triple‑negative disease, which limits targeted...
One Mississippi Health System's Journey to a System-Wide Epic EHR
South Central Regional Medical Center launched a system‑wide Epic electronic health record across five sites, tackling fragmented legacy systems and data silos. The "Race to Epic" framework aligned clinicians, administrators, and IT staff around clear milestones, shared accountability, and intensive...
2 Post-Acute Groups React to Bill to Improve CNA Training
The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living praised the reintroduced Ensuring Seniors’ Access to Quality Care Act, a bipartisan bill aimed at easing certified nursing assistant (CNA) shortages. The legislation would let nursing homes resume in‑house...
Study: 1 in 3 Children with Autism Were Diagnosed by a PCP
A new study of Medicaid claims from 2017‑2019 found that nearly one‑third of children diagnosed with autism were identified by primary care providers (PCPs) rather than specialists. Analyzing 36,263 children across 29 states, researchers reported a national PCP diagnosis rate...
32 Hospitals Closing Departments or Ending Services
Since the start of 2024, Becker’s Hospital Review has documented 32 U.S. hospitals shutting down or scaling back specific departments, ranging from burn units and obstetrics to emergency and pediatric services. The closures span 20 states and are driven by...
F.D.A. Grants Early Access to Promising Drug for Pancreatic Cancer
On May 1, the FDA granted expanded‑access permission for daraxonrasib, an experimental oral drug from Revolution Medicines, allowing patients with previously treated metastatic pancreatic cancer to obtain the therapy outside clinical trials. The drug, taken as three pills daily, has produced...
New-Onset Loneliness Triggers an Accelerated Drop in Cognitive Health
A new analysis of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing finds that older adults who first report loneliness experience a rapid acceleration in cognitive decline compared with peers who remain socially connected. Researchers matched 635 newly lonely participants with 1,900...
Regulatory Actions for May 1, 2026
BioWorld released a comprehensive “Regulatory Actions for May 1, 2026” roundup, collating FDA, EMA and other global regulator updates across biopharma, medical technology, and policy domains. The collection links to data snapshots, infographics on digital analysis, and special reports covering topics such...
Accountable Care Leaders Spotlight Next Phase of AI at NAACOS 2026 Spring Meeting
At the NAACOS Spring 2026 meeting in Baltimore, leaders highlighted the transition of AI from pilot projects to operational tools across accountable care organizations. CMS announced a voluntary health‑tech ecosystem that standardizes identity‑verified data exchange and links patient‑facing AI apps...
Pharmacy Deliveries Take Flight: Can Drones Solve America’s Pharmacy Access Gap?
Drone delivery of medications is moving from pilot testing to early operational use across the United States. Federal Aviation Administration Part 135 certification now permits beyond‑visual‑line‑of‑sight flights, enabling compensated, temperature‑controlled shipments to remote patients and health‑system hubs. Studies estimate between 15.8 million...
BrightSpring Aims for Organic Growth Following Amedisys Location Acquisitions
BrightSpring Health Services posted a strong first quarter, with consolidated revenue of $3.64 billion, a 25.6% year‑over‑year increase. The provider services segment, which includes home health and hospice, grew 28% to $422 million, and daily patient census rose 52% to 46,056....
FDA Permits Expanded Access for Investigational Pancreatic Cancer Drug
The FDA issued a “safe to proceed” letter to Revolution Medicines, enabling an expanded access protocol for its experimental pancreatic cancer drug daraxonrasib. The request, received on April 28 and signed on April 30, targets patients with previously treated metastatic pancreatic ductal...
New York Behavioral Health Advocates Rally at Capitol, Win Support of 100+ Legislators for Critical Funding Increase
The Mental Health Association of New York State (MHANYS) and 11 partner organizations launched the “Photo for 4%” campaign, drawing more than 100 state legislators to the Capitol to endorse a targeted 4% inflationary increase in the FY 2026‑27 budget. Advocates...
‘Orchestra of Therapies’ Required for Most SSc Patients
At the 2026 Congress of Clinical Rheumatology East, Dr. Janet Pope emphasized that most systemic sclerosis (SSc) patients require a multi‑modal treatment strategy rather than monotherapy. She highlighted FDA‑approved sotatercept‑csrk for pulmonary arterial hypertension and the effectiveness of combining PDE5...
Stryker Cyberattack ‘Meaningfully’ Impacted Q1
Stryker reported first‑quarter sales of $6 billion, a 2.6% year‑over‑year increase that fell short of its typical 10‑12% growth pace. The slowdown stems from a March 11 cyberattack that shut down ordering, shipping and manufacturing for several weeks, wiping 40,000 laptops...
Redo TAVR: Supra-Annular, Intra-Annular Valves Linked to Comparable Outcomes
A study of 172 redo transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR‑in‑TAVR) procedures from the international PANDORA registry shows comparable one‑year outcomes regardless of whether the initial and second valves are supra‑annular or intra‑annular. The median interval between the index and redo...
Cost Management, Outpatient Unit Helped Tenet Weather Volume Headwinds in Q1
Tenet Healthcare posted $702 million profit on $5.4 billion revenue in Q1, beating Wall Street forecasts despite a 90‑basis‑point drop in acute‑care volumes and a 0.3% dip in outpatient admissions. The operator’s cost‑management program and a strong performance from its ambulatory surgical...
AHA Federal Funding Requests Include Workforce Development for Rural Communities
The American Hospital Association (AHA) has asked Congress to allocate federal funds for 2027 healthcare workforce programs, targeting the chronic staffing gaps in rural America. In letters to House and Senate leaders, the AHA, representing roughly 5,000 hospitals and clinicians,...
Patients Facing Barriers to Care Most Likely to Be No-Shows
A scoping review of 22 U.S. dermatology studies identified young age, minority race/ethnicity, lack of insurance and limited English proficiency as the strongest predictors of patient no‑shows. Adults 19‑25 were 2.3 times more likely to miss appointments, while Black and Hispanic...
Acelyrin Founder Shao-Lee Lin Emerges at Cue, as It Becomes Latest to License From China
Cue Biopharma announced a strategic reboot, appointing Acelyrin founder Shao‑Lee Lin to its executive team and unveiling a new allergy drug candidate sourced from research labs in Taiwan and mainland China. The Boston‑based company, previously focused on T‑cell immunotherapies, will...
Aster DM Targets 15,000 Beds by FY30 Post Merger with Quality Care
Aster DM Healthcare is finalizing its merger with Blackstone‑backed Quality Care by the end of June 2026. The combined company plans to boost its operating margin from the current 21% to roughly 23‑24% within three years. Management projects adding over...
Save the Date: Premium Subscriber-Exclusive Post-Hoc Live
Endpoints News announced a premium‑only Post‑Hoc Live event that will break down Q1 earnings after a deal‑heavy first quarter. The live session promises real‑time analysis, interactive Q&A with analysts, and deeper insight into the companies that drove the quarter’s performance....
How BJC HealthCare Got Better at Advanced Care Planning Discussions
BJC HealthCare, a 14‑hospital system, built a machine‑learning algorithm to flag patients at high risk of dying within 30 days and trigger opt‑out advanced care planning (ACP) conversations. By standardizing provider training and embedding the workflow across inpatient, ICU, primary‑care...
Q&A: AI Platform Targets Clinical Chart Insights Beyond LLM Limits
Dyania Health’s Synapsis AI platform tackles clinical chart review by answering precise, context‑driven questions rather than producing generic summaries. The system was built on roughly 25,000 physician‑annotated hours and is designed to surface nuanced signals for care decisions, trial eligibility, and...
China Never Actually Removed Homosexuality From Its Official List of Mental Disorders
The article debunks the long‑held belief that China removed homosexuality from its official mental‑disorder list in 2001. In fact, the Chinese Classification of Mental Disorders‑3 (CCMD‑3) retained "homosexuality" as a diagnosis, labeling it "not necessarily abnormal" while still allowing conversion‑therapy...
The 'Broken Handoff' Leaving Retirees Lost on Medicare Choices
Retirees exiting employer‑sponsored health plans often receive only a COBRA notice, leaving a "broken handoff" to Medicare advisers. Without coordinated guidance, many miss the initial enrollment window, incurring lifelong premium penalties and suboptimal plan choices. The issue affects roughly 10,000...
Microbiome-Based Therapy Gains FDA Fast Track in Ulcerative Colitis
Belgium‑based MRM Health announced that its investigational microbiome‑based therapy MH002 has been granted FDA fast track designation for mild‑to‑moderate ulcerative colitis. MH002 is a live biotherapeutic composed of six defined commensal bacterial strains designed to restore gut microbial balance and...
CAQH Index Finds $20 Billion in Cost Savings Opportunities
The 2025 CAQH Index, which surveys 600 provider organizations covering 63% of insured lives, estimates over $20 billion in cost‑saving opportunities if automation of medical and dental workflows is expanded. Electronic prior‑authorization adoption rose to 40%, while other electronic processes remained...
FDP, Palantir and Global Counsel: Under Mandelson's Long Shadow
The NHS’s Federated Data Platform (FDP) was awarded to US data‑analytics firm Palantir in 2023. A letter highlights that Palantir hired Global Counsel, a lobbying firm co‑founded by former Labour minister Peter Mandelson, who was recently dismissed as the UK’s ambassador...