Breaking News

The World Health Organization has updated its Model Lists of Essential Medicines and Essential Medicines for Children, adding drugs for cancer, diabetes, obesity and other conditions.  Among the additions are GLP-1 receptor agonists semaglutide, dulaglutide and liraglutide, along with tirzepatide, used to treat Type 2 diabetes and obesity, according to…

The Federal Trade Commission on Sept. 5 voted 3-1 to dismiss its appeals in two legal challenges to its 2024 rule banning noncompete agreements in employment contracts. On Sept. 5, the agency dismissed appeals in Ryan, LLC v. FTC and Properties of the Villages v. FTC and acceded to the…

Hospitals nationwide could see annual revenue losses of up to $25 billion through Medicaid losses stemming from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, according to a new analysis from Kodiak Solutions. The law, passed July 4, cuts about $1 trillion from Medicaid over the next decade, making it the largest…

Jesup, Ga.-based Wayne Memorial Hospital said it received a ransom note after a June 2024 cyberattack that allowed hackers to access some patient information. In a Sept. 7 notice filed with the Maine attorney general’s office, the hospital said an unauthorized party gained access to its network, encrypted some files…

Mass General Brigham, based in Somerville, Mass., and eGenesis have received FDA approval for a clinical trial testing genetically engineered pig kidneys.  The trial will evaluate the safety, tolerability and efficacy of EGEN-2784, a genetically engineered pig kidney, after 24 weeks post-procedure, according to a Sept. 8 news release from…

Key Takeaways Mainstreaming genetics – Testing now guides real-time treatment. New care models – Clinicians empowered, workflows optimized. Education & coverage – Training gaps and reimbursement hurdles persist. AI with oversight – Scales insights but needs human validation. Genetic testing is rapidly moving genomics from a niche specialty to becoming…

Omaha, Neb.-based CHI Health is building its own pipeline of clinical support staff through a new program that offers free training, certification and guaranteed employment to aspiring certified nursing assistants.  The goal of the CNA Advance Program is twofold: Develop an internal pipeline of highly skilled CNAs and strengthen support…

Sweeping policy changes are reshaping reimbursement and funding, putting unprecedented pressure on operating margins. Hospitals can no longer afford inefficiency in how they manage costly assets like operating rooms, staffed beds or infusion chairs. The stakes are high: patient access, financial stability, and community trust all hang in the balance.…

West Plains, Mo.-based Ozarks Healthcare will roll out digital preregistration and health forms for patients beginning Sept. 15.  The system serves more than 160,000 residents across an eight-county region in south-central Missouri and northern Arkansas. Its 114-bed hospital and affiliated clinics will be part of the rollout. Patients will be…

The fall mortality rate among older adults in the U.S. has more than tripled over the last 30 years, despite steadily decreasing in other high-income countries, according to an opinion paper published Aug. 8 in JAMA Health Forum.  One possible explanation for the discrepancy could be the higher level of…

Cliff Megerian, MD, has served as CEO of Cleveland-based University Hospitals for nearly five years, overseeing a $6.4 billion health system that spans 21 hospitals across 22 counties in Northeast Ohio. Under his leadership, the system has prioritized growth, culture and a redefined patient experience rooted in hospitality — a…

Officials with the Florida Department of Health anticipate new rules to end school-based vaccine requirements to take effect in 90 days, beginning with chickenpox and immunizations for other diseases.  On Sept. 3, the state’s surgeon general, Joseph Ladapo, MD, PhD, said Florida would move to scrap all vaccine mandates in…

Hospital finances continued to show signs of strain in July, with national operating margins slipping from recent highs and profitability pressures mounting. Nationally, average margins are still up year over year for nonprofit hospitals, but digging deeper into operating revenue and expenses shows challenges. “While performance has generally been strong…

Hawaii is the happiest state while West Virginia comes in at the bottom of the list, according to a Sept. 8 report from WalletHub.  The personal finance website determined a state’s happiness level using data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the CDC and other publicly…

Health systems gauge financial strength on a variety of metrics, with one of the key indicators being days cash on hand. While the average days cash on hand has improved in the last year, according to Strata’s “Performance Trends Report: Market Insights from Q2 2025,” eminent changes to the Medicaid…

During a Sept. 4 Senate Finance Committee hearing with HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden said that impending healthcare cuts from the recently passed One Big Beautiful Bill are already having a lasting impact on communities, such as pushing hospitals to scale back critical services like…

As merger and acquisition activity picks up post-pandemic, dozens of large health systems are expanding their footprints — adding hospitals, building regional dominance and solidifying national reach. Here are 27 large health systems that have grown in quarters or are planning strategic mergers or acquisitions this year: Editor’s note: This…

One-third of companies across industries have reduced their planned salary budgets for 2025 due to economic uncertainty, according to a survey from Korn Ferry. While dozens of hospitals and health systems have announced pay raises for employees in 2025, some workers remain pessimistic about the likelihood of seeing a raise…

To increase patient safety, Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare takes staff on “field trips” to learn from other high-risk industries, such as chemical manufacturing, according to an American Hospital Association podcast published Sept. 3.  Randy Fagin, MD, chief quality officer of HCA, said the system is on par and above healthcare…

Executives across U.S. industries remain more optimistic about economic conditions than employees, according to a Sept. 4 LinkedIn News post. The findings are based on surveys of 1,903 U.S. employees conducted on LinkedIn between June 14 and 27, and 2,881 LinkedIn users at the vice president level or higher surveyed…

Here are five of the latest recalls and corrections reported to the FDA:  Ambu recalls SPUR II resuscitators due to blocked manometer port  Ambu is recalling specific lots of its SPUR II manual resuscitators because a blocked manometer port renders the manometer nonfunctional. The defect can prevent clinicians from monitoring…

A bipartisan bill in the U.S. House would permanently extend Medicare telehealth flexibilities that are set to expire Sept. 30. The Creating Opportunities Now for Necessary and Effective Care Technologies for Health Act of 2025, also called H.R. 4206, was introduced by Reps. Mike Thompson, D-Calif., David Schweikert, R-Ariz., Doris…

Healthcare added 31,000 jobs in August, below the monthly average of 42,000 over the past 12 months, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics latest report on U.S. employment trends.  The report pointed to a broader labor market slowdown. Overall, the U.S. economy added just 22,000 jobs — one of…

Cybercriminals are weaponizing AI agents to attack industries including healthcare, AI company Anthropic found. Hackers are using agentic AI to carry out sophisticated cyberattacks that would have previously required years of training, according to the Aug. 27 report. For instance, a cybercriminal employed Claude, Anthropic’s large language model, to extract…