Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Workplace Violence Nearly 5 Times More Likely For Health Care Workers
Hospitals and clinics remain among the most violent workplaces in America, continuing to strain health workers in the aftermath of the pandemic experience. The situation is bad enough that the American Hospital Association and the FBI last week announced that they're collaborating on resources to help hospitals make threat assessments and work to mitigate risks. (Goldman, 10/30)
Walgreens Boots Alliance is laying off more employees in another round of corporate personnel聽cuts.The struggling pharmacy chain is laying off 256 employees, or 3.6%, of its support center team employees and cutting about 215 open and unfilled roles, Walgreens spokesman Fraser Engerman confirmed Tuesday in a statement to Crain鈥檚. (Davis, 10/29)
CVS Health's MinuteClinic is becoming an in-network primary care provider for select Aetna plan members. Aetna commercial, individual and family health plan members in San Antonio, Houston, Atlanta and south Florida have the option to use MinuteClinic as an in-network primary care provider, with members in North Carolina becoming eligible in the coming weeks, said Dr. Creagh Milford, retail health president at CVS Health. (Hudson, 10/29)
If you don鈥檛 have health insurance, you should know that there鈥檚 a place you can go starting Nov. 1 to shop and find 鈥渢he best deal in town鈥 on a health insurance policy. That place is Covered California, and two-thirds of the 5.9 million state residents who have signed up for a health plan at the site pay a monthly premium of $10 or less for a health plan that covers them if their families experience unexpected medical challenges. That monthly payment of $10 or less buys peace of mind, said U.S. Rep. Ami Bera, a physician and Elk Grove Democrat who鈥檚 had to counsel patients who didn鈥檛 have insurance. (Anderson, 10/30
Pennsylvania Attorney General Michelle Henry filed a civil lawsuit Tuesday against Prospect Medical Holdings for its alleged mismanagement of Crozer Health facilities. The attorney general's office is seeking a preliminary injunction to preserve existing service lines and the appointment of a receiver to manage Crozer's facilities until a new owner is secured, Henry said at a Tuesday press conference. (Hudson, 10/29)
A group of聽clinicians brought together over an interest in聽venture capital has evolved into a full-fledged investment firm.聽Scrub Capital, a digital health-focused venture capital firm, publicly launched on Tuesday after six months of operating quietly. The firm, which has 650 clinician members, is setting聽the target for its first fund at $10 million and will invest in digital health and medical device companies.聽(Turner, 10/29)
麻豆女优 Health News: Florida Medical Device Maker Exactech Declares Bankruptcy
Exactech, a Florida device manufacturer that faces more than 2,000 state and federal lawsuits from patients who allege the company sold defective hip and knee implants, filed for bankruptcy protection Tuesday. The Gainesville-based company said in a statement it was restructuring and would be sold to an investor group of private equity and 鈥渁lternative asset鈥 firms, which would provide about $85 million in financing to fund the company鈥檚 operations. (Schulte, 10/29)
麻豆女优 Health News' Bill of the Month: Toddler鈥檚 Backyard Snakebite Bills Totaled More Than A Quarter Million Dollars
This spring, a few days after his 2nd birthday, Brigland Pfeffer was playing with his siblings in their San Diego backyard. His mother, Lindsay Pfeffer, was a few feet away when Brigland made a noise and came running from the stone firepit, holding his right hand. She noticed a pinprick of blood between his thumb and forefinger when her older son called out, 鈥淪nake!鈥 (Forti茅r, 10/30)
Also 鈥
People struggling with compulsive behavior around love and sex have long been the brunt of sleazy jokes and lurid misrepresentation. TV shows and movies use sad, so-called sex addicts sitting on folding chairs in support groups as punchlines. But cultural stigmas around sex and love 12-step programs are being challenged by a rising generation of young women active in recovery 鈥 and on social media. (Ulaby, 10/30)
麻豆女优 Health News: Listen To The Latest '麻豆女优 Health News Minute'
鈥淗ealth Minute鈥 brings original health care and health policy reporting from the 麻豆女优 Health News newsroom to the airwaves each week. (10/29)