With HCA Deal, Piedmont Would Own The Most Hospitals In Georgia

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Piedmont Healthcare To Buy Four Hospitals From HCA
In the state’s latest hospital consolidation move, Piedmont Healthcare has signed an agreement to buy four Georgia hospitals from HCA Healthcare for $950 million. If the sale is approved by regulators, Piedmont would acquire Coliseum Medical Centers and Coliseum Northside; Eastside Medical Center; and Cartersville Medical Center. That would leave the Piedmont system with 15 hospitals, more than any other healthcare system in Georgia. Plus, the new locations would extend Piedmont’s geographic reach by making it a major player in Macon, and adding Snellville and Cartersville to its system. (Teegardin, 5/3)

AP: Medical Equipment Venture To Invest $150M, Hiring 1,200
A company that makes personal protective equipment will open two factories near Lafayette, hiring more than 1,200 people. SafeSource Direct made the announcement Monday, saying it would invest $150 million in the venture. The company is a joint venture of Jefferson-based Ochsner Health, Louisiana’s largest hospital system, and Trax Development. SafeSource Direct will make and sell equipment to health care and other industries in Louisiana and nationwide. (5/3)

Stat: Roivant Sciences To Go Public Through $7.3 Billion SPAC Deal 
Roivant Sciences, the biotech company once pitched as a Berkshire Hathaway for the pharmaceutical industry, is going public, merging with a blank-check company at a $7.3 billion valuation. In a deal disclosed Monday, Roivant will combine with a special-purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, called Montes Archimedes Acquisition Corp., founded by private equity investor Jim Momtazee. Roivant gets the $411 million Montes raised in its initial public offering last year, plus another $200 million in new financing from a group of investors that includes Fidelity, Viking Global, SoftBank, and Palantir Technologies. (Garde, 5/3)

Axios: CVS Launches $100 Million Venture Capital Fund 
CVS Health launched a new $100 million venture fund called CVS Health Ventures with plans to invest in digital health startups. With nearly 10,000 retail locations around the U.S. and its Aetna subsidiary serving more than 22 million members, any investment by CVS Health has some serious potential for scale. (Reed, 5/3)

The Wall Street Journal: SmileDirectClub Shares Fall After Company Reports Cybersecurity Incident 
SmileDirectClub Inc. said a cyberattack last month disrupted the company’s operations and will hurt its sales this quarter. The disclosure sent shares lower in after-hours trading. The company, which sells teeth-straightening retainers, said in a securities filing that it was able to isolate the hack by shutting down affected systems and related manufacturing operations. (Nakrosis, 5/3)

Health News Florida: More Money Targeted To Tampa's Moffitt Cancer Center
A tax package approved Friday by Florida lawmakers is expected to lead to the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center receiving millions of additional dollars each year. The bill (HB 7061), includes changing a formula for distributing cigarette tax revenues. The Senate in March approved a stand-alone bill (SB 866) on the issue, with the change then included in a broad tax package negotiated by House and Senate leaders. (5/3)

Modern Healthcare: Medline Invests $1.5 Billion In Domestic Healthcare Supply Chain
Medline invested $1.5 billion to bolster the domestic supply chain, the Northfield, Ill.-based supplier announced Monday. Medline added new distribution centers, U.S.-based manufacturing plants and upgraded its technology over the past three years, which created 8,500 jobs, eight new distribution centers, nearly 150 manufacturing expansion projects and a new digital ordering platform, the organization said. The company plans to spend an additional $500 million this year as part of the initiative. (Kacik, 5/3)

360Dx: Clinical Labs Report Sharp Declines In Coronavirus Molecular Testing
Over the last year, SARS-CoV-2 molecular testing has proved a boon for clinical labs, boosting their bottom lines even as routine testing volumes dropped during the pandemic. Recent financial reports from large national labs, however, show sharp declines in SARS-CoV-2 testing since the start of the year, indicating that this business is on the wane. During Labcorp's Q1 2021 earnings call this week, the company said that while it had averaged 112,000 molecular COVID-19 tests per day throughout the quarter, by the end of the quarter it was averaging around 80,000 tests per day. (Bonislawski, 5/3)

Also —

Stat: Here Are 5 Virtual Physical Therapy Startups To Watch
Virtual physical therapy could almost be considered an oxymoron. Physical therapy, key to recovering from surgery or maintaining the strength and flexibility needed to deal with chronic pain, has traditionally put a premium on in-person instruction and can include hands-on massage and manipulation of the musculoskeletal system. And yet virtual physical therapy and rehabilitation clinics are multiplying and pulling in hefty investments. (Palmer, 5/4)

Stat: How A Startup Beat Health Care Heavyweights To Win Medicare’s AI Contest
A $1 million government contest to predict health problems with artificial intelligence attracted the heavyweights of industry and beyond — from Mayo Clinic, to IBM, to the data and consulting powerhouse Deloitte. But the winner of Medicare’s AI health outcomes challenge is a lesser-known startup from Austin, Texas, called ClosedLoop.ai. The company, whose victory was announced late Friday, bested 300 rivals with a system capable of forecasting adverse health events by crunching an array of data on patients. (Ross, 5/3)