A Hack At UnitedHealth Hits Pharmacy Services Across Country

Reuters: Pharmacies Across US Disrupted Following Hack At Change Healthcare Network
Pharmacies across the United States are experiencing disruptions following a hack at UnitedHealth's technology unit, Change Healthcare, several pharmacy chains said in statements and on social media. The problems began on Wednesday after a "suspected nation-state associated cybersecurity threat actor" gained access to Change Healthcare's information technology systems, UnitedHealth said in a filing on Thursday. (Satter and Roy, 2/23)

Modern Healthcare: Healthcare Data Breaches In 2024 Have Exposed 11.6M People
After a record 133 million individuals had their healthcare data stolen or otherwise exposed in 2023, the first few months of 2024 suggest there's no letup in data breaches. As of Thursday, about 11.6 million people had their data exposed this year from 79 reported breaches affecting 500 or more individuals, according to the Health and Human Services Department's Office for Civil Rights breach portal. (Broderick, 2/22)

On industry employment news —

Axios: Health Care Employment Picture Still Strong
Job openings in health care and social services last year hit the second highest rate since data began to be collected in 2001, and the employment picture remained strong in January, especially in ambulatory care settings and hospitals. The findings from Altarum reinforce just how much the health industry is fueling a robust labor market, even as it's beset by churn and high levels of worker burnout. (Bettelheim, 2/23)

The Hill: More Women Than Ever Are Becoming Doctors. Here’s Why There Are Still So Few
In recent years, female medical students have begun outnumbering their male peers. As of the 2023-2024 school year, they make up more than 55 percent of students in the country’s M.D.-granting programs, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges. The ranks of female doctors have also been steadily increasing. In 2007, just over 28 percent of practicing physicians in the country were women. By 2021, the most recent year for which the American Medical Association (AMA) has data, more than 37 percent were. (O’Connell-Domenech, 2/22)

CIDRAP: Female Pediatricians Report More Stress During Pandemic
A new study from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) finds that female US pediatricians reported worse anxiety, sadness, and stress at work than their male colleagues, and the differences were more pronounced during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study, published today in Pediatrics, was based on survey responses gathered during the AAP Pediatrician Life and Career Experience Study, which asked questions about career satisfaction and wellbeing from 2012 to 2021 among cohorts of 2002–2004 and 2009–2011 pediatric residency graduates. (Soucheray, 2/22)

In other industry news —

Stat: Neurocrine Biosciences, Biotech Based In San Diego, Joins PhRMA
Neurocrine Biosciences, a biotech company based in California, has joined the drug lobbying organization PhRMA, the group announced on Thursday. The addition is a step toward rebuilding PhRMA’s ranks after high-profile departures that followed the passage of Democrats’ drug pricing law, though both Neurocrine and the other company that joined since are smaller than those that exited. (Cohrs, 2/22)

Stat: Community Health Systems Hospitals Under DOJ Investigation
Community Health Systems is facing a new federal probe into its hospital billing practices more than four years after the hospital chain settled separate allegations of fraudulent overbilling. (Herman, 2/22)

Modern Healthcare: HHS Settles With Green Ridge Behavioral Health 
Green Ridge Behavioral Health in Gaithersburg, Maryland, has agreed to a settlement with the federal Health and Human Services Department's Office for Civil Rights concerning a ransomware attack. According to a news release issued Wednesday, the $40,000 settlement is only the second time OCR has reached an agreement with a Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act-regulated entity for potential violations identified during an investigation following such a breach. (Turner, 2/22)

Reuters: Novavax Settles Dispute With International Vaccine Group Gavi
Novavax (NVAX.O), opens new tab has agreed to pay back international vaccine group Gavi at least $475 million in cash or vaccines by the end of 2028, settling a dispute over canceled orders that created financial uncertainty for the U.S. maker of COVID-19 shots. Shares of the company rose 23.2% to $4.91 on Thursday. (Erman, 2/22)

The CT Mirror: Athena Health Care Systems Owes $750K To CT Cities
Athena Health Care Systems, one of the largest nursing home chains in Connecticut, owes more than $750,000 in taxes, utility costs and interest on missed payments to municipalities, records show. (Carlesso and Altimari, 2/23)

Reuters: Healthcare Startup Abridge Raises $150 Mln For AI Model For Clinicians
Abridge, a startup building artificial intelligence-powered clinical documentation tools, has raised $150 million in a Series C round, the company told Reuters, as more investors seek exposure to industry-specific generative AI applications. The funding, led by Lightspeed Venture Partners and Redpoint Ventures, valued Abridge at about $850 million. The company last raised funds just four months ago and was then valued at over $200 million, according to PitchBook data. (Hu, 2/23)

Stat: Abridge Raises $150m As Clinical Notes Automation Market Heats Up
A Pittsburgh artificial intelligence startup emerging as a challenger to Microsoft’s clinical note taking business has raised $150 million, a rare mega deal in a funding lull. The startup, Abridge, also has an unlikely cheerleader: Paul Ricci, the former head of Nuance, the service from Microsoft it competes with. (Ravindranath, 2/23)

Modern Healthcare: Nuance Competitor Abridge Closes $150M Series C 
Abridge, a generative artificial intelligence-driven clinical documentation company, announced late Thursday it had raised $150 million in Series C funding. As one of the largest rounds in the past six months, the infusion of capital could cast a glimmer of hope on a digital health market insiders said was bound for a "reckoning" this year. (Turner, 2/22)

Reuters: Teleflex Beats Quarterly Profit Estimates On Strong Demand For Medical Devices
Teleflex (TFX.N), reported fourth-quarter profit above Wall Street estimates on Thursday, on the back of strong demand for its medical devices and surgical equipment. ... The manufacturer of hospital supplies and single-use medical devices reported a 2.1% rise in revenue from a year earlier to $773.9 million for the quarter ended Dec. 31, compared with estimates of $768.7 million, according to LSEG data. (2/22)

Reuters: Moderna Reports Surprise Profit, Sets Out Road Map For RSV Vaccine
Moderna (MRNA.O), opens new tab on Thursday reported a surprise fourth-quarter profit, helped by cost cutting and deferred payments, and set out a commercial roadmap for its vaccines in Europe and experimental respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) shot. Shares jumped 8% to $94.65 in early trading, still well off the record high of $497.49 hit during the peak of the COVID pandemic in 2021.Waning demand for COVID vaccines and anticipation of a loss for 2023 led to a steep decline in Moderna's shares last year. (Wingrove and Leo, 2/22)

Reuters: Weight-Loss Drugs Could Boost US GDP By 1% In Coming Years, Goldman Says
The widespread use of powerful new weight-loss drugs in the United States could boost gross domestic product by 1% in the coming years as lower obesity-related complications are likely to boost workplace efficiency, according to Goldman Sachs. Some analysts have predicted the market for weight-loss drugs could reach $100 billion a year by the end of the decade, with Ozempic maker Novo Nordisk (NOVOb.CO), opens new tab and Mounjaro producer Eli Lilly (LLY.N), opens new tab leading the race. (2/22)

Obituaries —

The New York Times: Roger Guillemin, 100, Nobel-Winning Scientist Stirred By Rivalries, Dies
Roger Guillemin, a neuroscientist who was a co-discoverer of the unexpected hormones with which the brain controls many bodily functions, died on Wednesday at a senior living facility in San Diego. He was 100. His death was confirmed by his daughter Chantal Guillemin. Dr. Guillemin’s career was marked by two spectacular competitions that ruffled the staid world of endocrinological research. (Wade, 2/22)