Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
After Months Of Turmoil, Envision Healthcare Files For Bankruptcy Protection
Modern Healthcare: Envision Healthcare Files For Bankruptcy
Physician staffing company Envision Healthcare filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Monday, and said it reached agreements with certain of its key lenders. Nashville, Tennessee-based Envision said it entered into a restructuring support agreement for about $7.7 billion in debt. Amsurg, its ambulatory surgery unit, and Envision Physician Services will be owned separately. Envision will sell its surgery centers to Amsurg for $300 million plus a waiver of intercompany loans held by Amsurg, according to court filings. (Hudson, 5/15)
More financial developments —
Philadelphia Inquirer: Thomas Jefferson University Lost $117 Million In Nine Months
Thomas Jefferson University on Monday reported a $117 million operating loss for the nine months that ended in March — nearly three times bigger than the loss for the comparable period a year ago. Jefferson is typically the first of the not-for-profit health systems in the Philadelphia region to report quarterly financial results to municipal bondholders. Experts expect results for the March quarter to show that many health systems are still struggling financially because their costs have outpaced revenue growth and federal COVID aid has stopped. (Brubaker, 5/15)
Modern Healthcare: CommonSpirit Cuts Jobs, Narrows Quarterly Loss
CommonSpirit Health is dealing with fallout from rising costs and lower patient acuity—challenges that have forced the nonprofit Catholic system to centralize functions and cut jobs. The Chicago-based system said Monday it has cut leadership and administrative roles at the divisional and national levels, although it did not specify how many positions were affected. A spokesperson declined comment. (Hudson, 5/15)
Modern Healthcare: CVS Health Clinical Trials Division To Close
CVS Health's time as a clinical trials operator is coming to a close three years after the company ventured into medical research. The company began its collaboration with pharmaceutical companies in 2021 and will shut it down at the end of 2024. To date, CVS Health has worked with more than 30 drugmakers on 50 phase II, II and IV studies involving 33,000 participants. (Hartnett, 5/15)
In other health care industry news —
USA Today: Kentucky Doctor Accused Of Impairment Wins Lawsuit Vs Baptist Health
It was the worst nightmare for any doctor — let alone a resident just a couple of years out of med school. After a routine appointment with two children at Baptist Health Medical Group in Madisonville, Kentucky, the children’s mother reported that Dr. John M. Farmer was impaired. Her evidence that day — Nov. 4, 2019 — was that Farmer was “touching his nose a lot.” An attending physician, Dr. Kenneth Hargrove, who also saw the patients insisted that Farmer was not impaired. “He is twitchy, but that is Dr. Farmer,” Hargrove said. (Wolfson, 5/15)
Stat: Ketamine Clinics' Struggle A Warning For Psychedelic Therapy
A chain of luxury ketamine clinics called Field Trip started churning through business strategies at an increasingly rapid pace late last year. The money was running out, clinics were half full, and the company’s vice president of clinical services was under intense pressure to launch an at-home ketamine service. It was a challenging assignment, figuring out how to safely provide a sedative to depressed patients away from clinic supervision, but Elizabeth Wolfson said senior leaders gave her just a week or two, telling her to “hurry up and do it.” (Cueto and Goldhill, 5/16)
Also —
Global Newswire: Dr. Edna Adan Ismail Wins 2023 Templeton Prize
The winner of the 2023 Templeton Prize is Dr. Edna Adan Ismail, a nurse-midwife, hospital founder, and healthcare advocate who has worked courageously to change cultural, religious, and medical norms surrounding women’s health in East Africa, improving the lives of thousands of women and girls in the region and beyond. ... Her many achievements include the founding of the Edna Adan University and Edna Adan Hospital, which has significantly reduced maternal mortality in Somaliland, and her tireless campaign to end female genital mutilation (FGM) around the world. (5/16)
