Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Boom Continues In Digital Health
Modern Healthcare: Digital Health Funding Hit $7.2B In Q1
Digital health companies globally raised a collective $7.2 billion in this year's first quarter, a sizeable jump from both the previous quarter and 2020's first quarter, according to a new report from market research firm Mercom Capital Group. Here are four funding trends to take away from the quarter: 1. Q1 2021 represented a massive jump from previous quarters. In terms of funding dollars, 2021's first quarter marked a 60% rise quarter-over-quarter from $4.5 billion raised in 139 funding deals in 2020's fourth quarter. It also marks a 100% rise year-over-year from $3.6 billion raised in 142 deals in 2020's first quarter. (Kim Cohen, 4/19)
Bloomberg: Women’s Digital Health Startups Reap Record VC Funding On Covid Surge
Once considered too niche or risky by the venture capital community, women’s health startups have seen a surge in investments as the Covid-19 pandemic pushed more services online. Funding for women-focused digital-health startups rose 105% last year to $418 million and was spread across 22 companies, nearly twice the number from a year earlier, according to Rock Health, a San Francisco-based seed and early-stage venture fund. The firm tracks deals of $2 million or more among U.S.-based digital-health companies. It counts 55 companies in the "femtech" category, which includes those that tackle issues such as reproductive health, maternal care and chronic disease. (Davalos, 4/19)
In other health care industry news —
Modern Healthcare: HHS Allocates $145 Million To Health Center Look-Alikes To Fight COVID-19
Community-based healthcare providers will get $145 million from HHS to support their response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the agency said Monday. The funding is for so-called "health center look-alikes," providers that deliver primary care services to underserved communities and vulnerable populations but don't get health center grants from HHS. They can use it to slow the spread of the virus, strengthen vaccine efforts and improve healthcare services and related infrastructure. The new spending is part of the $7.6 billion that Congress gave HHS to help community health centers fight COVID-19 under the American Rescue Plan. (Brady, 4/19)
Atlanta Journal-Constitution: ETSU Offering Online Forensic Nurse Certificate
East Tennessee State University’s College of Nursing has added a forensic nurse certificate to its lineup of online programs. The post-baccalaureate certificate is for nurses who want to expand their knowledge beyond the training acquired as a sexual assault nurse examiner — or SANE — nurse. The course examines how intentional human violence intersects with health care and the criminal justice system, while integrating forensic science and social services, ETSU’s website states. (Clanton, 4/19)
Stat: The Future Of Voice Tech In Medicine Is Here. Can It Live Up To The Promise?
Microsoft’s high-profile of acquisition of Nuance Communications is a seeming win for patients and providers. The voice recognition company, which sells artificial intelligence solutions that can listen to clinical conversations and auto-populate electronic health records, has the potential to dramatically improve care by removing frequent sources of digital friction. (Palmer, 4/20)
Modern Healthcare: Stanford Alleges Anthem Owes $1.9 Millon Under Implied Contract
Stanford Health Care sued Anthem in federal court on Friday, alleging the insurer's failure to pay nearly $2 million owed under a national, reciprocal claims network violates an implied contract between the two. The not-for-profit health system claimed its physicians cared for six patients insured under Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Indiana plans from 2018 to 2020, but they still haven't received full reimbursement for their "usual and customary" rates. Anthem operates Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans in 14 states, including Indiana. (Tepper, 4/19)
KHN: UVA Health Will Wipe Out Tens Of Thousands Of Lawsuits Against Patients
University of Virginia Health System, which for years has sued thousands of patients annually for unpaid bills, said Monday it will cancel a massive backlog of court judgments and liens resulting from those lawsuits dating to the 1990s. Combined with reforms UVA announced in 2019, the move is likely to benefit tens of thousands of families and make UVA Health’s collections policies much more generous than those of many hospital systems, said scholars who study health care finance. The decision to wipe out liens that can drain home equity years after a hospital visit is extremely rare, they said. (Hancock, 4/20)
