Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Ferocious Trade Secrets Showdown Between UnitedHealth, Gawande-Led Initiative Hints At Broader Fight Over Future Of Industry
The Wall Street Journal: New Details On Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, JPMorgan Health Venture Emerge In Court Battle
Health giant UnitedHealth Group Inc. went to court Wednesday to try to stop a former executive from working for a company it sees as a competitor, the health-care venture launched last year by Amazon.com Inc., Berkshire Hathaway Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. The scope of the still-unnamed venture remains hazy beyond stated goals to improve health care and rein in costs for employees. But filings related to the case and court testimony offer some fresh clues about the closely watched effort, including that it may build its own solutions if what it needs isn’t available elsewhere. (Kamp and Wilde Mathews, 1/30)
Stat: In Court, Gawande's New Company, Optum Fight To Keep Their Own Secrets
The executive in the middle of an intense legal fight between UnitedHealth Group and the new health venture helmed by Dr. Atul Gawande testified Wednesday that he did not attempt to steal trade secrets from the United subsidiary, Optum, and was taken aback by the ferocity of the legal allegations against him. “I was fairly surprised by, frankly, all of this,” David Smith said in U.S. District Court in Boston, where Optum was seeking a temporary restraining order to prevent him from starting work for Gawande’s company, which was formed by Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway and JPMorgan Chase. (Sheridan and Ross, 1/30)
Meanwhile —
Modern Healthcare: UnitedHealth Pulling Out Of HCCI May Mean No New Data After 2017
UnitedHealthcare's decision to stop providing claims data to the Health Care Cost Institute for research is forcing the not-for-profit research institute to evaluate whether it will be able to continue to share data beyond its existing trove that runs through calendar year 2017. HCCI still has de-identified claims data from all four of its carrier partners—including United, Aetna, Humana and Kaiser Permanente—through calendar year 2017 that can be used through 2022, but the loss of UnitedHealthcare's 2018 data and beyond presents the challenge of how and even whether the organization will be able to use the data it would continue to receive from its other partners. (Bannow, 1/30)
