Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Health Care Led Job Creation Last Year; Hiring Continued To Rise In March
Bloomberg: US Companies Add 62,000 Jobs, Led By Health Care, ADP Says
US companies added more jobs than expected last month, suggesting the labor market may be stabilizing. Private-sector payrolls increased by 62,000 in March after a similar advance in the prior month, according to ADP Research data out Wednesday. The median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for a 40,000 advance. (Niquette, 4/1)
Modern Healthcare: Why US Healthcare Spending Growth Is Slowing: Brookings Institute
The combination of technology and alternative care options is slowing the growth rate of healthcare spending. In January, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said healthcare expenditures rose 7.2%, to $5.3 trillion, in 2024. Healthcare spending accounted for 18% of gross domestic product in 2024, less than the 21.2% the agency projected. Advances in care delivery, reduced pricing on some treatments and payer restrictions on care utilization drove down spending, according to a recent study by public policy organization Brookings Institute. (Hudson, 4/1)
Modern Healthcare: A Look At Oracle Health Amid Mass Layoffs
Oracle began laying off thousands of employees Tuesday, including at Oracle Health, the unit it formed following its acquisition of electronic health records company Cerner Corp. The company is eliminating about 30,000 roles, which represents 18% of the company’s workforce, CNBC reported. Many of the affected employees took to social media and LinkedIn to announce they’d been laid off and were open to work. Oracle declined comment, as it has about past layoffs. (Famakinwa, 4/1)
More health care industry developments —
AP: Judges Delay Luigi Mangione's State And Federal Trials
Luigi Mangione‘s state and federal trials in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson were both postponed on Wednesday, with the state case delayed until September and the federal case pushed back to October. Judge Gregory Carro rescheduled the state trial from June 8 to Sept. 8, acting hours after the judge in the federal case, Margaret Garnett, moved jury selection in that matter from Sept. 8 to Oct. 5. Opening statements and testimony in the federal case will begin on Oct. 26, Garnett said. Carro did not elaborate on his decision. (Sisak and Neumeister, 4/1)
Chicago Tribune: West Suburban Hospital Owner Says He Wants To Re-Open
The owner of the now-shuttered West Suburban Medical Center said Wednesday he hopes to reopen the hospital this summer – but a state lawmaker who represents the area is questioning whether that plan will become a reality. (Schencker, 4/1)
The CT Mirror: UConn Health To Take Over DCF-Run Psychiatric Facility
The University of Connecticut Health Center Board of Directors voted on Tuesday to move forward with a plan to take over adolescent psychiatric services from the state-run Albert J. Solnit Children’s Center – South Campus in Middletown. (Tillman, 4/1)
Modern Healthcare: Carelon Behavioral Health Ghost Network Lawsuit Moves Forward
Carelon Behavioral Health lost its motion to dismiss a lawsuit alleging the company maintained an inaccurate provider network, a federal district court ruled Tuesday. Three New York State Health Insurance Program beneficiaries sued the Elevance Health subsidiary in April 2025, alleging its directory of mental health providers were not all in-network as advertised. Carelon filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit in August. (Tong, 4/1)
St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Drones To Carry Blood To St. Louis For Organ Donations
A new drone flight corridor for the aerial delivery of blood samples from Springfield to St. Louis became active on Wednesday — although the drone's ceremonial inaugural flight was rained out. St. Louis-based Mid-America Transplant says the corridor is the country's first drone pathway dedicated to health care. Blood samples from potential organ donors will be flown by drone from Springfield to St. Louis, where they'll be tested to determine their suitability for donation. (Suntrup, 4/1)
Modern Healthcare: Leapfrog Group To Expand Ambulatory Surgery Center Rating System
The Leapfrog Group will expand its rating system for ambulatory surgery centers. Starting in July, Leapfrog plans to use publicly reported Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services data to compare safety and quality measures across nearly 4,000 ASCs, similar to how the independent watchdog group rates hospitals, according to a Tuesday news release. Leapfrog’s ASC rating system has historically been tied to its annual survey, which has fewer participants than the thousands of facilities that report data to CMS. (Kacik, 4/1)
KFF Health News: State-Run Insurance Plans For Foster Kids Leave Some Of Them Without Doctors
Ollie Super has moved in and out of cancer treatment since she was diagnosed with neuroblastoma as a toddler in foster care. Now 8, the second grader is dealing with it again. Her cancer came back late last year. Ollie’s parents, who adopted her in 2020, tried to sign her up for a clinical trial using CAR T-cell therapy — which genetically reprograms a patient’s white blood cells to help them fight cancer — at UNC Health in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, an hour-and-a-half drive from their home in Eden. Her mother, Britany Super, described it as Ollie’s “last option.” (Jones, 4/2)
KFF Health News: After Man’s Death Following Insurance Denials, West Virginia Tackles Prior Authorization
Six months after a West Virginia man died following a protracted battle with his health insurer over doctor-recommended cancer care, the state’s Republican governor signed a bill intended to curb the harm of insurance denials. (Sausser, 4/1)
Also —
MedPage Today: Do AI Scribes Actually Save Doctors Time?
Use of artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled ambient documentation tools, or AI scribes, was associated with modest decreases in time spent in the electronic health record (EHR) and documentation time, a multisite study suggested. (Robertson, 4/1)
