Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Hospitals Want The Rest Of Their Covid-Relief Funds
The Wall Street Journal: Hospitals Stung Financially By Covid-19 Pandemic Seek Remainder Of Relief Fund Payouts
Hospitals are pressing the Biden administration to pay out the remaining relief funds that Congress granted last year to cover financial losses from the Covid-19 pandemic, saying it has been more than three months since the government’s last announcement of a large disbursement. Congress last year approved $178 billion to create a relief fund for health providers. The last announcement about payouts from the Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the disbursements, was Dec. 17, when the department said it would send about $24.5 billion to 70,000 health organizations. (Armour and Evans, 3/23)
Modern Healthcare: Five Ways To Better Equip Hospitals For The Next Pandemic
About a year ago Mary Margaret Health CEO Timothy Putnam realized something horrifying: his hospital was never designed for a pandemic. On March 13, 2020, the 25-bed critical-access hospital in Batesville, Ind., saw its first patient with COVID-19. Two weeks later, the hospital was slammed with patients presenting with severe abdominal pain, headaches and backaches, many of whom were crashing and needed a ventilator within five to six hours. ... Putnam has made changes to the hospital, he told a virtual audience at the American College of Healthcare Executives' annual congress on healthcare leadership. He and three other panelists provided tips for how health systems can rethink their facilities for life after the pandemic, and prepare for the next public health crisis. (Gillespie, 3/23)
Bloomberg: Blackstone Invests In Mental Health App At $1 Billion Valuation
Blackstone Group Inc. is leading a $100 million funding round in on-demand mental-health company Ginger, accelerating a push into fast-growing technology startups. The funds will come out of the investment firm’s growth equity arm, Blackstone and Ginger said. The stake values the San Francisco-based service at about $1 billion, vaulting it to unicorn status. (Tan and Perlberg, 3/24)
USA Today: Prince Harry Has A New Job With Mental Health Organization BetterUp
More than a year after first stepping back from his official duties with the British royal family, Prince Harry has a new job with an American employee coaching and mental health organization. BetterUp, Inc. announced Tuesday the Duke of Sussex would be joining their team as its first chief impact officer, in a role in which he'll aim to "lift up critical dialogues around mental health, build supportive and compassionate communities, and foster an environment for honest and vulnerable conversations. (Yasharoff, 3/23)
