Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Man's Death Triggers Lawsuit Alleging Connecticut Hospital Ran 'Tele-ICU'
Health Exec: Connecticut Hospital Accused Of Running ‘Fake’ Telehealth ICU That Led To Man’s Death
A family in Connecticut is suing Yale New Haven Health, alleging that one of its hospitals was operating an intensive care unit where no onsite doctor monitored patients. Instead, the physician attending to 26-year-old Conor Hylton beamed in via telehealth, issuing medical orders remotely. Hylton, a dental student, died on Aug. 15, 2024, after being treated at Bridgeport Hospital. His family alleges the telemedicine doctor declared the man deceased through a view screen, after a series of failures made it difficult to coordinate his medical needs. (Van Alstin, 4/5)
NBC News: Family Of Young ICU Patient Who Died While In The Care Of A ‘Teledoctor’ Sues Hospital
The hospital said in an emailed statement, “Yale New Haven Health is aware of this lawsuit and is committed to providing the safest and highest quality of care possible, however, we are unable to comment on pending litigation.” (Lozano, 4/6)
More on telehealth —
Business Insider: AI-Powered Telehealth Company Medvi Appears To Have An AI Doctor Issue
Medvi's marketing has included seemingly fake doctors and prompted lawsuits. (Newsham, 4/6)
MedPage Today: Virtual Neuro Rounds Better Than On-Site Consults In Subacute Stroke Care
Teleneurology ward rounds outperformed on-site consultations for patients in the subacute phase of stroke, a prospective study showed. Across 15 hospitals within four German telestroke networks, complete adherence to six guideline-based quality domains -- etiological classification, neurological examination, risk assessment, diagnostic recommendations, secondary prevention, and recommended aftercare -- was achieved in 92% of cases during teleneurological ward rounds versus 54% of on-site ward rounds, reported Janina Behrens, MD, of Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, and colleagues. (Lou, 4/6)
TechCrunch: Telehealth Giant Hims & Hers Says Its Customer Support System Was Hacked
Hims & Hers, the telehealth company that sells weight-loss drugs and sexual health prescriptions, has confirmed a data breach affecting its third-party customer service platform. The healthcare company said in a data breach notice filed with the California attorney general’s office on Thursday that the hackers stole data about user requests sent to the company’s customer support team. The company said hackers broke into its third-party ticketing system between February 4 and February 7 and stole reams of support tickets, which contained personal information submitted by customers. (Whittaker, 4/2)
In other health industry news —
MedPage Today: Here's Who Topped This Year's 'Best Medical Schools' Rankings
For a third year, the "Best Medical Schools" rankings from U.S. News & World Report were released with top institutions sorted into tiers rather than by individual placement. For research and primary care, respective lists of "Tier 1" schools, representing the 85th to 99th percentile, largely resembled last year's crop of high performers. (Henderson, 4/7)
Modern Healthcare: Rising Claims Denials Denting Provider Revenue: Kodiak Solutions
Claims denials and unpaid patient bills are increasingly denting providers’ revenue. Consultancy Kodiak Solutions analyzed revenue cycle data for 2,300 hospitals and 350,000 physicians for a recent report. It found providers attempting to collect payments for commercially insured inpatient care lost out on 6.6% of net revenue to insurer denials and unpaid patient bills in 2025, up from 5.4% in 2024. (Kacik and Broderick, 4/6)
Modern Healthcare: Why The FAH’s New Leader Is Focused On The Fight For Transparency
The Federation of American Hospitals’ new President and CEO, Charlene MacDonald, has her work cut out. MacDonald, who succeeded longtime CEO Chip Kahn in January, is charged with steering a trade group that supports more than 1,000 for-profit hospitals and health systems as they navigate steep funding cuts and a rapidly evolving care delivery landscape. (Hudson, 4/6)
KFF Health News: Can I Opt Out Of Having My Doctor Take Notes With AI?
Family physician Eric Boose has been using an artificial intelligence tool to get back to what he calls “old-fashioned medicine” — talking with patients face-to-face, without having to type into a computer at the same time. “I can really just sit there and engage and just focus on them and listen,” said Boose, who practices at Cleveland Clinic. (Ruppelt, Anthony and Farmer, 4/7)
