Teledoc Health Looks At Expanding Overseas To Offset US Costs

Modern Healthcare: Teladoc Looks To Expand Overseas User Base Amid U.S. Ad Costs
Teladoc Health is looking to broaden its overseas user base to offset persistently high customer acquisition costs affecting its direct-to-consumer business in the U.S. Teladoc is expanding efforts to sell its BetterHelp virtual therapy subscription services to consumers in Canada, the United Kingdom and other predominantly English-speaking countries, CEO Jason Gorevic said on a call Tuesday with investor analysts. (Perna, 2/20)

On industry hiring news —

Stat: AbbVie CEO Gonzalez To Step Down After A Decade Fiercely Defending Humira
AbbVie announced Tuesday that CEO Richard Gonzalez, who has managed the company’s ascent since it was spun off from the device maker Abbott Laboratories in 2013, will step down in July. Gonzalez had previously said he would depart when AbbVie had a plan in place to move on from its best-selling drug, Humira, which is now facing competition from cheaper biosimilars. (Herper, 2/20)

Reuters: AbbVie Taps Robert Michael To Replace Gonzalez As CEO In July
AbbVie (ABBV.N), opens new tab on Tuesday said Chief Operating Officer Robert Michael would succeed Richard Gonzalez to become the second-ever CEO of the drugmaker on July 1. Gonzalez, 70, who has been at the company's helm since it was formed through a spin-off from Abbott (ABT.N), opens new tab in 2013, will become executive chairman of AbbVie's board once he steps down. (Wingrove, 2/20)

Modern Healthcare: Yale New Haven Health Promotes Pamela Sutton-Wallace To President
Yale New Haven Health has promoted Pamela Sutton-Wallace to be its president, effective immediately. Sutton-Wallace, who became Yale New Haven's chief operating officer in July 2022, will take over responsibilities as president from CEO Christopher O'Connor, a spokesperson for the nonprofit said Tuesday. O'Connor was named president in 2020 and CEO in 2022. (Hudson, 2/20)

Modern Healthcare: AHCA CEO Mark Parkinson To Retire
Mark Parkinson will depart the American Health Care Association/National Center for Assisted Living in 2025 after 14 years at the helm, the long-term care provider association announced Tuesday. Parkinson, 66, will remain president and CEO until his retirement on Jan. 15, and the AHCA/NCAL board has commenced its search for a successor, the trade group said in a news release. Modern Healthcare named Parkinson one of the 100 Most Influential People in Healthcare in 2023 and several prior years. (McAuliff, 2/20)

Also —

NPR: Yaz And Climara Added To Cost Plus Drugs
Bayer is the latest name-brand drugmaker to dip its toe into the world of Mark Cuban's online pharmacy, Cost Plus Drugs.The website offers drugs at steep discounts bypassing middlemen called pharmacy benefit managers. It mostly sells generics, but has been slowly adding brand name products as well. Yaz birth control pills and Climara, a hormone patch for menopause, will both now be available for a fraction of their list prices, including Cost Plus's standard 15% markup and shipping. (Lupkin, 2/19)

The Wall Street Journal: Fresenius Swings To Net Loss After Fresenius Medical Care Deconsolidation
Fresenius reported a swing to a net loss for the fourth quarter due to the deconsolidation of Fresenius Medical Care from its accounts, but forecast growth in earnings and sales for 2024. The German health-care company on Wednesday posted a net loss for the fourth quarter of 614 million euros ($663.6 million) compared with a net profit of EUR255 million in the same period of the previous year. The company said the loss mainly reflected the valuation effect arising from the deconsolidation of Fresenius Medical Care, which had no cash impact. (Kienle, 2/21)

Reuters: FMC Shares Slide As Analysts Focus On Weaker Patient Volumes Outlook
Fresenius Medical Care's (FMEG.DE), opens new tab shares fell 5% on Tuesday, despite upbeat quarterly results and higher 2024 guidance, with analysts highlighting a weak outlook for patient volumes from the German dialysis specialist. U.S. competitor Da Vita (DVA.N), opens new tab last Tuesday forecast a 2024 outlook above expectations, forecasting patient volumes would increase by 1% to 2% during the year, while FMC targeted growth of 0.5% to 2%, analysts at Barclays said. (Sychev and Holzhaeuser, 2/21)

Reuters: Healthcare Group Fresenius Tops Q4 Operating Profit Forecast
Fresenius (FREG.DE), opens new tab reported a 13% jump in fourth-quarter operating profit on Wednesday, above market expectations, citing good earnings development across its businesses and progress in the operational turnaround at its hospital project development unit Vamed. The diversified healthcare group reported quarterly earnings before interests and taxes, and before special items, of 634 million euros ($685 million), 7% above analysts' expectations of 591 million in a poll compiled by Vara Research. (2/21)

Reuters: Medtronic Lifts Annual Profit Forecast, Exits Ventilator Business
Medical device maker Medtronic (MDT.N), opens new tab raised annual profit forecast for the third time this fiscal year, after beating third-quarter expectations on Tuesday, helped by higher demand for its heart and diabetes devices. Demand for medical devices has picked up pace as non-urgent procedures, which were deferred during the pandemic, recovered in the past year with easing hospital staff shortages and people becoming regular with check-ups. (Santhosh and Sadhamta, 2/20)

AP: Executive Is Convicted Of Insider Trading Related To Medical Device Firm Acquisition
An executive at a medical device company has been convicted in Minnesota of insider trading for a scheme involving negotiations for the acquisition of the firm that was valued at $1.6 billion, federal prosecutors said Tuesday. Doron Tavlin was a vice president for business development at the Minneapolis office of Mazor Robotics in 2018 when he learned that the company could be purchased by Israeli-based Medtronic, Inc., according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office. ... Mazor specializes in robotics for spinal procedures. (2/21)

Stat: Fetal Surgery Expert Tippi MacKenzie Shifts To In-Utero Gene Therapy
Outside, the August sun wasn’t yet visible through the thick folds of fog blanketing the San Francisco skyline. Its warmth did not reach the operating room tucked into the sprawling Parnassus Heights hospital complex. In there, the light was all cold and blue fluorescence washing over the sea of scrub caps huddled around an anesthetized young woman on a gurney. (Molteni, 2/21)

Crain's Chicago Business: UChicago Sued Over Death Of Silver Cross Hospital CEO Ruth Colby
UChicago Medicine and Dr. Husam H. Balkhy, a robotic heart surgeon at the health system, are the subject of a lawsuit alleging negligence in the heart procedure, and subsequent death, of Silver Cross Hospital CEO Ruth Colby. Clifford Law Offices said in a press release it filed a complaint in Cook County Circuit Court against the University of Chicago Hospitals & Health Systems and Balkhy on behalf of Colby's son, David Chodak. (Asplund, 2/20)