Hospitals
Adena Health acquires Fairfield Medical Center after antitrust scrutiny
Adena Health has completed its acquisition of Fairfield Medical Center. Previously, the proposed merger between Fairfield and OhioHealth fell through due to an antitrust review by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The FTC praised the new deal and stated it will continue to block hospital mergers that harm competition.
Johns Hopkins Health Plans taps interim CEO as it searches for successor
Johns Hopkins Health Plans (JHHP) announced that it has appointed Chief Financial Officer Daniel Chojnowski as interim CEO after former CEO James Holland departed in August to join Humana's Medicaid division. In a LinkedIn statement, JHHP said the move is intended to ensure stability during the transition. The company has recently faced financial pressures, posting a loss of approximately $45 million in the last fiscal year on premium revenue of $2.5 billion.
Sanford-North Memorial deal closes after systems ink oversight agreement
The merger of Sanford Health and North Memorial Health was officially completed on Tuesday, following a 10-year regulatory agreement reached with the Minnesota Attorney General's Office. The agreement requires Sanford to invest $600 million in North Memorial over the next decade, including expanding Maple Grove Hospital and maintaining core services at Robbinsdale Hospital.
Medicaid losses leave more patients paying cash, Epic finds
A new Epic Research analysis finds that as Medicaid enrollment has significantly declined after the pandemic, the proportion of patients paying out of pocket in U.S. emergency departments and other healthcare settings has risen notably. In the second quarter of 2026, the self-pay rate in emergency departments reached 7.6%, up 2.1 percentage points from 5.5% in early 2022, while Medicaid coverage fell from 18.2% to 16.1%. The study is based on over 550 million visits and notes that the budget reconciliation bill passed by Republicans last year will further cut nearly $1 trillion in Medicaid funding, with an estimated nearly 6 million people expected to lose this insurance over the next decade.
The first 14 days: How specialty programs set patients up for success
The patient journey for specialty medications is complex and prone to disruption, with the first 14 days after a prescription being especially critical. Data shows that up to half of patients do not take their medications as prescribed, and abandonment rates for some oral oncology drugs can reach 67%. Walgreens Specialty Pharmacy significantly improves early conversion rates and turnaround times through first-day proactive contact, prior authorization coordination, financial assistance, and personalized digital interventions. Internal case studies show that the introduction of dedicated operations managers increased conversion rates by 43%, with average turnaround times two days faster than network peers. Based on industry data and expert interviews, this article analyzes how specialty programs eliminate barriers within the first two weeks to ensure patients successfully start and adhere to treatment.
Providence names new CFO amid financial turnaround
Providence announced Wednesday that Kevin Smith, CFO of SSM Health, will become its new CFO on Oct. 26, replacing Greg Hoffman who retired this summer. Smith brings experience from multiple health systems and will oversee financial strategy as Providence works to recover from pandemic-related losses.
Providence Health Plan to close completely after Medicare Advantage deal falls through
Providence Health Plan, the insurance arm of Renton, Washington-based Providence, will close entirely after negotiations with an unnamed national carrier for its Medicare Advantage business broke down. The closure affects more than 64,000 MA members and follows the earlier announced wind-down of commercial and Medicaid lines.
Mayo Clinic taps new CIO as academic medical center doubles down on AI
Mayo Clinic has appointed Arun Kumar Bhaskara-Baba as its new CIO, effective May, succeeding Cris Ross who retired in 2024 after 12 years. Bhaskara-Baba, formerly CIO at Honeywell Aerospace and Defense, brings over 25 years of experience, including leadership roles at Johnson & Johnson and Dell. His expertise in scaling AI is expected to support Mayo's recent initiatives, including a partnership with Microsoft to build a frontier AI model and deployment of NVIDIA Blackwell infrastructure for generative AI in medicine.
UHS CEO on Talkspace Acquisition: This Will Ultimately Be a Wise Financial Decision
Universal Health Services (UHS) completed its $835 million acquisition of Talkspace, an online therapy platform, making it the only company in the United States with a national, end-to-end behavioral health services continuum. CEO Marc Miller detailed in an exclusive interview the acquisition rationale, service synergies, future M&A intentions, and strategies to address healthcare policy uncertainty and stock price pressure.
报告：医疗人力短缺重创农村社区，2030年前形势持续严峻
根据AMN Healthcare发布的报告，美国持续存在的医生短缺预计将持续到2030年，受人口老龄化、临床医生倦怠率高企及慢性病患者增多等因素驱动。农村社区将承受最严重冲击：2025年农村地区注册护士岗位填补率仅为城市的三分之一。报告还警告，特朗普总统签署的《一项大而美的法案》对Medicare和Medicaid的大幅削减可能加剧问题，导致更多农村医院和诊所关闭。