Weekly Alert (early!)
With the US Memorial Day and the UK Bank Holidays, many of us are lengthening our weekend with a Friday getaway. So this weekly Alert email is going out on Thursday with a repeat next Tuesday. Enjoy!
Flat is Good: CB Insights’ Q1 global digital funding, deal numbers finally steady (Let’s see what Q2 brings)
Another Bright Health selloff: Zipnosis sold to Florence Labs (This took place in March–why the announcement delay?)
Mid-week roundup: Pear assets fetch paltry $6M, Bright Health’s reverse stock split, Oracle Cerner loses hospital EHR share, Lifeforce health optimization scores $12M Series A (The table continues to clear. But will a celebrity-backed ‘health optimization’ service succeed?)
A better look at the Kaiser-Geisinger Risant Health setup, VA renews Oracle for EHR–with conditions and Congressional scrutiny. Holmes nears her appointment in Texas and owes $452M. And up and down on the business rollercoaster with Envision, Validic-Trapollo, CVS Health’s exit of clinical trials, fundings, and continuing problems at Owlet and Veradigm.
Thursday roundup: Kaiser-Geisinger won’t close till ’24, Validic buys Trapollo, Veradigm’s ’22 financials delayed again, ORA telehealth’s $10M Series A, ATA adds 3 to board (Much more to Kaiser-Geisinger Risant Health deal–here’s the key info)
VA renews Oracle Cerner EHR contract, but with multiple caveats, metrics, and annual renegotiations (Oracle and VA remain on the Congressional griddle)
Breaking & updated–Time’s Up! Ninth Circuit Court to Elizabeth Holmes: proceed to Federal prison. District Court: surrender 30 May, pay $452M in restitution with Sunny. (Elizabeth may have done the crime, but Liz will do the time)
Monday roundup: Envision files Ch. 11, who’s to blame for Meta Pixel abuse?, CVS Health to shut clinical trials unit, Amino Health scoops $80M, DocGo flat but optimistic, Owlet way down in revenue (Companies new and old struggle financially, technologically)
This week’s big news (other than the Coronation and The Trouble With Harry ;-) is mainly around Former Digital Health Darling Babylon Health, going private from a cracked SPAC, reorganization…and administration? The Cano Health BOD soap opera continues with a big loss. DEA gives a breather to telemental health prescribers. Syneos proves that CROs are golden, but Envision staffing not. And a big EHR hack hits NextGen.
Week-end roundup: Cano Health’s $60M loss and divesting, Oscar Health exits CA, UCSF Meta Pixel lawsuit narrows, Syneos goes private for $7.1B, Envision nears Ch. 11, Australia’s A$429M EHR modernization funded (Cano Health drama goes on)
Babylon Health ‘Take Private Proposal’ includes London High Court administration request (The real dirt in the 8-K)
Mid-week roundup: DEA extends telehealth prescribing waiver to November; telehealth usage continues to erode; NextGen EHR hacked, 1M records breached (A short stay of sentence for telemental health prescribers dependent on controlled substances)
Babylon Health to go private in June as shares plummet, Q1 loss increases 117% (AlbaCore taking over? Shares are a buck!)
A week where a Gimlet Eye was needed. CVS closed on Oak Street, but it needs work. ChatGPT punctured on ’empathy’, companies rearranged and offloaded the deck chairs, DEA tossed in the towel on extending telehealth prescribing for controlled drugs–for now. Layoffs continue even with funding. A new Perspectives discusses rural specialty telehealth.
And for our UK Readers, our very best wishes for a festive Coronation Day. God Save The King!
Week-end roundup: Is ChatGPT *really* more empathetic than real doctors? Amwell’s $400M loss, Avaya emerges from Ch. 11, Centene sells Apixio, more on Bright Health’s MA sale, layoffs at Brightline, Cue Health, Healthy.io
Mid-week roundup: CVS-Oak Street closes, DEA extends controlled substance telehealth waiver, Bright Health selling CA MA plans, Talkspace, Teladoc turnarounds? (updated)
Perspectives: Implementing technology in rural communities to support access to mental and behavioral healthcare
Acquisitions, consolidations, shutdowns, and failures, with some hope poking through. Kaiser and Geisinger’s novel approach to preserving community health systems, while eVisit and Bluestream complement telehealth and workflow systems. Amazon finally shuts down Halo wearables, GoodRx changes out CEOs, and Clover wilts. VA and Congress start kicking Oracle hard as their EHR keeps failing. Elizabeth Holmes gets a little more freedom during appeal. But some optimism with Centene and Humana improving their earnings and home health advocacy.
Short takes: Amazon dims to black Halo wearable line, eVisit acquires Bluestream Health, Moving Health Home launches to lobby Congress, government (More consolidation)
Mid-week roundup: Kaiser Permanente to buy Geisinger, setup separate system; GoodRx co-CEOs step down; strong earnings for Centene, Humana; Clover Health stock woes, settles $22M lawsuit (Consolidation and pivoting)
Breaking: Elizabeth Holmes’ surrender stayed by 9th Circuit Court of Appeals (Putting off the inevitable is a bad strategy)
VA completely halts Oracle Cerner EHR implementation for ‘reset’; House introduces new–fourth–bipartisan reform bill–and another outage (Oracle MUST make fixing VA, MHS EHRs Job#1)
A busy week with HIMSS23 (take HIStalk’s random walks), Theranos denouements, lots of trouble in VA and Insurtech Worlds. Teladoc sees gold in weight loss care. And a battle royale between business giants may be developing at, of all places, Cano Health.
Weekend recap from HIMSS23: Glen Tullman’s 5 predictions, HIStalk’s random four-day walk, Oracle Cerner integration ‘going great’, Seema Verma to Oracle, Caregility’s debuts three enhancements (Your weekend reads, especially HIStalk)
Theranos’ Sunny Balwani reports to Federal prison (New home for 12 years)
News roundup: Cano Health board fight, board shakeup; Memora Health’s $30M raise; Teladoc enters weight management race (A battle of the giants brewing at Cano?)
Insurtechs in the widening gyre: Bright Health sued for claims non-payment, fined $1M by Colorado; Clover Health lays off 10%, outsources operations (This centre may not be holding)
VA, GAO push back against proposed House overhaul measures (Just what you’d think)
Theranos’ Holmes files appeal seeking to overturn ‘unjust’ conviction, ‘excessive’ sentence (updated) (Yet another appeal)
VA pulls out the stick in contract renegotiation with Oracle Cerner, slams brakes on further EHRM rollouts–and is this trouble? (updated) (Oracle called on the carpet–and beaten like one?)
This week, in preparation for HIMSS next week and with many on holiday or going, news was relatively light but sadly of the “Debbie Downer” genre. Pear Therapeutics signed off of digital therapeutics with its Chapter 11 filing, while virtual therapy Workit Health let go of 100 anticipating controlled substance prescribing restrictions. And two late 2010s scandals reach their final chapters: Theranos and Outcome Health.
Mid-week roundup: Pear Therapeutics’ Chapter 11; Workit Health pinkslips 100; Outcome Health principals convicted of $1B fraud (The other late ’10s scandal)
The Theranos Two lose their fight for freedom on appeal as Federal prison surrender dates near (Settle affairs, appeal from prison)
We hope you had a Happy Easter and Passover! We lead with a vastly different picture of digital health and healthcare versus a year ago. In the widening gyre, the center is not holding for companies when investors bolt a board and a star insurtech is failing before our eyes. Digital health funding has gone entirely sideways and making 2019 look good. But one story brings us back to our purpose to spread better health into more hands in remote places and save children at minimal cost. Let’s think renewal–and starting afresh in the true spirit of this holy week.
When ‘the centre cannot hold’: three board members exit at Cano Health, failure looms at Bright Health Group (Yeats’ ‘Second Coming’ fits two dramatic ‘must read’ company implosion stories)
TTA Bright: THINKMD, Save the Children partner for digital child health assessment (A ‘do-good’ story about purpose)
Digital health’s funding time machine dialed back to 2019–before the SVB implosion: Rock Health (Entering uncharted territory)
Happy April Fool’s Week! Last week was ViVE (rhymes with vibe) week and reports were positive. VCs confessed that they led to the demise of SVB (well, some of them) and for companies they back, it’s ‘about face, march!’ CVS closes Signify, Oscar faces future and hires the Pro of Pros who used to work at CVS. Wellvana scores $84M, hospital HIT execs want ROI NOW. And both Senate and House kick Oracle Cerner’s patootie about their VA EHRM failures with three bills–but are they concerned?
ViVE post-script: VC panel opines in midst of digital health new reality (depression?), and extra ViVE from an attendee (VCs confess to greasing SVB’s skids and the Profitability Push)
Is Oracle Cerner’s VA EHRM implementation going to be tied up? Senate Veterans Affairs Committee says yes–with two oncoming trains (bills). (Bit off more than…?)
Mid-week corral: CVS closes Signify Health; Bertolini to lead Oscar Health; ViVE highlights from Wellvana, AWS, Everly Health; Better Therapeutics lays off 35%, CoverMyMeds 815 (Magic8Ball picture–and Oscar Gets Smart)
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Donna Cusano, Editor In Chief
donna.cusano@telecareaware.com
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