Novartis sets heart drug price with two insurers based on health outcome | Reuters
Swiss drugmaker Novartis has entered deals with U.S. health insurers Aetna and Cigna to price its new heart drug Entresto based on performance. Cigna payments for the drug will be based on a reduction in the number of customers admitted to the hospital for heart failure, and Aetna's payment will be based on replicating clinical trial results in its member population.
Taming drug prices by pulling back the curtain online | New York Times
Few consumers realize that the cost of drugs at pharmacies may vary considerably even within the same zip code, and there has not been a way to easily compare different pharmacies' drug prices in the past. Two companies are seeking to address that problem, at least for generics: one collects prices from around the country and offers patients coupons to lower costs, while the other allows patients to order the drugs online at the discount rates typically paid by insurers and pickup the drugs at local pharmacies.
Hospital, physician prices driving health costs, business groups say | Boston Globe
A group of Massachusetts business and trade organizations, including retail, independent business and insurance associations, say rising providers' prices are responsible for rising healthcare costs, and they are asking the state to tackle the problem. The group analyzed data from several reports on healthcare from the state attorney general's office to identify trends in healthcare cost increases, but did not make any specific recommendations to address the problem.
CDC sends Zika test kits to Florida; virus appears in five other states | Wall Street Journal
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention sent 950 additional Zika virus antibody test kits to the state of Florida following Gov. Rick Scott's declaration of a state of emergency Monday. Florida now has 16 confirmed cases of the virus, but none were contracted locally. Tennessee, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Indiana and Ohio have each reported their first cases of the virus.
Former Google exec to lead cancer diagnostics firm | Reuters
Grail, a San Francisco-based firm developing blood tests for cancer, announced it has named Jeff Huber CEO. Huber was formerly senior VP of Google X, the Internet giant's research arm. Grail is an offshoot of gene sequencing firm Illumina, and is partly owned by Illumina and investors including Microsoft founder Bill Gates and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.
91,000 Medicaid clients in Washington state warned of data breach | Seattle Times
More than 91,000 people enrolled in Washington state’s Apple Health Medicaid program are being notified that their medical records may have been handled improperly.
Jackson Health: ‘Rogue’ employee suspected of stealing private patient information | Miami Herald
A ‘rogue’ employee at Miami-Dade’s public hospital network, Jackson Health System, was placed on administrative leave for suspicion of stealing reams of private patient information over the last five years in a scheme that may have compromised more than 24,000 records, according to hospital officials.