Hospital association contests Ball State monopoly study
The Indiana Hospital Association is disputing a Ball State University study of Hoosier hospitals that blames part of the high cost of health care on monopolies.
Health Care & Insurance
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Addictions-treatment provider Fairbanks merging with Community Health Network
The merger, announced Wednesday, is designed to give patients a more comprehensive approach to addiction and behavioral health services,” including treatment for serious mental illness and a psychiatric intensive care unit.
Google strikes controversial data deal with St. Vincent’s parent firm
Announcement of the tech giant’s arrangement with Ascension followed reports that Google had access to thousands of patient health records without doctors’ knowledge.
Indiana medical insurance coverage lags surrounding states
Indiana had a higher percentage of people lacking medical insurance than any neighboring state in 2018, but its rate was better than the national average.
Juul halts sales of mint, its top-selling e-cigarette flavor, but not menthol
Underage vaping has reached what health officials call epidemic levels. In the latest government survey, 1 in 4 high school students reported using e-cigarettes in the previous month, despite federal law banning sales to those under 18.
Ravi Parikh: Why for-profit research should be taken seriously
Patient data is increasingly in the hands of for-profit industries. Insurance firms and other for-profit companies have been collecting patient data that yields important information that could be used to shape medical care and health policy.
St. Vincent faces expensive growth options
The hospital system’s 45-year-old campus will likely need hundreds of millions of dollars in upgrades in coming years to keep it competitive long term.
Warren pledges no middle class tax increase in $20T health care plan
Presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren’s plan is built on transferring to the government 98% of the $8.8 trillion she estimates that employers will spend on private insurance for their employees.
Indiana suspends work requirement for Medicaid until lawsuit is resolved
Starting in July, Indiana began requiring people to work, volunteer or participate in other qualifying activities as a condition for receiving medical benefits under the Healthy Indiana Plan, the state’s biggest Medicaid program.
Fishers medical device startup raises $10M to launch first product
By the end of the year, Recovery Force plans to seek FDA clearance for the system for hospitals that helps patients regain mobility. Sales could begin in mid-2020.
Medical device manufacturer plans $37M Westfield facility, 477 jobs
Abbott Laboratories announced plans Monday night to build a 120,000-square-foot facility in the NorthPoint Industrial Park along U.S. 31 where it will manufacture a heart valve repair device.
Walgreens to close in-store clinics, add Jenny Craig sites
The company said Monday that it will close 150 Walgreens-run clinics by the end of the year, but it will keep open more than 200 that are run in partnership with health care providers.
Indiana doctor who kept hundreds of fetuses vilified in life, death
Dr. Ulrich Klopfer competed so avidly in the 1970s to perform the most abortions each day that it was said he would set his coffee aside, jump to his feet in the break room and rush to the operating table whenever his chief rival in the macabre derby walked by.
Startup sees big potential in Amazon-like site for orthodontists
Indianapolis orthodontist Jeff Biggs has been putting smiles on people’s faces for two decades. Now he’s hoping to put smiles on the faces of orthodontists themselves with a new one-stop online marketplace to launch early next month.
Eli Lilly CEO says drugmaker won’t rehash old Alzheimer’s data
Digging through old data to salvage a seemingly failed Alzheimer’s drug paid off big time for Biogen Inc., but at least one of its rivals has no plans to follow suit.
High-tech rival devices on verge of making stethoscopes obsolete
Dr. Paul Wallach, an executive associate dean at Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis, predicts that within the next decade, hand-held ultrasound devices will replace the stethoscope as part of the routine physical exam.
Trump, Pelosi still working on drug-pricing deal despite impeachment drama
President Donald Trump and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi could hardly be more at odds—but behind the scenes, they’re still grasping at a bipartisan deal to lower the cost of prescription drugs.
Lilly earns more than expected but misses revenue expectations on key drugs
Eli Lilly and Co. easily topped earnings expectations in the third quarter, but shares in the Indianapolis-based drug company tumbled nearly 5 percent Wednesday morning.
Anthem 3Q profit jumps 23%, helped by enrollment gains
The Indianapolis-based insurer raised its 2019 forecast after attracting more customers covered by Medicare Advantage and Medicaid.
In surprise turnaround, new analysis finds Alzheimer’s treatment might work
Seven months after clinical trials for a promising Alzheimer’s drug were halted and the treatment was declared a failure, a new analysis suggests it was actually effective, and the company that makes it plans to move forward in securing federal approval.