Katie Adams

CMS published its proposed 2027 outpatient payment rule, including a 2.4% base rate increase alongside steep cuts to 340B drug payments and an expansion of site-neutral payment to off-campus imaging services. Provider groups warn that these changes would push many hospitals' payments into negative territory.

Penn Medicine is integrating K Health's AI-powered patient intake agents into its virtual primary care service. The health system says the goal is to free up time for patient care rather than information-gathering.

Ascension is set to acquire Williamson Health, a county-owned health system in Tennessee, in a deal worth nearly $1 billion. Ascension’s offer beat out bids from HCA Healthcare and Optum.

More than 4,000 Brigham and Women's Hospital nurses and 450 home health workers launched Massachusetts' largest-ever healthcare strike this week over stalled contract talks on wages and benefits. The strike quickly prompted Governor Maura Healey to step in and convene both sides at the State House, but it remains unclear whether a deal is near.

IKS Health acquired TruBridge for $557 million, folding the rural-hospital-focused EHR and revenue cycle company into its AI-powered care platform. It's IKS' third acquisition this year.

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Handspring raised $19 million in Series B funding this week to expand its pediatric mental health care model nationwide. The company treats the full spectrum of acuity so children are matched to the level of care they actually need, rather than defaulting to the most intensive — and expensive — option available.

A former Mayo Clinic research director claims she was silenced, demoted and ultimately fired for sounding the alarm on AI safety and patient privacy lapses at the health system. Traci Tamiko Eto is now suing Mayo for retaliation.

As Kaiser Permanente CEO Greg Adams touted the success of his organization’s value-based care models at the AHA Leadership Summit in Denver, Kaiser nurses outside protested the health system's AI strategy. They claim they're being excluded from decisions about the technology.

Fairview Health Services turned a $315 million annual loss into a nearly $600 million turnaround in just two years. At the AHA Leadership Summit, CEO James Hereford broke down the strategy behind the comeback, from workforce redesign to frontline-driven process fixes.