Healthcare

Healthcare

Care homes that are graded as inadequate or requiring improvement are often not being reinspected for a year or more, a BBC investigation has found. More than 2,100 care homes in England as of October this year were rated as "requires improvement" by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) - but the BBC found three quarters of those had not been reinspected within a year or more.

Medicare Advantage enrollment jumped 32% year over year to 106,323 members, the clearest sign that Clover's technology-first model is resonating with both brokers and beneficiaries. Revenue growth of 34% from the prior year quarter underscores how scale is driving top-line expansion. What matters here is that the company achieved this growth during what management called a "3.5 star payment year," meaning reimbursement rates were compressed. That's a meaningful distinction.

Doctronic addresses this access problem by delivering AI-powered medical consultations in minutes rather than weeks, combining free, anonymous symptom assessments with on-demand access to licensed physicians across all 50 states for $39 per video visit. The platform has already processed over 15 million medical conversations with more than 1 million unique users, handling 50,000 weekly visits through its collective intelligence architecture where multiple specialized AI agents engage in clinical reasoning under physician oversight.

Where it stands: Insurers are raising the monthly premiums they charge for marketplace coverage by an average of 26% across the country, according to an analysis from KFF. Virginia's marketplace started sending renewal notices to residents outlining premium increases between 4% and 40%. Colorado announced this week that the cost of 2026 coverage sold on the state's marketplace will double compared with this year. Pennsylvania said premiums will increase an average of 21.5% next year.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming nearly every corner of healthcare-from diagnostics to patient management-and medical education is no exception. With the market for AI in healthcare rapidly expanding, adopting AI in medical education has become essential for training tomorrow's healthcare professionals. Luckily, by embracing technologies like adaptive learning platforms and virtual simulations, medical schools can help prepare students for an AI-driven future in healthcare.

"Literally no one ever mentions direct care workers. I work with people with disabilities. I've been at my job for almost 10 years, and I've gotten maybe four raises." - jessicalewis2

"If I have to summarize it in one word, I would say the biggest challenge in claims and reimbursement is guess work," said Puneet Maheshwari, senior vice president and general manager of Optum Real, to the audience on Tuesday. "The guesswork that happens on the provider side. The guesswork that happens on the payer side leads to significant amount of work and overhead for both parties involved ...."

Ensemble Health, a major player in healthcare revenue management, is seeking a potential $13 billion sale or IPO next year, Business Insider has learned. Ensemble, owned primarily by private equity firms Warburg Pincus and Berkshire Partners, has tapped JPMorgan to pursue a sale, five people with knowledge of the deal told Business Insider. At the same time, Ensemble is considering an IPO and has pulled in Goldman Sachs to support the dual-track approach, three of the people said.

I explained that his father wasn't able to clear secretions from his throat or airway, which produced a rattling sound. I understood his concern and recognized the fear in his eyes. When I was caring for my dad, I assumed he was choking. At the time, I didn't know that the unsettling noise was a natural part of the dying process.

Point32Health announced it is laying off 254 employees on Monday, its second round of reductions this year. The non-profit company said in a statement that the layoffs are part of an effort to reduce administrative costs as it continues to experience unprecedented increases in medical care and pharmaceutical costs. Point32Health also cut 110 jobs in March. The company has about 4,000 employees, it reports on its website.

Our patients' experience onsite and the integrity of their data are of utmost importance, which made it a no-brainer to switch to Verizon's combination Neutral Host and Private 5G Network,

Citing financial challenges and economic uncertainty, the Lucile Packard Children's Hospital is preparing to reduce its workforce by 87 positions in December, according to a notification that the Palo Alto medical institution filed with the state this week. The hospital at 725 Welch Road submitted on Oct. 10 a notice with the state Department of Economic Development listing the 87 positions that will be eliminated by Dec. 12, 2025. According to an accompanying letter from N. Christopher Comma, vice president for human resources at the hospital, the employees will remain on the payroll with benefits until that time.

Former Cano Health CEO Marlow Hernandez is facing a jury trial this week over allegations of fraud and corruption. The trial, set to begin on Monday, will examine claims that Hernandez used his position to illicitly enrich himself and his family - actions the plaintiffs say helped drive Cano into bankruptcy. This will be the first time Hernandez has faced trial for his alleged misconduct at Cano, which he founded in 2009.

The nurse, Helle Wictor, contacted the Innovation department at Helsingborg City where she worked, and what is now Optisense Care, has emerged from that work. The startup focuses on developing a smart, radar-equipped toilet seat, under the name ZenSeat, that uses AI to monitor bowel movements, helping caregivers detect constipation early in dementia patients and prevent serious health complications. Is it possible to invent something that alerts the nursing staff if a patient hasn't pooped? said Helle Wictor, the initiator of the idea

Editor's note: This story is part two of a MinnPost series by Matthew Blake on Minnesota's efforts to stabilize its nursing home workforce - a sector long challenged by high turnover. Part one looks at the state's plan and the pushback to it from nursing home operators. Next March, Mary Voerding is due to celebrate her 30th year at Maplewood Rehabilitation Center, a suburban Twin Cities nursing home where she has worked as a nurse, care coordinator and now front desk receptionist.

The US healthcare system's capacity crisis has reached a breaking point in neurology, where 145 million Americans with chronic neurological conditions face average wait times of 4-6 months to see a specialist, if they can find one at all. This shortage isn't just an inconvenience; it's forcing millions to cycle through emergency departments, endure preventable suffering, and watch treatable conditions worsen while they wait.

The sound of newborns crying along with the chimes of a lullaby announcing their arrival into the world will ring through the halls of Regional Medical Center starting next week as the East San Jose hospital reopens its long-closed labor and delivery ward. The restoration comes six months after Santa Clara County purchased the hospital from HCA Healthcare, one of the largest for-profit hospital chains in the nation,

Fewer choices may be on the menu again as Medicare patients shop for prescription coverage this fall. The number of available, stand-alone drug plans has fallen for a few years, and that trend will continue for 2026. Most markets will still have several choices, but some options are becoming particularly sparse for shoppers with low-income subsidies. And help may be harder to find because some insurers no longer pay brokers commissions for new business.

Romi Gubes knew her idea sounded outlandish: a small audio-only device that could sit in a senior's home and detect everything from falls to early signs of cognitive decline. "It was like science fiction," she told Business Insider. "When we came up with this idea, everyone thought we were crazy." But what seemed far-fetched in 2019 is now a multimillion-dollar reality. Gubes's startup Sensi.AI just raised $45 million in Series C funding, BI learned exclusively.

After a provider writes a prescription, patients can choose to have it sent to Amazon Pharmacy for in-office kiosk pickup. Patients then use their phone to check out in the Amazon app, after which medications are typically "ready in minutes," Amazon says. The kiosks have a range of commonly prescribed medications, including antibiotics, inhalers, and blood pressure medications.

The government have been urged to target young adults to volunteer for the NHS in a bid to tackle NHS waiting lists. A high-profile volunteer recruitment drive targeting young people could have a transformative impact on hospital efficiency, a charity has said, as it pushed the government to invest in the biggest hiring campaign since the pandemic. It comes as a YouGov poll found a third of 18 to 24-year-olds would consider giving up their time to volunteer in the NHS.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) shares are finally starting to attract attention after gaining close to 7% in a single trading session on news that it's reached a pricing deal with the Trump administration. Indeed, this is the biggest up day for shares of PFE in recent memory. And while investors are upbeat on the pricing plan, I do think that income investors should focus on the longer-term opportunity at hand.