The annual JP Morgan Healthcare Conference kicks off virtually this week. In years past, the event has heralded announcements of large partnerships, joint ventures and mergers and acquisitions. This year, the health care sector could not even wait until the second full week of January to kick off an acquisition announcement spree. The quick start is an early ... READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: As vaccination begins, health care remains underemployed
The pandemic brought about a rare reduction in health care jobs at a time when they are most needed, for both patient care and for the effort to vaccinate millions of Americans against COVID-19. Hospitals reduced headcount by 126,200 jobs last April, which was the largest reduction since the Bureau of Labor Statistics began tracking the figure in 1989. The ... READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: Venture capital investment in health tech on track for record year
North American investment in venture capital-backed health technology and digital health companies hit a record through the first 10 months of the year, outpacing all of 2019 with two months to go. The total venture capital raised by health tech so far this year reached $12.2 billion, compared with $10.7 billion for all of 2019. Digital health ... READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: Technology investments in health care poised to surge
After years of pouring money into disruptive technologies in the financial services industry, venture capital firms are turning their attention to the health care ecosystem as the pandemic upends traditional ways of delivering health care. On Sept. 29, SCP Co. registered as a special purpose acquisition company aiming to raise $230 million focused on finding ... READ MORE >
While other health care subsectors see job gains, nursing and residential care continues to lag
While the health care ecosystem is broadly returning to work, nursing care facilities remain an exception. In the immediate aftermath of the pandemic and state-wide prohibitions on non-emergent, or elective, procedures the health care ecosystem shed 2.27 million jobs in August, the first broad job loss in health care in decades. Since then, we have seen ... READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: Health care costs rise while tax revenue stagnates
As health care continues to represent a larger portion of U.S. gross domestic product, the federal government's ability to finance that expenditure through tax revenues has relatively declined. Corporate taxes as a percent of GDP peaked at 2.6% in 2007. In the aftermath of the global financial crisis that proportion fell to 1% in 2009 and recovered to 1.9% ... READ MORE >
As coronavirus spreads across the nation, aid to hospitals lags
As Congress debates a new round of stimulus measures to blunt the human and economic toll of the coronavirus, it has an opportunity to rethink the way it supports those who are working on the front lines of the pandemic: health care providers. In recent weeks, the scope and severity of the pandemic have changed dramatically, spreading beyond ... READ MORE >
Businesses already strained by COVID-19 should prepare for hurricane season
The Atlantic hurricane season is already off to a busy start, with six named storms having formed as of early July. And it is likely to get worse. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicts a 70% chance that this hurricane season will be worse than normal, with just a 10% chance of being less damaging than normal. Anywhere from 13 to ... READ MORE >
Amid resurgence of coronavirus, health care providers feel mounting pressure
Nearly six months have passed since Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar declared the coronavirus a public health emergency. Yet we still face the some of the most difficult economic headwinds in generations. Expanded federal unemployment benefits will expire in 18 days, and soon after that so will the federal Paycheck Protection Program. ... READ MORE >
Amid disruption in health care, private equity is poised to put its cash to work
As the human and economic toll of the coronavirus pandemic has mounted, companies across industries have fallen into distress, including in the health care sector. As they look for a lifeline, private equity firms are in position to put some of their significant cash on hand to work. Many of these deals will be found in private capital markets. But the ... READ MORE >