Roundup: AI Tensions, Longevity Hype, and the Deals Reshaping Healthcare

Our sector is gaga for AI. But healthcare insiders are also very keen on longevity as the future of medicine. According to venture capitalists, Function Health is worth more than a tenth of the value of both Quest and Labcorp, companies that do billions in revenue every year. Both of the lab testing giants have struggled with growth in the wake of the pandemic, and are also facing potential headwinds related to declining reimbursement. So how does the math pencil out?

Well, the investors behind Function must believe the company is building the care delivery experience of the future and far more than just a lab testing business. And with all the cash in the bank, the company will almost certainly be looking to make more acquisitions in the coming months to expand its scope of offerings.

Speaking of health optimization, I’ve been digging into a new book ahead of its January 6 launch authored by the oncologist and bioethicist Zeke Emanuel with the title “Eat Your Ice Cream.” The book is packed with practical advice for those who want to live well and for a long time, but what stood out to me in particular is that loneliness is the real (and well studied) problem that we face at a societal level.

I am very worried that we’re living in a culture where we’re alone most of the time, and our role models encourage such mantras as “grind it out.” Eat alone, work through meals, text your friends and co-workers for efficiency. I was shocked to read about the rise of Americans who are more miserable than ever, and linked to that is the rise in eating most meals alone. Emanuel noted that he’s constantly asked at weddings and other social events if it’s bad or shameful to have a glass of wine from time to time. While the scientific evidence on that might be somewhat mixed, Emanuel notes that it’s very clear that loneliness has real implications for our longevity. So even as a doctor, he’ll let slide a glass of wine here or there - especially if it’s accompanied by a great meal and even better company. As with most things, moderation is key. By the way, Emanuel will join me for the soon-to-be-relaunched podcast, and I’ll be sharing more details on that in the weeks to come!

One of the best meals with friends I’ve had in a long time took place just last week in San Francisco, California. We convened a group of local healthcare leaders and business owners to openly discuss the health affordability crisis, and what’s being done about it. The event was hosted by Second Opinion, HLTH and Morgan Health. 

With attendees from the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce and the SF New Deal, as well as a mix of attendees from small businesses, startups and larger companies, we shared a variety of approaches to bring down the ballooning cost of healthcare. We’re all in this together with medical costs hitting record levels, the group noted, but it’s small businesses in particular that are struggling to afford to provide high-quality healthcare to employees. Morgan Health invests in research and new ideas to improve employer-sponsored healthcare, and several folks from the team shared examples from the field over seafood and wine. 

One new model that I remain extremely intrigued by is ICHRA, which essentially provides a path for employers to offer their employees a tax-free monthly allowance for eligible medical expenses. That includes health insurance premiums via plans purchased on the individual market. Morgan Health has invested in this thesis – most recently with a check into the startup Venteur (the company’s CEO Stacy Edgar joined our panel).

Check out a few photos from the event below inclusive of attendees from Morgan Health, Venteur, and the SF Chamber of Commerce.

One last thing I’ll say about San Francisco: I relocated to New York a few years ago and haven’t paid the city a visit in a while. And my goodness, it’s booming! I barely recognized parts of the city because of all the new restaurants and shops. Downtown is particularly vitalized, and it’s a far cry from my last visit where I felt like I was in a ghost town by 8pm. The city still has a lot of work ahead to improve the homelessness crisis and the lack of affordable housing, but it deserves some credit where credit is due. 

1) You’ve been a communications consultant for a few years now. What prompted the move in-house?

I jumped into consulting a bit by accident, and fell in love with it as a mid-career experiment. Now I’m constantly telling people to quit their jobs and build something.

The only thing that beats working for yourself is building something audacious with people you like and respect, who are good at their jobs. That combination is rare and you have to take the opportunities when they come. I’ve worked with the General Medicine founders and many others on the team from the outside for quite some time and have so much confidence in them. We’re asking what has to change to give people access to the best healthcare for their needs. As with PillPack, much of that work is structural and technical, and requires a real curiosity about your end customer. This is a team that can do it. I feel incredibly fortunate to be able to support them by building a strong communications function. 

2) How do you advise people in your network, considering branching out on their own versus being operators or working at big companies? You’ve done all of the above.

I always start by asking what they want to learn in this chapter of their career. Maybe you’ve never had an incredible manager, and should go find one. Maybe you want to be effective in a startup, but haven’t seen how a company works when operations are really cranking – you should seek that out. Branching out on your own makes sense if you’ve reached a point where you have more to offer than any one job can absorb.

For earlier career communicators who want to get into startups, in particular, I say to spend some time at both an agency and a big company. It follows the rule: “Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard, and live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft.” Agencies are New York, big companies are California.

3) Startups are really worth it when there’s a big outcome. You had that success with PillPack. What gives you the confidence in feeling as an operator that you’re in the presence of a team that can go the distance?

If I really knew that, I’d probably be a venture capitalist. But there are a lot of ‘soft signs’ outside the spreadsheets and team bios that matter: when teams have a cultural norm of thinking out loud, sharing context, and candid debate, and when they’re making decisions with the intention of creating something both profitable and meaningful; and teams that respect each other’s time. All good signals.

4) As a comms leader, what is the number one quality you’re looking for in a CEO that makes you want to work with them? And the biggest thing that puts you off?

People who want me to work with them – not for them. A communicator’s role in executive comms is to be the mirror, the filter, and the bullhorn. It’s not to come up with the ideas. The dream team is a comms professional and a CEO who both have exceptional judgement, strong writing, and a willingness to be in constant conversation.

Double-booked calendars are my personal nightmare. If you can’t make time to talk until 48 hours from now, we’re never going to get anything done. 

5) The last time you were in the house, the media looked very different. What’s one thing you plan to do very differently in your new role in light of that?

Even ten years ago, a well-placed story in the right outlet could, on its own, reach your target audience. That’s no longer true. Now outlets have shrunk, audiences have fractured, and people mostly get information from other people. Now even a great story in the perfect publication is just another piece of content. You still have to get it in front of the right eyeballs. 

In that context, I spend much more time on ‘inner-circle’ audiences. The people close to the mission who help carry the story. Are we giving our team the right resources? Have we identified our external champions, and can we reach them consistently? Have our founders built credible social platforms they can use when we need them?

Also, leaders are taking more risks and are getting rewarded for it. They’re seemingly speaking more freely and saying things that would’ve felt out-of-pocket a few years ago. It’s an advantage (and more fun) to be interesting. But if you take that approach, you actually need to be more prepared and thoughtful, not less, or it will eventually backfire.

Lastly, it’s still true that there is no substitute for the credibility that comes from being featured positively in well-reported journalism. It’s harder to earn those features than it used to be and the scrutiny is greater. It’s still worth the effort. If you’re frustrated about how difficult it is to get press coverage, then subscribe to more publications. Everyone should read – and pay for – real news; it makes you better at your job, more interesting to be around, and strengthens the ecosystem.

With Annalisa Merelli 

The news: QuantalX, a neuroscience startup, received FDA De Novo Clearance for Delphi-MD™, a technology that allows physicians to evaluate brain health by comparing brain responses in different situations against an established benchmark of healthy brain function. 

What QuantalX said: “This milestone accelerates our mission to make precise, non-invasive neuro-functional assessment accessible in everyday care and to redefine how brain health is evaluated,” said Iftach Dolev, CEO and co-founder of QuantalX.

What experts said: “Direct and objective assessment of brain health is a critical element in the diagnostic process. The system can be an important and informative tool to measure brain health,” said Sandra Bond Chapman, the director of the Center for BrainHealth at University of Texas at Dallas.

Why it Matters: It’s astonishing how little we still know about the health of the brain. But this technology could provide a path to earlier detection of Alzheimer’s, Lewy Body, Parkinson’s Disease, and several other conditions. The company claims the approach could ultimately improve patient outcomes. 

The news: Novo Nordisk will offer people with prescriptions the first two doses of Ozempic and Wegovy for $199 a month, if they pay out-of-pocket. The price will then go up to $349 a month. 

What Novo said: “Our new savings offers provide immediate impact, bringing forward greater cost savings for those who are currently without coverage or choose to self-pay,” said Dave Moore, executive vice president of U.S. operations.

Other deals: For out-of-pocket purchasers, Costco sells the drugs for $499 a month, and similar discounts are available through its own website, CVS, and Walmart.

Why it Matters: We predict that the next big trend in the employer market will be some kind of defined contribution so that employees can access these medicines using cash pay. There’s an increasing (and hard to stomach) delta between the price that commercial insurers pay and the price that individuals pay out of their own pocket. 

The news: Ruthia He, the founder and CEO of the telehealth startup Done Global, was found guilty of several counts of fraud in a scheme to distribute Adderall and other stimulants online. David Brody, the company's clinical president, was also found guilty. They face up to 20 years in prison each. 

Landmark: This is the first federal prosecution of a telehealth company for illegal drug distribution.

What the DOJ said: “This verdict sends a clear message that the Criminal Division will hold accountable criminals who attempt to exploit telehealth to write illegal prescriptions for their personal gain,” said acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Department of Justice’s (DOJ's) Criminal Division.

Why it Mattters: This should keep companies on their toes that are continuing to prescribe medications to people without evidence or proper clinical oversight. But there’s a fine line here. Forcing a patient into an unnecessary visit for reasons of billing is another common practice that has its own consequences. 

Maven Clinic launches new AI features 

The women and family health company is introducing an AI product with features that use population health capabilities to tailor prenatal care, identify at-risk pregnancies earlier, and support mothers to help reduce NICU stays.

Oddity launches MethodIQ

Oddity Tech launched MethodIQ, a medical telehealth platform delivering customized dermatology  treatment through AI-powered online diagnosis. This will be available to the 60 million users of Oddity’s platform. 

Humana and Epic announce digital health insurance card check

Humana is activating Coverage Finder and Digital Insurance Card Exchange capabilities for its Medicare Advantage membership, allowing doctors’ offices to confirm coverage automatically.

If it acts like a doctor, prescribes like a doctor…

In her AI Prognosis newsletter, STAT’s Brittney Trang discusses the Food and Drug Administration giving AI software licenses — as if they were providers — rather than formal approval. 

Should patients get medical-grade AI? 

In our own Second Opinion, Halle Tecco argues that some doctors are too critical of their patients leveraging AI. There have been countless cases already where patients and their family members have used AI tools to diagnose themselves. 

Fabric acquires UCM Digital Health: The healthcare tech enablement company adds 400 new payer and employer customers and 1 million covered lives through its fifth acquisition in less than three years. The details of the deal are not public.

Get Well and Rhythm X AI merge: The two companies have merged under investor SymphonyAI Group to form a combined company, GW RhythmX aiming to integrate AI-driven patient engagement and precision care for clinicians. The new company will serve 150 health systems. 

$43 million for Clarity: The AI-driven precision health company, which owns the first FDA-authorized AI platform predicting the 5-years risk of breast cancer through imaging analysis, closed a Series B with funding from Breast Cancer Research Foundation, Santé Ventures and ACE GESTAO GLOBAL. This puts the company’s valuation at $94 million. 

Function Health also raised $298 million: The company, which provides regular lab testing for people to track their health, closed a Series B funding round which put the overall valuation at $2.5 billion. 

$8 million for FamilyWell Health: The integrated women’s mental health platform closed a Series A funding round led by New Markets Venture Partners. The company will use the funds to expand into menopause-focused care. 

Arbiter raised $52 million: The company, which aims to connect provider, patient, and payer under one platform, raised funds in an effort led by TriEdge Investments and MFO Ventures. The total valuation of the company is $400 million.