October 2022 – The Journal of Healthcare Contracting
CVS Health to acquire Signify Health
CVS Health and Signify Health have entered into a definitive agreement under which CVS Health will acquire Signify Health for approximately $8 billion.
Signify Health is a leader in Health Risk Assessments, value-based care and provider enablement. With a network of more than 10,000 clinicians across all 50 states and a nationwide value-based provider network, combined with its proprietary analytics and technology platforms, Signify Health is improving patient engagement, patient outcomes and care coordination for stakeholders across the health care system. Signify Health’s clinicians and providers can have an even greater impact by engaging with CVS Health’s unique collection of assets and connecting patients to care how and when they need it.
“Signify Health will play a critical role in advancing our health care services strategy and gives us a platform to accelerate our growth in value-based care,” said CVS Health President and CEO, Karen S. Lynch. “This acquisition will enhance our connection to consumers in the home and enables providers to better address patient needs as we execute our vision to redefine the health care experience. In addition, this combination will strengthen our ability to expand and develop new product offerings in a multi-payor approach.”
Signify Health’s network of clinicians physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants utilize home-based visits to identify a patient’s clinical and social needs, and then connect them to appropriate follow-up care and community-based resources in order for the patient to have a more connected, effective care experience. In 2022, Signify Health’s clinicians expect to connect with nearly 2.5 million unique members in the home, both in-person and virtually, and on average they spend 2.5 times longer with a patient in the home than providers spend in the average primary care office visit.
Trinity Health completes acquisition of MercyOne Health System
Trinity Health, one of the largest not-for-profit Catholic health systems, announced the agreement to acquire MercyOne is completed and MercyOne is now a full member of Trinity Health, based in Livonia, Michigan. The news follows an April announcement that Trinity Health signed an agreement with CommonSpirit Health to acquire all facilities and assets of Iowa-based MercyOne, including Home Care, Hospice, and Infusion locations.
“For close to 25 years, we have served Iowa communities. With MercyOne now fully part of Trinity Health, we are a stronger and more unified system that will strengthen MercyOne’s ability to serve our patients, colleagues, and communities,” said Mike Slubowski, president and chief executive officer of Trinity Health. “Health care providers across the country continue to face unprecedented challenges brought on by the COVID-pandemic, but together, we are stronger. With our shared history and Catholic mission, we look forward to continuing a legacy of high-quality care for generations to come.”
The completion of the acquisition is a highly anticipated milestone that marks a shared commitment to ensuring access to health care across Iowa. Operating as a part of Trinity Health, MercyOne will retain its name and brand while enhancing more integrated and unified care in the communities it serves.
Mount Sinai researchers awarded $2.4M grant from CDC to support aging 9/11 rescue and recovery workers
As the first responders to the attacks of September 11, 2001, grow older, Mount Sinai’s nationally lauded experts in aging have received a $2.4 million grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to study how best to care for them into old age.
“Because World Trade Center responders were exposed to high levels of toxicants and intense psychological trauma – hazards that can accelerate the aging process – during the emergency response and cleanup following the 2001 disaster, they are likely at increased risk for premature aging and associated age-related syndromes, such as functional decline and fall risk,” says Fred Ko, MD, lead Principal Investigator and Associate Professor of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
The median age of these first responders is now 59, and by 2030, the majority of them will be 65 or over and at risk for aging-related conditions and consequences of the terrorist attacks.
Mount Sinai has long been a leader in caring for this population through its World Trade Center (WTC) Health Program Clinical Center of Excellence, part of the Selikoff Centers for Occupational Health at Mount Sinai, which was established by the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2010. The Mount Sinai Hospital is also ranked No. 1 in the nation in geriatrics by U.S. News & World Report.