Cassie McGrath

Boston

Healthcare Reporter at Morning Brew

Healthcare reporter with @MorningBrew | she/her | Get in touch: [email protected] ☕️

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Articles

How reproductive health has changed 3 years since Roe v. Wade was overturned

1 week ago | healthcare-brew.com | Cassie McGrath

June 24 marks nearly three years since the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision that overturned the constitutional right to abortion in the US. To date, 19 states have banned or restricted abortion before fetal viability across the country, according to the NYT abortion law tracker. Independent abortion clinics in some states are struggling to stay open, while companies offering telehealth have seen a rise in demand.
The role of brokers in healthcare, and how it’s changed

2 weeks ago | healthcare-brew.com | Cassie McGrath

The first thing many people will tell you about health insurance is that it’s complicated. Between public and private plans, HMOs, PPOs, and high deductibles, it can be hard to know which plan is right for you. About half (51%) of insured adults report some difficulty understanding at least one aspect of their health insurance, including what insurance covers, out-of-pocket costs, and benefit explanations, according to health policy research organization KFF’s 2023 survey of 3,605 US adults.
How Zocdoc, Cedar are implementing AI voice agents in healthcare

3 weeks ago | healthcare-brew.com | Cassie McGrath

When New York-based Zocdoc was founded back in 2007, the idea was to help patients get off the phone, founder and CEO Oliver Kharraz told Healthcare Brew. The company created a website that helps patients find clinicians who fit their needs in their area and are under their insurance, and books appointments online.
What happens to patient data when a health tech company folds?

3 weeks ago | healthcare-brew.com | Cassie McGrath

After 23andMe’s bankruptcy, reports showed how the company could legally sell patient data.
Arkansas Medicaid work requirement increased uninsured population, hurt employment

3 weeks ago | healthcare-brew.com | Cassie McGrath

Working hard, or hardly working? That’s what Arkansas lawmakers want to ask Medicaid enrollees—again. In June 2018, the state instituted a work requirement for Medicaid (which included coverage for 954,997 people). The idea was to make beneficiaries prove they had a job in order to get federal assistance unless they couldn’'t work, were pregnant, or had a disability. By March 2019, a and effectively ended the requirement, but 18,000+ Medicaid members had already lost coverage, NPR reported.
Signed and Scrubbed: April 2025 hospital M&A, bankruptcy list

4 weeks ago | healthcare-brew.com | Cassie McGrath

Welcome back to Signed and Scrubbed, a monthly roundup of hospital deals and bankruptcies. In April, Modern Healthcare reported Q1 2025 hit a record low for hospital mergers and acquisitions—the lowest a quarterly figure has been in the last decade—citing tariffs, federal funding cuts, and regulatory issues. Despite that, we still compiled hospital news of note from April. Here’s the rundown. Ascension.Two subsidiaries under the St. Louis-based parent health system closed deals last month.
AI 411: April 2025

1 month ago | healthcare-brew.com | Cassie McGrath

Welcome back to AI 411, a monthly roundup of artificial intelligence (AI) announcements from across the healthcare industry. Firm Nordic Consulting recently released a survey of 152 providers, which found that while 71% of respondents use some AI in their organizations, 52% said their system needs more development or growth. On that note, here is your roundup of health-related AI updates from April. Merck and Harvard.
Health techs share tariff concerns, resiliency plans

1 month ago | healthcare-brew.com | Cassie McGrath

Buckle up: It’s time to talk about tariffs…again. While tariffs are paused for many countries and pharmaceuticals are exempt (for now), the healthcare industry is certainly not immune to the up to 145% tax on Chinese goods. For health tech startups specifically, there are two challenges: ensuring they have enough devices companies need and securing capital to grow amid a volatile market.
Cedars-Sinai chief AI officer Mouneer Odeh shares thoughts, plans on AI in healthcare

1 month ago | healthcare-brew.com | Cassie McGrath

At the end of 2024, Los Angeles-based Cedars-Sinai Health System appointed Mouneer Odeh as its inaugural chief artificial intelligence officer, a role in healthcare that’s been growing over the last few years. Odeh has years of experience in healthcare data and analytics, most recently as VP of analytics at Virginia-based Inova Health System.
Community health leaders concerned about long-term funding

1 month ago | healthcare-brew.com | Cassie McGrath

It’s sniffles season. People with asthma commonly suffer from allergies, too. Help your patients understand their allergic triggers with ImmunoCAP™ Specific IgE blood tests. And with this lab ordering guide, providers can browse region-specific profiles to help patients identify local allergic triggers. Learn more. Federal health funding is getting cut across the board, from NIH research to Covid-19 recovery grants.