Cassie McGrath

Boston

Healthcare Reporter at Morning Brew

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

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Articles

Signed and Scrubbed: May 2025 hospital M&A, bankruptcy list

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

Welcome back to Signed and Scrubbed, a monthly roundup of hospital deals and bankruptcies. This month, big health systems like New York-based Northwell Health announced mergers and acquisitions, while smaller health systems elsewhere, like in Delaware and Connecticut, initiated consolidation. One planned merger even came to an end. We compiled noteworthy provider news from May. Here’s the rundown. Atlantic General Hospital/TidalHealth.
AI 411: May 2025 edition

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

Welcome back to AI 411, a monthly roundup of artificial intelligence (AI) announcements from across the healthcare industry. This month, health tech companies saw big fundraisers and announced new products that use AI to support patient care. Let’s get into it. Here is your roundup of health-related AI updates from May. Akido. Akido, a Los Angeles-based care delivery company announced a $60 million Series B funding round on May 15. Funding was led by venture capitalist Oak HC/FT.
Vermont seeks salary caps for hospital executives

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

In a surprise to no one who follows healthcare, costs are rising across the US this year. In Vermont, the problem is especially bad, as health insurance premiums jumped 24% in 2024 and are expected to increase another 14% this year, KFF reported. For example, KFF’s data shows Vermont’s Affordable Care Act marketplace plans jumped from an average of $732 per month in 2022 to $948 in 2024. That’s compared to national marketplace plan averages of $428 per month in 2022 and $468 in 2024.
How Northwell Holdings operates, according to its CEO

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

More than 20 hospital systems around the US have venture arms that invest in healthcare companies either founded internally by clinicians or externally by experts in the industry. The idea is to build products the hospital needs, and hopefully bring in some ROI to uplift finances.
How reproductive health has changed 3 years since Roe v. Wade was overturned

1 month 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

1 month 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

1 month 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?

1 month 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

1 month 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

1 month 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.