Deborah Kaplan

TI Fluid Systems had a problem. The company produces automotive fluid storage, carrying and delivery systems. That includes steel coils to fabricate pipes for brake and fuel supply circuits. Any perforations in the steel, no matter how tiny, can cause safety issues. TI Fluid had a camera-based inspection system in place, 3 meters above the steel strips on a production line. However, this system required complex calibration and had frequent operational failures and false hole ...

An estimated 39 million people could die globally by 2050 directly from one thing, if projections in a September Lancet study are accurate. It’s not COVID-19, swine flu or measles. Instead, it would be from antimicrobial resistance—the silent epidemic in healthcare.
“When we first had penicillin, back in the late 1930s, there was very little resistance, and penicillin wo...

Direct contracting is not a new concept: Cut out the insurers as middlemen and work directly with providers on more integrative health and aligned metrics. But companies are newly exploring different ways to implement it and fully realize the benefits.
About 75% of employers already use some form of direct contracting, and 41% say they will likely consider it in 2025, according to a 2024 Brighton Health Plan Solutions and HR Dive survey. Of the 150 respondents, approximately 60% were from com...

Although doctors prescribe pharmaceuticals for various ailments, they also understand that drugs are only one way to improve a patient’s health. Another is food. The “food is medicine” movement is not new, but it is gaining prominence. The idea is to bolster treatment by providing nutritious foods and medically tailored meals to address diet-related illnesses (diabetes, heart disease and some cancers) and supporting those with conditions such as cancer and kidney disease.

Supply & Demand for GLP-1s: What’s in Store?
How pharmacies, members & patients can think about accessibility & cost of these treatments
Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) drugs have taken the country—and the world—by storm, due to their efficacy for some people as a weight loss treatment. While originally formulated and still used as a treatment for type 2 diabetes, the positive weight loss results associated with GLP-1s led manufacturers to seek...

When a patient reports a doctor to a state medical board, they may also sue the doctor for monetary damages in civil court. The medical board responds to patient complaints made directly to them, but it also may also initiate its own investigations. Those can be prompted by a malpractice claim resolution, with a court verdict against the doctor, or a settlement recorded in the National Practitioner Data Bank.
healthcare, medical malpractice, medical/legal, doctor, lawsuit, investigation

Have you heard about the new-ish insurance option for which individual coverage health reimbursement arrangements (ICHRA) let employees choose their own plan with employers reimbursing them for some or all of the premium? If not, join the club. These plans have pretty much flown under the radar since they were introduced federally in 2020.
ICHRAs are like ligers — half lion, half tiger.
healthcare, insurance, health insurance, employee benefits

With the exception of abortion and reproductive rights, most experts see healthcare issues as residing in the second tier of what will influence how Americans vote in the Nov. 5 presidential election. IVF, family planning, abortion,

Hospice use continues to grow as more older people have serious diseases, leading to the need for more palliative care. At the same time, CMS is adapting and trying new models to measure and improve quality and pay for services.
The federal government spent $23.7 billion on hospice care in 2022, according to the latest Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) report, with at least 1.7 million Medicare beneficiaries receiving service. This includes nearly half of Medicare beneficiaries wh...

biopharma, pharma, employment, hiring, unemployment, scientists, labor
After a decade at Pfizer, immunologist Mary Sutton was laid off in February. Sutton (not her real name) has been looking for another mid-level executive position in new drug development since getting the WARN notice 60 days before, applying for jobs in pharma and large biotech companies. While most of her colleagues have found work since the layoff, it’s taking longer than she’d hoped. “There are jobs out there, but a lot of people as w...

Every decade brings more changes to our bodies, and some of the most noticeable signs of aging are seen in our skin. Many people first notice their skin beginning to change in their 30s or 40s in signs including wrinkles and fine lines, along with an uneven skin tone. The skin might have rough or dry areas and begin losing some of its elasticity.
While we cannot completely reverse the aging process, we can help ...

Your job advertisement isn’t bringing in the right people. You need to staff up a new lab or department—quickly. You need a new chief scientific officer and your in-house recruiters don’t have the expertise or capacity. Do you keep hoping the same ad will work, or do you bring in outside specialists?
talent acquisition, biotech, pharmaceuticals, pharma, recruiting

​The coronavirus public health emergency may have ended last year, but its effects on the pharmaceutical industry continue to reverberate.
Like during the pandemic, drug and medical supply shortages continue to plague the industry. While the federal government investigates the issue, public and private entities continue to push for increased visibility and collaboration.
drug shortages, DSCSA, drug supply chain security act, regulations

What do herring fishers have to do with drug approvals and Medicare payment policies? If they win their cases in the Supreme Court, the herring fisheries could eliminate or reduce the courts’ reliance on the Chevron deference, ushering in more lawsuits against federal agencies on healthcare issues.