Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Companies Push Workers Harder To Lose Weight
The boss thinks you could stand to lose a few. Seeking to make a dent in the intractable problem of obesity — a condition affecting roughly one-third of U.S. adults and costing companies more than $73 billion a year, according to researchers from Duke University — businesses are experimenting with new measures to encourage workers to slim down. (Weber and Silverman, 12/16)
CVS Health Corp. projected up to 16% earnings growth for the next year, driven by gains in specialty drugs and acquisitions. The drugstore, which changed its name to CVS Health in September as it sold its last tobacco products, also approved a new $10 billion stock repurchase program and boosted its quarterly dividend by 27% to 35 cents a share. The boost will cost the company about an extra $90 million a quarter. (Chen, 12/16)
