Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Google Quietly Nixes AI Search Feature That Gave Health Tips From Strangers
Google has dropped a new artificial intelligence search feature that gave users crowdsourced health advice from amateurs around the world. The company had said its launch of “What People Suggest�, which provided tips from strangers, showed “the potential of AI to transform health outcomes across the globe�. But Google has since quietly removed the feature, according to three people familiar with the decision. (Gregory, 3/16)
Prime Healthcare, which owns eight Illinois hospitals, may soon no longer be in-network with the state’s largest health insurer, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois — a situation that could force some patients to switch doctors or pay more for care. (Schencker, 3/13)
Vanderbilt Health chief executive Dr. Jeff Balser will retire at the end of the year after almost two decades in the role, the health system announced Thursday. The Nashville, Tennessee-based academic health system said its board of directors will begin a national search for its next president and CEO. Balser will retire Dec. 31. (Halleman, 3/13)
U.S. officials say more cyberattacks on the homeland should be expected after global disruption forced tens of thousands of Stryker employees offline. (Volz and Loftus, 3/15)
On organ transplants —
The grieving family members have left the hospital room, gently reminded by a health care professional that their loved one wished to become an organ donor. For that to happen, death must be declared. After a mandated pause, surgeons then recover organs that will bring life to people ranked by need on transplant wait lists. What happens next depends on a branching series of events. (Cooney, 3/16)
Mayo Clinic's organ transplant centers performed the most solid organ transplants in its history last year — 2,065 across its Minnesota, Arizona and Florida campuses. It also performed more than any other hospital system in the country. (Work, 3/14)