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Vori, Google Check Up, and CMS’ New Sheriff
March 20, 2025
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Together with
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“So the real question is, what’s our obligation, each and every one of us? I think it is our patriotic duty to be healthy. First of all, it feels a heck of a lot better. But it also costs a lot to take care of sick people who are sick because of lifestyle choices.”
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Dr. Mehmet Oz during his recent Senate confirmation hearing.
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Dr. Mehmet Oz appears to have passed his Senate testimony with flying colors, and the surgeon-turned-TV-personality’s confirmation as CMS administrator seems all but locked in.
The nearly three hour testimony wandered through a range of topics with a direct impact on digital health, giving us a first look at what might change – or get axed – in the years ahead.
- Prior auth topped the hit list. The most concrete policy idea that Oz offered was limiting the number of procedures subject to prior auth in Medicare Advantage to 1,000, a steep reduction from ~15,000 today. Oz said the “pre-approval process is expensive and wastes time,” especially when we have AI that can “pretty quickly adjudicate whether you should have to wait even a day to have the medication that will get you out of pain.”
- AI was a major theme throughout the testimony. Oz plans to use AI to help doctors “optimize care” and focus on their patients, making several references to its ability to augment treatments and cut down on paperwork. He also said “we should be using AI within the agency to identify [fraud] early enough so that we can prevent it.”
- Medicare Advantage was another big focal point. Oz cited MedPAC research showing that MA is more expensive than traditional Medicare, but attributed much of the cost to upcoding from payors. He promised to hit the problem head-on with an AI hammer.
- Medicaid was a mixed bag. While Oz said he fully supports the program, he also agreed that spending has gone off the rails since the ACA, and was in favor of implementing work requirements. Oz sidestepped questions about potential cuts by saying “the way you protect Medicaid is by making sure that it’s viable at every level,” which includes having enough practitioners, compensating them fairly, and improving patient access.
The Takeaway
It’s hard to take the other side when a charismatic doctor vows to fix a broken healthcare system, but it’s also tough to tell the difference between empty promises and real reform until action backs it up. Part of that will have to wait until the actual confirmation, but as Oz put it, “part of this is just recognizing there is a new sheriff in town.”
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Carle Health Goes All-In on Nabla
Nabla is rolling out at Carle Health after a successful pilot saw a majority of participating clinicians slash their documentation time by over an hour. The full case study has everything you need to know about how Nabla’s customization features, Epic integration, and ease of use are bringing joy back to medicine for Carle’s clinicians.
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2025 State of Payer Enrollment & Credentialing
With increasing costs and shifting regulations, outdated processes won’t cut it. Medallion’s new report breaks down the biggest challenges, emerging trends, and how automation is transforming the landscape. Get the insights you need – read the full report today.
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- Vori Series B: Vori Health landed $53M in Series B funding as it looks to bring AI upgrades to its virtual MSK platform and invest in advanced analytics for targeting high-risk members. Although some software-led MSK competitors are stealing headlines with IPO announcements, the outcomes generated by Vori’s physician-led approach received top marks in PHTI’s famed MSK evidence report, which explains why the new funds were earmarked to expand Vori’s value-based care initiatives toward two-sided risk.
- Integrating Evidence for Digital Tech: The power trio of DiMe, Peterson Health Technology Institute, and advisory firm ZS released awesome public resources to help health tech developers meet the evidence needs of different stakeholders on the path to commercialization (regulators, investors, payors, etc.). The resources are nicely broken down for different startup stages, and include an IEP Toolkit (comprehensive roadmap for building evidence plans), a Stakeholder Map (self-explanatory:), and a High-Quality Evidence Checklist (for ensuring evidence aligns with decision makers).
- An Apple a Day: The first national survey on Americans’ perceptions of food-as-medicine suggests that most people would participate in FaM programs, but few even know they exist. The data shared in Health Affairs showed that less than half of the 3,009 respondents have received clear nutrition-related info from their PCP, but an overwhelming majority would pursue FaM if it could reduce the risk of health complication (87%), make them feel better (84%), or reduce the need for prescription meds (80%).
- Google Check Up: Google showcased a complete suite of new health features at its annual The Check Up event. One of the biggest announcements was the addition of Medical Records APIs for Health Connect, which now lets users read and write medical data across multiple apps in FHIR format. Google also improved its Search and AI Overviews to deliver better information for complex medical questions, while also adding a new “What People Suggest” feature that summarizes online discussions from people with the same condition.
- FC Most Innovative Companies: Fast Company released its annual Most Innovative Companies List, highlighting businesses across all industries “that are doing things differently,” or at least some solid teams that know how to schmooze an editor. Jokes aside, the list includes 15 healthcare companies that are tough to argue with, such as AI platform Abridge, administrative copilot Infinitus, employer-focused payor Curative, and rural care provider Homeward. The list is worth checking out even just for its great overviews on the startups.
- Hospital Margins Stable in January: Kaufman Hall’s latest Hospital Flash Report recorded stable operating margins of 5.1% in January (an uptick from 5% in Dec) as higher service volumes offset nagging expense growth. Hospitals experienced quicker revenue gains from inpatient than outpatient services, with a 5% YoY increase in discharges per calendar day and 4% YoY increase in ED visits. Expenses also climbed due primarily to drug costs (up 6%), “though the rate of cost growth has slowed.”
- Wysa Acquires April Health: Mental health chatbot Wysa is breaking into clinical care through the acquisition of April Health, which embeds virtual psychiatry services into primary care practices. The acquisition is geared toward ensuring patients have continuous access to personalized care through a combination of April’s behavioral health specialists and psychiatrists, as well as guidance from Wysa’sTherapeutic AI Coach for support between visits.
- Artisight + KARL STORZ + NVIDIA: Artisight is building on its collaboration with operating room integration company KARL STORZ by adding NVIDIA’s Jetson AI computing platform to enable real-time surgical insights. Leveraging NVIDIA’s compute and Artisight’s AI clinical operations expertise, KARL STORZ is introducing a new Pathway.AI solution that uses computer vision and ambient listening to automate OR and perioperative tasks, such as alerting staff when surgery is complete or when a room needs cleaning.
- Agents for Administrative Burnout: A survey from Infinitus showed that administrative work hinders patient care for 69% of healthcare workers, and that staff shortages are a pressing concern for nearly two-thirds of organizations. Although maybe not the most surprising conclusion given the source of the survey, 66% of respondents said that AI agents could address the issue by unloading the most mundane parts of their job, which could also be good news for patients considering that AI voice agents reportedly reduce call length by 12%.
- DeepSeek for Doctors: The DeepSeek large language model stunned the world when it was unveiled in January by its Chinese developer. Now, new reports indicate that DeepSeek is being widely used by doctors at nearly 100 Chinese hospitals and ushering in a “revolution” in the country’s healthcare sector. The algorithm has apparently been a boon for China’s chronically overcrowded hospitals, helping with everything from developing patient treatment plans and writing medical records to performing scientific research.
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Abridge is the Best in KLAS No. 1 Market Leader
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Top Systems Scale Primary Care With K Health
Leading health systems are turning to K Health’s AI-driven primary care solution to give their patients access to high-quality care with wait times measured in hours, not months. Find out why K Health is the only clinical AI company partnering with top systems to scale fully integrated primary care experiences.
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- Bridging Care Gaps for Underserved Populations: Is your health system, rural health clinic, or federally qualified health center struggling to reach patients with obstacles to receiving in-person care? This Clear Arch Health whitepaper explores how combining RPM with VBC can help facilitate proactive interventions, address social determinants of health, and get the most out of new CMS reimbursement pathways.
- Simplify RPM & Maximize Patient Engagement: Engaging patients at critical moments is essential for success. With Withings Health Nudges feature, care teams can send tailored messages to the screen of the blood pressure monitor— offering personalized support when they need it most.
- The First 30 Days: What to Expect With AI: Implementing AI documentation tools promises significant benefits, but how do you ensure a smooth transition? Playback Health has you covered with this comprehensive 30-day roadmap outlining what to expect, industry best practices, and its own proven implementation approach.
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