Deep Dive
Industry insights from our journalists
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One year in: How medtech companies are coping with tariff challenges
A resilient medtech industry navigating the fallout from President Donald Trump’s trade wars is taking proactive steps to manage tariff costs as the administration’s policies continue to evolve.
Susan Kelly • April 9, 2026 -
Photo illustration: Mark Harris
CMS tackles big policy changes with diminished workforce
The agency is embarking on major initiatives — including helping states implement Medicaid work requirements — with fewer workers in the wake of the federal government’s restructuring, experts say.
Emily Olsen and Shaun Lucas • April 1, 2026 -
Photo illustration: Mark Harris
One year after HHS layoffs, a department in disarray
Thousands of employees of the Department of Health and Human Services were fired last spring. Their colleagues are still picking up the pieces.
Rebecca Pifer Parduhn, Shaun Lucas and Julia Himmel • April 1, 2026 -
Emily Olsen/Healthcare Dive
Balancing AI innovation and risk: 5 takeaways from HIMSS26
The healthcare sector will increasingly adopt autonomous agents this year, but it’ll have to consider how to adapt governance structures and manage cybersecurity risks as AI evolves, experts said in Las Vegas last week.
Emily Olsen and Jill Hughes • March 16, 2026 -
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Health insurers brace for impact in 2026
Profits will start to tick up after reaching trough levels. Washington will play nice. M&A and AI adoption will accelerate. We asked experts to look into their crystal balls on what the coming year means for a beleaguered industry.
Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Jan. 28, 2026 -
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Top healthcare AI trends in 2026
While health systems will continue their AI rollout, use of the technology could evolve amid intensifying competition from EHRs, fragmented regulations and growing M&A opportunities.
Emily Olsen • Jan. 14, 2026 -
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Top healthcare provider trends in 2026
Health systems that address costs, workforce planning and portfolio strategy may be better positioned as reimbursement headwinds intensify this year.
Michael Brady • Jan. 8, 2026 -
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Goliath v. Goliath
A Medicare Advantage network spat between Optum and Humana in Washington state appears to be benefiting UnitedHealthcare at the expense of its biggest rival. Antitrust experts are alarmed.
Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Dec. 16, 2025 -
Courtesy of Whoop
What medtech firms can learn from Whoop’s warning letter
An FDA warning letter about the wearable company’s blood pressure feature raises questions about the blurring lines between medtech and wellness.
Elise Reuter • Dec. 8, 2025 -
Emily Olsen/Healthcare Dive
Health systems are racing to adopt AI. But can they prove its value?
Measuring financial returns from AI can be challenging, experts said at the HLTH conference. But other metrics, like provider and patient satisfaction, are important too — and also impact providers’ bottom lines.
Emily Olsen • Oct. 27, 2025 -
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AI could transform healthcare. Can safety-net providers keep up?
Implementing artificial intelligence requires significant human labor and technical expertise, threatening to create a digital divide between highly resourced health systems and safety-net providers.
Emily Olsen • Oct. 2, 2025 -
Permission granted by Michael Sage
Cancer patients are living longer than ever. Pain drugmakers haven’t kept up.
Decades of slow-moving research, along with broader failures of the healthcare system, have left millions of people in daily pain. Doctors fear that’s bound to continue.
Jacob Bell • Sept. 25, 2025 -
Joe Raedle / Staff via Getty Images
Disparity in vaccine access between states roils patients, providers
Recent changes to federal guidance on COVID-19 vaccinations have providers worried about what’s to come. “We have opened a door to not using science to guide care,” one physician said.
Susanna Vogel • Sept. 23, 2025 -
Permission granted by Radiology Partners
Foundation models are medtech’s newest trend. But what are they?
The AI models, which are built on massive datasets and can be adapted to multiple tasks, have become a part of medtech companies’ lexicon in the past few years.
Elise Reuter • Sept. 15, 2025 -
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A $50B rural health fund was negotiated with hospitals in mind. Experts are split on whether it will help them at all.
The fund was created to help Republicans secure critical votes for their reconciliation bill. But experts aren't quite sure how it'll work, creating a $50 billion dollar question with major ramifications for rural hospitals.
Susanna Vogel • Aug. 26, 2025 -
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images via Getty Images
White House data sharing plan boasts big ambitions, but has scant details
Improving health data exchange is a worthy goal, but the initiative has to overcome challenges like data security, under-resourced providers and slow technology uptake, experts say.
Emily Olsen • Aug. 21, 2025 -
Courtesy of UnitedHealth Group
UnitedHealth, Amedisys merger appears set to close post-DOJ settlement
The settlement is weaker than at least one antitrust expert expected based on the severity of the DOJ’s concerns. But it means the $3.3 billion merger is very likely to close.
Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Aug. 8, 2025 -
Courtesy of Thermo Fisher Scientific
The Trump administration wants to onshore drug manufacturing. Technologists are answering the call.
Looming threats to the pharmaceutical supply chain have brought fresh attention to onshoring. Experts say innovation is happening, but slowly.
Susanna Vogel • July 9, 2025 -
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340B could have a new cop on the beat. Hospitals are worried.
The HHS wants to move oversight of the controversial drug discount program to the CMS, which has a more aggressive history with 340B than its covered providers would prefer. “It could be truly devastating,” one expert said.
Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • July 2, 2025 -
Joe Raedle via Getty Images
House committees advance reconciliation text with big impacts on healthcare
Republicans in Energy and Commerce and Ways and Means have approved their portions of President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” after marathon markups. Here’s an extensive look at what the legislation means for healthcare.
Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • May 15, 2025 -
Emily Olsen/Healthcare Dive
Medicaid cuts could have ‘drastic impact’ on providers
Some providers may need to reduce services, lay off staff or close their doors if Congress enacts major cuts to the safety-net insurance program, experts say.
Emily Olsen • May 9, 2025 -
Permission granted by Racquel Garcia, HardBeauty
A public health grant provides a lifeline for pregnant and postpartum women in Colorado. Federal cuts threaten its stability.
The abrupt end of $11 billion in public health grants nationally disrupted a program in Colorado that provides residents critical access to behavioral health and substance abuse support.
Sydney Halleman • May 7, 2025 -
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Trump HHS tiptoes around endorsing conversion therapy for transgender minors
A new Trump administration report said teens struggling with gender dysphoria should undergo “exploratory” therapy and that conversion therapy was misunderstood.
Susanna Vogel • May 2, 2025 -
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A judge blocked the FDA’s plan to regulate LDTs. What now?
One attorney said the ruling “isn’t quite the stake in the heart.” The FDA is unlikely to challenge the court’s decision, but Congress could still pass legislation addressing LDT regulation
Susan Kelly • April 16, 2025 -
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HHS layoffs may be illegal, legal experts say
The federal health department sidestepped normal procedures as it laid off 10,000 employees, according to sources. One union has already filed an internal complaint, while at least two law firms are exploring suits.
Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • April 15, 2025
