Publishing LIVE at VIVE in Los Angeles, this issue of the “The Talamo Topline hits on a number of hot topics in health-tech, AI, and industry financials. What a time it is to be working in a space with such innovation, collaboration, and excitement. Conferences and events such as VIVE here have so much buzz because it gives you two great moments… one to show off what you are working on, and one to hear what the rest of the industry is working on. But as in life, the real “secret sauce” is the connections that you make and the ability to solve big problems together.
If you are out here in Los Angeles as the meeting winds down, give me a shout and let’s meet up!
I hope you enjoy this issue of The Talamo Topline. Let’s catch up and talk about the industry… find me on Calendly or send me a note offline. Looking forward to it!
Chart of the Week
From McKinsey’s Report -- Top M&A trends in 2024: Blueprint for success in the next wave of deals. Unlike the global M&A Market, the life sciences sector saw deal activity increase in 2023. Many life sciences companies are publicly hunting for deals and seeking to shed non-core assets in their quest for value creation. This year promises an active market for M&A in the sector.
The Headlines
- The New England Journal of Medicine: Direct-to-Consumer Platforms for New Antiobesity Medications — Concerns and Potential Opportunities: Direct-to-consumer (DTC) models offer a pathway for patients to obtain access to GLP-1 receptor agonists outside the confines of traditional clinics, often by means of telemedicine. And the arguments supporting the potential benefits of DTC delivery of GLP-1 receptor agonists can be persuasive.
- Forbes: VIVE2024 Insight: Top Priorities For Healthcare CIOs: The healthcare industry is channeling more resources into digital projects at a pivotal moment in its digital transformation journey. The 2024 Digital Health Technology Report, spearheaded by Panda Health and executed by Sage Growth Partners, dives deep into the sector's digital evolution. This trend manifests in the expanding budgets for digital health technology, with 67% of leaders anticipating increases in their spending.
- The Hill: OPINION: More Pandemic-Style Price Fixing Won’t Help Global Health: This week, 19 House Ways and Means Committee members wrote to President Biden opposing broadening the pandemic-era waiver on intellectual property protections for COVID-19 vaccines. Extending this IP waiver sends an adverse signal against future innovation efforts to bring immense public health benefits to the world’s population.
From our MJH Life Sciences Network
- AJMC: Diagnostic Accuracy Similar Between ChatGPT, Retina Specialists in Small Study: A large language model (LLM) chatbot was able to outperform glaucoma specialists and match retina specialists in terms of accuracy when presented with deidentified glaucoma and retina cases and questions, according to a study published in JAMA Ophthalmology. This finding indicates that it could be a diagnostic tool in the future.
- OncLive: In Judo Move, Scientists Use Cancer’s Strength to Fight Against It: Immunotherapies using engineered T cells have ushered in a new era in cancer treatment, but they have their limits. They may cause adverse effects or stop working, and they do not work at all against 90% of cancers. Now, scientists at UC San Francisco and Northwestern Medicine may have found a way around these limitations by borrowing a few tricks from cancer itself.
- HCPLive: Female Teens Took More Antidepressants During COVID-19, Male Teens Took Less: An uprise of adolescents and young adults started taking antidepressants during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly among females, reported investigators at Michigan Medicine. Although a high and growing number of adolescents and young adults aged 12 – 25 years received antidepressants before the pandemic, the antidepressant dispensing rate rose nearly 64% faster after March 2020.
AI in Healthcare
- MedCity News: Seven Trends to Watch in Healthtech AI: As the role of AI in healthcare settings continues to evolve and generate debate, stakeholders from all around the industry are wondering what 2024 will bring. Here are seven trends to watch this year.
- Bloomberg: Health, Location Data Should Be ‘Off Limits’ for AI, FTC Chair Says: Sensitive personal data related to health, location or web browsing history should be “off limits” for training artificial intelligence models, US Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan said Tuesday. The FTC is working to create “bright lines on the rules of development, use and management of AI inputs,” Khan said at RemedyFest, a conference hosted by Bloomberg Beta and Y Combinator.
On the Hill
- The Hill: Congress Appears Likely to Exclude PBMs, Other Health Priorities from Spending Package: Congress is unlikely to include many major health priorities in the next government funding package, according to multiple sources. It is increasingly likely that only a handful of programs facing imminent deadlines could be included in legislation needed to fund the government by March 8, such as community health center funding, a reversal of Medicaid cuts to hospitals serving low-income and uninsured patients, and at least a partial rollback of Medicare physician payment cuts.
Leadership & Professional Development
- Inc: How to Keep Your Leadership Team Fully Involved: A high-performing leadership team is at the heart of every successful organization. However, ensuring that your leadership team remains fully engaged and motivated can be a challenging task. In this article, we'll explore effective strategies for fostering team engagement and maintaining a dynamic and motivated leadership group.
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Senior Vice President | Mergers & Acquisitions, Strategic Innovation
