HEALTH CARE INDUSTRY & PHARMACEUTICALS +++ +++++ (KFF Health News)

HEALTH CARE INDUSTRY Fierce Healthcare: Leapfrog Ordered To Remove Safety Grade For 5 Tenet Hospitals https://www.fiercehealthcare.com/providers/leapfrog-ordered-remove-safety-grade-5-tenet-hospitals?utm_campaign=KHN%3A%20First%20Edition&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz--xfuEfhFmx-eSnNKnTDDv92-z1BgnQkNdQMX_ny529IpFO-7UcymmCHhMe960B-2BVTyKsGakgUdtPPmfr8ws-FbrhWg&_hsmi=407915789&utm_content=407915789&utm_source=hs_email A federal judge has ruled against the Leapfrog Group in a suit brought by Tenet Healthcare subsidiary hospitals that said they were punished for not voluntarily submitting data to the hospital safety grading nonprofit. The ruling, handed down Friday, focuses on a methodology change Leapfrog implemented ahead of the fall 2024 publication of its hospital safety grades. The approach more heavily weighed “imputed” scores for four of Leapfrog’s 32 safety measures that were assigned when recent safety data for the two preceding years are unavailable. (Muoio, 3/9) Fortune: Healthcare Jobs—Which Have Been Propping Up Labor Market—Just Shrank For First Time In Four Years https://fortune.com/2026/03/09/healthcare-jobs-plummet-first-time-four-years-labor-market-economy-jobs-report/?utm_campaign=KHN%3A%20First%20Edition&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_quZ5ytDkn8fCrSb6VA1ypSu30mZFCyXHerCJfGa_oQnct3zqudxHK857pZET_GkGGOMuLRRCYU0kGboZ_s_2ikbMq4A&_hsmi=407915789&utm_content=407915789&utm_source=hs_email Despite making up nearly a fifth of the U.S. economy and providing a much-needed set of crutches, the latest health care jobs data highlights just how wobbly the labor market is. Over 28,000 jobs in the health care industry were lost in February, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics jobs report on Friday, making up nearly one-third of the 92,000 total jobs lost for the month. The dip marks the sector’s first decline in more than four years. (Rogelberg, 3/9) Stat: Talkspace To Be Acquired By Mental Health Services Giant https://www.statnews.com/2026/03/09/talkspace-to-be-acquired-for-835-million-by-mental-health-services-giant/?utm_campaign=KHN%3A%20First%20Edition&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9JiNqyNS-GINzU6iL7GNikF65aRLm-RSHk4_0nNuRRXqSFTPrzkQVmqn0W9EwTzrgYAQF1_7XNdCbZL1rufHgd3yWWPw&_hsmi=407915789&utm_content=407915789&utm_source=hs_email Universal Health Services, a behavioral health provider that operates over 340 inpatient facilities across 40 states, announced Monday that it will acquire virtual mental health company Talkspace for $835 million, marking a new chapter for a digital health leader that has often been considered ripe to be picked up by a larger organization. (Aguilar, 3/9) PHARMACEUTICALS MedPage Today: Cancer Drug Pulled From Market Over Safety Concerns https://www.medpagetoday.com/hematologyoncology/lymphoma/120234?utm_campaign=KHN%3A%20First%20Edition&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8OS1kH0fXXZ0BaXJ1vw08gnysmhokN5Y99bCb_dHYQ2m_QLK1kjEwayXpvb9MfYhebCvwQ9e2aiY9_MCFiDoHie0fa3g&_hsmi=407915789&utm_content=407915789&utm_source=hs_email The cancer drug tazemetostat (Tazverik) is being voluntarily withdrawn in the U.S. and all other markets over concerns about secondary cancers, drugmaker Ipsen announced. The company also said it is discontinuing all active trials of the EZH2 inhibitor and any expanded access programs. (Bassett, 3/9) MedPage Today: Another Study Finds No Ties Between Tylenol In Pregnancy And Autism https://www.medpagetoday.com/pediatrics/generalpediatrics/120232?utm_campaign=KHN%3A%20First%20Edition&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_CNM62uTDCuO8bT66HYUO94qB9aWFzuAtCx6DwIR_26ik6POYSpk6B-Ydnso2FJJr8Es-2UM2U6vQc0RCCS7VfCmnYrA&_hsmi=407915789&utm_content=407915789&utm_source=hs_email Positive associations between maternal acetaminophen prescriptions during pregnancy and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in offspring became null in sibling-matched analyses, a nationwide cohort study in Taiwan found. (Henderson, 3/9) CIDRAP: Study Links Fluoroquinolone Antibiotics To Increased Risk Of Panic Attacks https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/antimicrobial-stewardship/study-links-fluoroquinolone-antibiotics-increased-risk-panic-attacks?utm_campaign=KHN%3A%20First%20Edition&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8u0-w2Agwy9dgyQ8EqeytbR-E93b7K00ulmIs8k5ozqywf9Mgdvv0tlrrpcv8oaGp-QWlIsGcWxId97SfoU275U8c0Dw&_hsmi=407915789&utm_content=407915789&utm_source=hs_email A new study by a team of Canadian researchers hints at a potential link between fluoroquinolone antibiotics and increased risk of panic attacks. Although fluoroquinolones are among the most widely prescribed antibiotics, they've been linked to an array of side effects, including tendinitis and tendon rupture, peripheral neuropathy (a nerve condition that causes weakness, numbness, and pain in the hands and feet), and central nervous system effects. (Dall, 3/9) CBS News: Penn Medical Student With Rare Genetic Form Of ALS On Mission To Develop Gene Therapy https://www.cbsnews.com/philadelphia/news/als-research-penn-medical-student/?utm_campaign=KHN%3A%20First%20Edition&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_AqGM1jQ6n1-Dtx4wMPN3ZtD3wMXv-cdMpNYkNIpNvKpUV8X7cy2Od6Sw4sAeONFzQw1pryMeVEknwz28zxfJUgkbdJg&_hsmi=407915789&utm_content=407915789&utm_source=hs_email A medical student at the University of Pennsylvania is on a special mission in the research lab that could save her life. Yentli Soto Albrecht's battle is against ALS, a fatal neurodegenerative disease. She has a rare genetic form of the disease. It's a race against time in the research lab for Soto Albrecht, who is an MD/PHD student at the Perelman School of Medicine. (Stahl, 3/9) Becker's Hospital Review: Digital Nudges Help GLP-1 Users: Stanford https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/healthcare-information-technology/digital-health/digital-nudges-help-glp-1-users-stanford/?utm_campaign=KHN%3A%20First%20Edition&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9J0g9KmxlPVqBcgvfaHjlxYX7u1jT2PrF4j1yLtiAjucNDbM9XQjsK-0enYPIZeC8_a9xgzZGAXjICWj56J9NFN7zyQg&_hsmi=407915789&utm_content=407915789&utm_source=hs_email Digital lifestyle nudges can help GLP-1 users focus on healthier habits, according to a study at Stanford (Calif.) Medicine. The researchers conducted an online randomized trial of over 5,000 adults using the weight-loss medications across the globe, finding that low-cost digital interventions increased their expectation that they would adopt healthy behaviors, with effects lasting up to two weeks, per the March 9 study in JAMA Network Open. (Bruce, 3/9)