NEXT MONTH: From UCare via Facebook, VERBATIM: “We are proud to sponsor the upcoming Way to Grow 2025 Education is Power event. We stand behind their mission and are grateful for the meaningful impact they continue to make in our communities.” EVENT: https://fluence-media.co/4jbKflP (SPONSORED: UCare)
All Fluence tipsheets are now available to read and share online at our website, The Daily Agenda:
SCIENCE: Via UofM CIDRAP, VERBATIM: “A University of Amsterdam study concludes that politically conservative Americans are more skeptical of science than previously thought, including that from fields that contribute to the economic growth and productivity they typically value. The findings, published yesterday in Nature Human Behaviour, were based on the survey responses of 7,800 US adults on their views on 35 different scientific fields such as anthropology, biology, and atomic physics by political leaning.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4jqfaeg
MORE: Via University of Amsterdam, VERBATIM: “Liberals were found to have more trust than conservatives in all 35 scientific professions that were examined—not just in fields that align with their priorities, such as climate change or inclusion, but also in areas focused on industry. However, the differences in levels of trust were not entirely uniform, with levels varying depending on the scientific field. The gap was particularly large for climate scientists, medical researchers and social scientists.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3EbPZNy
CLIMATE CHANGE: Via Phys.org, VERBATIM: “In the latest Gallup survey, 48% of respondents said global warming will pose a ‘serious threat’ to them or their way of life during their lifetime—the highest share recorded since 1997, when the question was first asked.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3Rmjor6
CANCER: Via news release from Roswell Park, VERBATIM: “Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center is at the forefront of a new approach to cancer treatment, called CAR T-cell therapy. The little known, but highly promising technology breakthrough makes it possible for your body to fight cancer, often without invasive surgery, offering patients new hope for the possibility of long-term remission. However, a new survey by Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center of 1,021 adults in the United States shows 65% are unfamiliar with the personalized cancer treatment option.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4inAlfM
Check out all the episodes of Sunday Take on 830 WCCO. CLICK: https://fluence-media.co/3KsuDrZ
SURMODICS: Via news release from the Attorney General’s office, VERBATIM: “Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced today that he and Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul have joined the Federal Trade Commission’s lawsuit to block the acquisition of Minnesota-based Surmodics, Inc. by private-equity firm GTCR BC Holdings, LLC. The complaint alleges that the deal, which seeks to combine the two largest manufacturers of critical medical-device coatings, is anticompetitive. Surmodics, based in Eden Prairie, is the largest provider in the United States of outsourced hydrophilic coatings. Hydrophilic coatings allow physicians to maneuver medical devices within the tight confines of the body — for example, within a blood vessel in the brain — without damaging sensitive tissue or vital structures.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/44he6VJ
MORE: Via Surmodics, from a March 6 news release, QUOTE: “Surmodics respectfully disagrees with the FTC's decision and remains committed to completing the Merger. Surmodics remains confident in both its rationale for the Merger and the value it will bring to all stakeholders, including shareholders, customers and patients. We have worked constructively with the FTC over the last several months to secure regulatory approval for the Merger and are disappointed by its decision to initiate litigation, as the Merger is pro-competitive.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4jhXn9g
MAYO: Via MPR, VERBATIM: “Mayo Clinic is changing the name of its Office of Equity, Inclusion and Diversity. It will now be called the Office of Belonging, according to internal communication to staff. People with EID titles will now have ‘Belonging’ titles, according to the notice sent this week. Internal and external websites related to the EID office will also be updated. ‘Since 2020, Mayo Clinic has intentionally focused on belonging as a cornerstone of staff wellbeing. In keeping with this focus and recent national events, we’re embracing an opportunity to accelerate Mayo Clinic’s belonging journey to reflect our culture of collaboration and respect and support positive patient experiences,’ said a statement from Mayo Clinic provided by spokesperson Andrea Kalmanovitz.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3GfyOva
MEDICAID SUPPORTS HEALTH CARE FOR ALL OF US: Medicaid keeps Minnesota’s hospitals strong and ensures communities across the state have access to care. Policymakers must protect Medicaid so every Minnesotan — regardless of income or health status — can get the care they need, when they need it. LEARN MORE: https://fluence-media.co/3FtrCuH (SPONSORED: Minnesota Hospital Association)
AUTISM: Via NPR, VERBATIM: “Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Wednesday declared that autism is a rapidly growing ‘epidemic’ in the U.S. and vowed to identify the ‘environmental toxin’ he says is to blame. He noted that autism incidence in the U.S. has increased from 1 in 36 children in 2020 to 1 in 31 in 2022, according to a report released Tuesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on the prevalence of autism.” QUOTE: "This is part of an unrelenting upward trend," Kennedy told reporters during a news conference Wednesday at HHS. "Overall autism is increasing in prevalence at an alarming rate." LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4cCdVWM
MORE: Via Associated Press, VERBATIM: “Autism experts applaud efforts to further understand the condition, but say the number of reported cases began to balloon as the definition of the condition expanded to include mild cases . . . Those who have spent decades researching autism have found no single cause. Besides genetics, scientists have identified various possible factors, including the age of a child’s father, the mother’s weight, and whether she had diabetes or was exposed to certain chemicals.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3EqEEZX
MORE: Via The New York Times, VERBATIM: “Dr. Eric Fombonne, who is a longtime autism researcher and professor emeritus at Oregon Health & Science University, called Mr. Kennedy’s claim ‘ridiculous.’ ‘Autism is not an infectious disease. So there aren’t preventive measures that we can take,’ said Dr. Joshua Anbar, an assistant teaching professor at Arizona State University who helped collect data for the C.D.C. report.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4im7CIj
From morning take…
LONGTERMCARE: In response to Governor Walz statement that, during his Medicaid town hall, that WALZ: “If you think we're in a crisis now, especially for seniors living in rural Minnesota, cut Medicaid and find out what happens. There's no way the state of Minnesota can come close to back filing what's lost.”…The Long Term Care Imperative releases the following statement, VERBATIM “We share Governor Walz’s stated concern for rural senior care in Minnesota, and we appreciate him sounding the alarm on Medicaid cuts at the federal level. We hope this means he is no longer pushing for similar Medicaid cuts at the state level that he has included in each of his budget proposals this session, which would have a devastating impact on older adults. 88% of rural Minnesotans believe seniors deserve care in their own communities — a core value the Governor’s budget puts at risk. As Minnesota lawmakers work to finalize budget bills in the coming weeks, we urge them to prioritize funding for senior care. In the absence of that, Governor Walz is right: Seniors, and those who provide them with care, will certainly be facing a crisis.”
(DISCLOSURE: The Long Term Care Imperative is a client of Fluence Advisory)
NURSES: via KARE 11, VERBATIM: “Hospitals across the country are working to figure out how to address a shortage of nurses, [but] Children’s Minnesota is reporting significant progress in closing this gap. In 2023, the healthcare system made a conscious effort to change the way it recruits and retains nurses. [Employees] were invited to form a task force to survey nurses to learn more about the changes they would like to see in their profession. … These efforts focused on recruitment and retention appear to be working. … In 2023, Children’s Minnesota spent around $40 million on temporary nurses. That number dropped to around $17 million in 2024.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4lzOCZC
Sign up for morning take… https://fluence-media.co/TheDailyAgenda
NEXT WEEK: Via Stat, VERBATIM: “For a decade and a half, Americans have been guaranteed that no matter their health insurer, certain preventive care like cancer screenings are free of charge. That’s because an Affordable Care Act provision has required insurers to fully cover services given an A or B recommendation by an expert task force. That may soon change. On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear a challenge to this statute in the case of Kennedy v. Braidwood Management. Either way the court decides, legal and medical experts told STAT, the ruling could have profound ramifications for the future of preventive health care in the United States.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3RmTcg1
UNITEDHEALTH: Via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “Dillman Clinic & Lab was finally at a point where the one-doctor practice in Lakeville could start thinking about hiring another physician. Then, all of a sudden, the clinic was walloped by the aftermath of a major cyberattack at Change Healthcare, the UnitedHealth Group subsidiary hacked in February 2024. The breach, which affected the data of 1 in 2 Americans, prompted the Eden Prairie-based health care giant to shut down a widely used computer system ‘clearinghouse’ for processing claims that precipitated a nationwide cash flow crisis for health care providers.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3ElLz6J
ICYMI… UnitedHealth cut its forecast this morning blaming surprising Medicare Advantage care use. Read about it at The Daily Agenda. READ: https://fluence-media.co/TheDailyAgenda
EMBOLISM: Via WCCO-TV, VERBATIM: “About five years ago, in the thick of COVID, Tony and Annie Sterle went to the hospital eager to meet their son. But things didn't go as planned . . . During labor, Annie Sterle suffered an amniotic fluid embolism (AFE). ‘It's considered a catastrophic complication of delivery,’ Minneapolis Heart Institute Interventional Cardiologist Dr. Michael Mooney said. Mooney says AFE is rare, but it's also one of the most fatal complications in childbirth. It's when amniotic fluid enters the bloodstream, causing devastating bleeding and, often, heart failure.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4iiM3IE
BIRTH CENTER: Via The Imprint, VERBATIM: “When considering what Indigenous mothers might need when they are about to give birth, Ruth Buffalo pictures a warm community-based center, full of laughter and love. Relatives are singing soft lullabies in their Native languages. Family members could dance ceremonially around mother and baby after birth . . . Buffalo, of the Mandan Hidatsa Arikara Nation, serves as the CEO of the Minnesota Indian Women’s Resource Center. She has been helping plan the Birth Center, which involves weekly and monthly meetings, coordinating community listening sessions and creating a strategic planning document with to-do lists and deadlines.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4jFc6Lm
ESSENTIA HEALTH INVESTS IN TWIN PORTS NURSES: Total payroll for Essentia Health Duluth-Superior nurses is $164 million, with $53 million paid in salary increases over the past 3 years. Essentia Health has also increased clinical support staff by 10% over the past 3 years, providing additional support for those nurses. Over half of Duluth area nurses have been with us for over 5 years and enjoy exceptional work-life balance. To join our team at Essentia Health, search for openings HERE: https://fluence-media.co/3FzLe0i (SPONSORED: Essentia Health)
FISH: Via MDH, VERBATIM: “The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has updated its fish consumption guidance due to per-and polyfluoralkyl substances (PFAS) found in fish from some waterbodies in 10 Minnesota counties. In the Twin Cities metro area, some waterbodies in Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey and Washington counties are impacted. In Greater Minnesota, some waterbodies in Douglas, Martin, McLeod and St. Louis counties are impacted.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/42CdZ4u
WEIGHT LOSS: Via The New York Times, VERBATIM: “Hundreds of thousands of Americans stand to soon lose their access to cheaper weight-loss drugs, with a federal crackdown on copycat versions threatening to disrupt treatment and raise costs. The Food and Drug Administration has ordered producers and sellers of the less expensive products to wind down operations in the coming weeks now that it has declared there are no longer shortages of the blockbuster drugs Wegovy and Zepbound.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3RVLE40
HAZELDEN: Via news release from Center City-based Hazelden Betty Ford, VERBATIM: “Today Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation announced an expanded model of care that sets a new standard of quality for the industry and propels mental health and substance use treatment into a new frontier. The increasing number of patients who come to Hazelden Betty Ford for substance use treatment with multiple mental health conditions has compelled the nation's largest and oldest nonprofit organization in the industry to implement the expanded model across all levels of care in all of its 15 locations across nine states, as well as virtual care. Notably, 79% of Hazelden Betty Ford's patients have more than one treatable mental health condition, and on average, 3.67 different diagnoses.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/42zpg5n
FOSSTON: Via Lakeland PBS, VERBATIM: “Having the only emergency center in nearly 20 miles, Essentia Health-Fosston sees their fair share of patients. That’s why they are building a whole new emergency department addition onto the hospital in the coming year. The hope is to create better access, have a safer environment, and help more patients at a time.” QUOTE: “We’ve outgrown our space,” explained Tanner Goodrich, Essentia Health Senior Vice President of Operations, West Market. “When you look at an emergency department, you look at the services that we’re able to provide. We think we would be able to better provide those services and accommodate the growth in a newer, larger space.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4ieXh0F
(DISCLOSURE: Essentia is a Fluence sponsor)
FRESH15: The latest season of Fresh15 includes interviews with new Minnesota House members. So far, five new members have shared their goals, background and fun facts before they take office in a historic session this January.
Rep. Kari Rehrauer
Rep. Wayne Johnson
Rep. Julie Greene
Rep. Keith Allen
Rep. Peter Johnson
Follow on your favorite podcast platform, or at www.TheDailyAgenda.com/Podcasts. (SPONSORED: Minnesota Telecom Alliance)
LIFE LINK III: Via news release from Shoreview-based Life Link III, VERBATIM: “Life Link III is proud to announce it has once again been awarded full accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Systems (CAMTS) for both its rotor wing and fixed wing services.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/43Z1hPI
FORUM: If you’re interested in having the Fluence Forum host a topic, please contact Blois Olson at bloisolson@gmail.com
VISION: From Brown University via Science Daily, VERBATIM: “A new study by Brown University researchers suggests that gold nanoparticles -- microscopic bits of gold thousands of times thinner than a human hair -- might one day be used to help restore vision in people with macular degeneration and other retinal disorders.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3Rqj5M1
Copyright © 2025 Fluence Media, All rights reserved.
You signed up or are media / a public official interested in health care news from Fluence Media.
Our mailing address is:
Fluence Media
PO Box 270031
Minneapolis, MN 55427