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POLLING
MEDICAL BILLS: Via Fierce Healthcare, VERBATIM: “Patient collections are playing a bigger and bigger role in health systems’ total revenues, bringing a new focus on the difficulties organizations face in securing timely, or any, payments for their services, a new survey report warns. The poll of 205 healthcare revenue heads, conducted by healthcare fintech vendor PayZen and the Healthcare Financial Management Association, found that 22% of respondents named patient balances as their top priority, roughly double the 11% rate reported a year prior. Patient balances were a ‘nearly universal’ presence among the respondents’ concerns, also up from the 73% rate of a year prior.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4ulGP5N
DOCS: Via AMA, VERBATIM: “An exclusive survey from the AMA reveals a promising shift in the physician workforce: fewer doctors now say they intend to leave their current health care organizations within the next two years. The downward trend suggests that health systems are making meaningful progress in addressing long-standing issues such as physician burnout, work-life balance and administrative burden.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3PMEhyu
TEEN PRIVACY: Via University of Michigan, VERBATIM: “The C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health asked a national sample of parents of teens age 13-17 about healthcare confidentiality for their teens age 13-17 . . . Among parents who attended their teen’s most recent preventive care visit, only 35% say the provider talked privately with the teen, without the parent in the room. Parents are more likely to report private time with the provider for older than younger teens (41% vs 29%). Reasons for not having private time include the provider did not offer (62%), teen was not comfortable talking privately with the provider (26%), parent was not comfortable with their teen talking privately (11%), and unsure (14%).” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4nCGY2f
MIDTERMS: Via Fabrizio Ward, a poll of 1,000 voters nationally plus 500 more in key states Florida, North Carolina, Ohio, and Pennsylvania, VERBATIM: “Nearly 9-in-10 voters say they are concerned that some Alzheimer’s patients are unable to get FDA-cleared diagnostic tests and FDA-approved treatments their doctors recommend because private insurance plans and Medicare delay or deny coverage. The same very sizable share (89%) say they are concerned that some doctors choose not to prescribe Alzheimer’s tests or treatments because they know insurance will not cover them and patients cannot afford to pay out of pocket. This concern is high nationally, in each of the key states, and across the partisan divide.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4dygIBw
HOPE: Via Axios, VERBATIM: “A new poll reveals that hope is less about optimism and more about what people do. That has real implications for how organizations and communities show up for one another. Hope isn’t abstract: 93% of Americans say it’s essential to everyday life, according to a new Harris Poll commissioned by St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, and shared exclusively with Axios.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4v45X0Z
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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)
HEALTH IN MN
TICKS: Via USA Today Network, VERBATIM: “Warm weather brings melting snow and lots of water — a combination that often harbors ticks. These tiny creatures are active in The North Star State from spring through fall. Minnesota is one of 14 states where about 90% of U.S. tick cases have been reported, according to Harvard Health. As tick activity increases, experts advise taking extra care before spending time outdoors.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3R9Vt1r
AMBULANCES: Via KARE-TV, VERBATIM: “A North Branch woman was stuck with a $4,600 bill after a lifesaving ambulance ride. Many Minnesotans could find themselves in the same spot due to a gap in the law . . . Susan Long of the Minnesota Ambulance Association said out‑of‑network ambulance bills are common – most ambulance providers do not have contracts with insurers. Many ambulance services in the state are small operations that are already struggling to stay in business.” LONG: “It is very expensive to have an ambulance on standby 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. We don’t schedule those emergencies so we have to have staff there all the time.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4wGaKHn
MAYO: via Rochester Post Bulletin, VERBATIM: “On Jan. 1, 2027, a new leader will take the helm of the globally known Mayo Clinic. … Mayo Clinic’s Board of Trustees has started a formal search for the next president [and] will elect that new leader in November. … Mayo Clinic’s bylaws state that the organization’s president and CEO must be a medical doctor who ‘shall have been a member of the Voting Staff of Mayo Clinic for at least the preceding five years.’ … It’s a large group; in 2025, almost 300 [new members] joined the Voting Staff’s ranks.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/43ctq3W
MORE: via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “As Mayo Clinic prepares to choose a new CEO this year, communities across southern Minnesota are waiting to see what the world-famous medical system has in store for its small-town patients. … Mayo closed six Minnesota clinics last fall, citing staff shortages, patient declines and issues with some buildings.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4tF9Mse
HEALTH HEADLINES
ACA: Via KFF, VERBATIM: “The average Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplace deductible experienced the steepest increase in history—growing by 37% or over $1,000, from $2,759 in 2025 to $3,786 in 2026 as enhanced premium tax credits expired, according to a new KFF analysis. After the enhanced tax credits ended, many Marketplace shoppers shifted toward lower-premium, higher-deductible plans. Between 2025 and 2026, sign-ups for bronze plans jumped from 30% to 40% of total plan selections—growing from 7.3 million to 9.2 million people.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/42MeWHX
MORE: Via KFF Health News, VERBATIM: “Now experts are watching how many of the approximately 23 million people who enrolled will fail to pay their share of premiums. While available data on premium payments is mainly from January, a few states that run their own ACA markets have released information for later months. The sharpest drop in people paying premiums, based on limited data, is in Georgia, which saw a 28% drop in April compared with the same period a year ago, according to an analysis by Charles Gaba, a healthcare policy analyst and blogger who specializes in the ACA.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4dwFO3x
“BLACK”: Via 19th News, VERBATIM: “The word ‘Black’ has been almost completely removed from a package of bills that have long been viewed as Congress’ main legislative vehicle to address the Black maternal health crisis, frustrating some advocates who feel Black women are being erased from the policy.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4dlhOlh
ABORTION PILL: Via The New York Times, VERBATIM: “Four years after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, which established a national right to abortion in 1973, it remains widely available, and the number of abortions per year has actually increased slightly. Much of that is due to the availability of abortion pills. The Food and Drug Administration has so far not walked away from a decision made during the Biden administration to allow access to the abortion pill mifepristone through the mail. But a lawsuit against the F.D.A. now threatens that access, and the Trump administration has remained strikingly silent about it, even as the case reached the Supreme Court this month.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4tP5gHR
SUPCT: Via Stat, VERBATIM: “The Supreme Court on Monday dealt a major blow to the brand drug industry’s legal campaign against the Medicare drug price negotiation program. The court declined to take up lawsuits against the program by AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol Myers Squibb, Janssen, Novartis, and Novo Nordisk. The justices did not give a reason for their decision.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/42GukFR
EBOLA: Via BBC, VERBATIM: “A US doctor who tested positive for Ebola while working with a medical missionary group in the Democratic Republic of Congo is being treated at a hospital in Germany, officials said. The American is in a special isolation ward at Charité hospital in Berlin, Germany’s Foreign Health Ministry said, after he was evacuated from Central Africa. At least 131 deaths have been reported in an Ebola outbreak in the DR Congo, with more than 513 cases suspected, officials have said.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4nCIGAH
MORE: Via Politico, VERBATIM: “The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is suspending entry into the U.S. for 30 days for travelers who have visited areas where there is an ongoing outbreak of the Ebola virus, the agency announced on Monday. That restriction does not apply to U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals or lawful permanent residents returning from Ebola outbreak areas.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4tKPeyE
WATER: Via The Hill, VERBATIM: “The Trump administration on Monday moved to partially roll back drinking water protections from toxic ‘forever chemicals.’ The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed to allow some delays for water systems to regulate these chemicals. It also said it would rescind four of the six types of forever chemicals covered under a Biden-era rule.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4dxHwS9
COOKIES: Via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “Each T-Rex cookie is about the size of an adult’s face, and several ounces of sugar make up some of its half-pound weight . . . More than 11 years after Tina Rexing founded her aptly named dessert company, the business is ramping up production to expand its wholesale-baked line to reach more restaurants and retail outlets despite increased public scrutiny on sugar from consumers and the White House. The success of the company, which sells its half-pound cookies in grocery stores and continues to bake a gigantic 5-pound cookie costing $70, shows that better-for-you food trends and the rise of appetite-curbing GLP-1 drugs are not enough to destroy Americans’ sweet tooth.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/43oiK29
PRESCRIPTION DRUG PRICES CONTINUE TO SOAR: While Minnesota’s safety-net hospitals navigate bleak financial outlooks, drug manufacturers continue to raise drug prices at rates that far outpace inflation, rising 23% in the last year alone. By strengthening the 340B drug pricing program, local hospitals can weather these soaring prices and continue to deliver the care and treatments that Minnesotans need. NEW: Minnesota Prescription Drug Price Transparency, Report to the Minnesota Legislature, March 2026 (SPONSORED: Essentia Health)
INNOVATION
RESEARCH: Via MPR, VERBATIM: “Sophie Sandin isn’t wearing a white coat, but she’s getting ready for a day in the lab. The 18-month-old, in her tie-dye shirt and pink leggings sits calmly in her moms lap while researchers fit her with an EEG cap to monitor her brain waves . . . Sophie’s participating in one of many studies across the University of Minnesota’s catalog of childhood research. The Institute of Child Development has 20 research labs, all studying the ways children and families and their environments relate to each other.” LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4tJRhms
BRAIN TUMORS: Via Mayo Clinic, VERBATIM: “Each year, about 90,000 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with a brain tumor, including roughly 25,000 with cancerous tumors. These tumors are especially challenging because in the brain, even small changes can affect critical functions like movement, speech and memory. Across Mayo Clinic‘s campuses in Rochester, Arizona and Florida, researchers are advancing the understanding of brain tumor biology, improving diagnostic precision and developing new treatment approaches to support timely, personalized care.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4dTbIIR
NEW DRUG: Via Minneapolis-based MEKanistic, VERBATIM: “MEKanistic Therapeutics, a biotechnology company developing first-in-class precision medicines designed to overcome cancer resistance mechanisms, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has cleared the Investigational New Drug application for MTX-531, the company’s lead oncology candidate.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4ftBtRc
AI: Via Bayesian Health, VERBATIM: “Mayo Clinic and Bayesian Health today announced they have co-developed an artificial intelligence (AI) solution to identify hospitalized patients who may benefit from palliative care earlier in their stay. The solution is designed to support timely consultations, with the objective of improving goal-concordant care for patients with serious illness and reducing non-beneficial readmissions.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4us0UHM
TODAY: Via Caravel, VERBATIM: “Caravel Autism Health, a leader in the diagnosis and treatment of young children on the autism spectrum, is hosting a ribbon-cutting on Tuesday, May 19 to celebrate the grand opening of a new, state-of-the-art autism therapy clinic. The clinic, located at 4130 Blackhawk Road, Suite 140, in Eagan, is staffed by childhood autism experts who specialize in Applied Behavior Analysis therapy.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/43oh20J
HEAT SAFETY: Via Perry Weather, VERBATIM: “Perry Weather, a leading weather safety platform, is thrilled to announce the official opening of the Perry Weather Heat Lab at the University of North Florida (UNF), the first satellite location of the Korey Stringer Institute (KSI). A milestone nearly 25 years after Minnesota Vikings lineman Korey Stringer‘s passing reshaped athletic heat safety.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/49b1T6w
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NEW CLO: Via HealthPartners, VERBATIM: “HealthPartners today announced that Sarah Karlgaard will join the organization as senior vice president and chief legal officer beginning May 18. Karlgaard will oversee legal, clinical risk management, integrity and compliance, physical security and sustainability.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4dXdPKP
EYOTA: Via KAAL-TV, VERBATIM: “Eyota’s ambulance service is marking 50 years, with local leaders crediting volunteers and community support for helping the small-town team keep going. The service started with eight volunteers in Eyota and is now celebrating its 50-year milestone on Sunday. Rural EMS teams have long faced challenges finding enough volunteers to provide emergency care in small towns.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/43n0mGU
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