UnitedHealth Group is suing a former executive who works for the Amazon-Berkshire-JP Morgan health venture. UnitedHealth has said former information technology executive David Smith breached his contract by stealing trade secrets and confidential information. (CNBC)
On first episode of The MM&M Podcast, Wunderman Health CEO Becky Chidester joins MM&M’s Marc Iskowitz and Larry Dobrow. They discuss Wunderman’s integration with WPP, health’s #MeToo moment, and agency evolution in 2019. (MM&M)
Planned Parenthood has developed a chatbot to educate teens about sexual health. The chatbot, named Roo, provides information by answering questions posed by teens who otherwise may not have access to sex education. The artificial intelligence tool, which can be accessed via its website, also directs users to resources such as facilities and live educators. (Wall Street Journal)
Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker has proposed a plan for the state to negotiate drug prices. The three-step plan indicates the state would first work with drugmakers directly to set prices. It would then move on to setting a “target value” using a public rate-setting process. If both of those options fail, the Bay State would report the company to a health policy commission. (CommonWealth)
Bristol-Myers Squibb has pulled its application for its Opdivo-Yervoy combination non-small cell lung cancer treatment. This comes after the Food and Drug Administration cited a need for more data. The treatment was meant to be used in patients with high tumor mutational burden. For more background on checkpoint inhibitors, take a look at this timeline of key moments in their development. (Endpoints)
