Care Delivery

This channel includes news on cardiovascular care delivery, including how patients are diagnosed and treated, cardiac care guidelines, policies or legislation impacting patient care, device recalls that may impact patient care, and cardiology practice management.

Drug discounts for safety-net hospitals up in the air and into the courts
HHS’s 340B drug discount program is set to shift to a rebate model on New Year’s Day. But a lawsuit and temporary restraining order filed by the AHA and others may block the change from going live on time.
AI news & views in brief: State regulation ban or none, AI in healthcare advertising, more
Will there or won’t there be a federal moratorium on state-level regulation of AI? That’s only one question healthcare stakeholders are asking as 2025’s time begins running out.
AI has already transformed TAVR care—and the best is yet to come
Advanced AI technologies are starting to play a bigger role in TAVR care, helping cardiologists plan ahead, make critical decisions and predict potential complications. Looking to the future, though, it is clear this is just the beginning.
Nurses back on the march against AI in healthcare
The nationwide movement of nurses against AI has received an energy infusion.
Medicare data reveal ‘highly concerning’ TAVR trends—are hospital rankings to blame?
Hospitals could be turning away high-risk heart patients to help their TAVR programs receive a higher ranking, according to new research published in JACC: Cardiovascular Interventions.

Industry Watcher’s Digest

IT departments are budgeting more for AI in 2025 than for any other single area of investment.

artificial intelligence AI in healthcare

Stanford HAI lookback: Best-read blog posts of 2024

The year 2023 saw a shift toward open-source AI models, surging investments in generative AI and increasing AI regulation.

IV hospital room intravenous drip solution

Industry Watcher’s Digest

The FDA has finalized its recommendations for getting AI-equipped medical devices approved.

Providers, payers share actionable experiences involving healthcare AI

A large venture capital firm focused on supporting early-stage healthtech companies has a tip for AI startups targeting the healthcare sector.

Robotic aortic valve replacement (RAVR) is a new minimally invasive treatment option for symptomatic severe aortic stenosis (AS) that uses advanced robotic surgical systems. It has already started gaining momentum as an alternative to both surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) and transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR).

Q&A: Pioneer heart surgeon on the development and long-term potential of robotic aortic valve replacement

It's early for RAVR, but the minimally invasive technique has already started gaining momentum as an alternative to both SAVR and TAVR. We spoke to Vinay Badhwar, MD, one of the world’s leading voices in robotic heart surgery, to learn more.

Heart surgeons with the WVU Heart and Vascular Institute have made a bit of history, performing the world’s first combined robotic aortic valve replacement (AVR) and coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) procedure—all through one small incision. Patients requiring these procedures typically undergo open-heart surgery.

Heart surgeons perform world’s first combined robotic AVR and CABG

The entire robotic procedure was performed through one small incision. Surgeons originally recommended the 73-year-old patient undergo open-heart surgery, but she requested a less invasive alternative.

Off-label TAVR for native aortic regurgitation linked to worse outcomes

Targeting aortic regurgitation with TAVR valves built to treat aortic stenosis may be the only option a cardiologist has—but valves designed specifically to treat AR are linked to much better outcomes, according to a new meta-analysis. Edwards Lifesciences recently acquired the two companies at the center of this study, JenaValve and JC Medical.

Industry Watcher’s Digest

Federal AI guardrails are taking shape.

Care Delivery

Drug discounts for safety-net hospitals up in the air and into the courts

AI news & views in brief: State regulation ban or none, AI in healthcare advertising, more

AI has already transformed TAVR care—and the best is yet to come

Nurses back on the march against AI in healthcare

Medicare data reveal ‘highly concerning’ TAVR trends—are hospital rankings to blame?