Latest / Becker’s Healthcare Digital Health + Health IT / Optum enacts layoffs, workers say ,40% of physicians ready to use gen AI in patient care + more

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Optum enacts layoffs, workers say ,40% of physicians ready to use gen AI in patient care + more · Becker’s Healthcare Digital Health + Health IT

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  - This is Naomi Diaz
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  with the Becker's Digital Health Podcast.
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  Here's your daily industry news briefing
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  for today, April 22nd.
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  First, former employees with United Health Groups.
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  Optum and its subsidiaries took
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  to social media beginning April 18th
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  regarding a reduction force.
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  They say occurred across the company Optum declined
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  to provide more information.
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  April 19th. Becker has not confirmed an exact number
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  or range of employees who may have been terminated
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  or when layoffs would be effective across LinkedIn.
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  Former employees with Optum
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  and affiliated providers have detailed layoffs
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  enacted at their organizations.
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  A range of roles appear
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  to have been affected from RN case managers
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  to senior director and management positions in 2023.
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  Many large insurers conducted large workforce reductions due
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  to financial or operational challenges in certain segments,
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  along with restructuring strategies.
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  Optum, Optum also laid off an unknown number
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  of employees in August.
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  Affected facilities included the Everett Clinic
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  and the Poly Clinic in Seattle.
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  Med Express Urgent Care
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  and WellMed UnitedHealth is still recovering from the cyber
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  attack on change Healthcare.
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  In February. The company had TATed 80% of the functionality
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  for its claims payment
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  and pharmacy services as of April 16th.
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  Second. Telehealth utilization has led
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  to enhancements in certain healthcare utilization
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  and quality metrics, but it has also been associated
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  with a 1.6% increase in healthcare spending.
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  Health affairs research confirmed April 17th.
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  In this study, researchers assessed telehealth's effects on
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  healthcare utilization, quality and spending.
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  To do so, they compare data from traditional Medicare
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  patients who received care from health system utilizing
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  higher levels of telehealth services during the Covid
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  to 19 pandemic with data from patients
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  and health systems that predominantly offered
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  in-person services.
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  Researchers found that in 2020,
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  patients receiving care at health systems
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  with the highest use of telemedicine had an average
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  of 2.5 telemedicine visits per person making up
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  26.8% of their total visits.
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  In contrast, those in health system
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  with the lowest telemedicine use had only 0.7 telemedicine
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  visits per person accounting for 9.5% of their visits.
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  Additionally, from 2021 to 2022
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  patients in the highest telemedicine use Cortel experienced
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  some changes compared to those in the lowest cortel.
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  For example, they saw an average increase
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  of point 21 total outpatient visits combining telemedicine
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  and in-person per patient year marking a
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  2.2% relative increase.
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  These had a reduction
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  of 14.4 non COVID-19 emergency department visits per 1000
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  patients per year, a relative decrease of 2.7%.
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  However, there was a $248 rise in per patient spending per
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  year reflecting a 1.6% relative increase.
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  According to the study,
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  patients in high tele telemedicine use health systems had
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  better adherence to taking statins and
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  - Metformin, but no difference was observed in
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  hospitalizations or preventative care.
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  Researchers said more study
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  of telemedicine's effect on spending and quality is needed,
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  but the modest cost increases may not be enough
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  to justify a return to pre covid
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  to 19 Telehealth funding restrictions in Medicare
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  and light of the increases in quality
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  and continued popularity of telehealth.
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  Third, 40% of US physicians said they are prepared
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  to use generative artificial intelligence
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  during patient interactions at the point of care.
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  In April 16th, survey from Walters Culver found from
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  February 8th to the 13th, Walters Culver surveyed a
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  hundred US physicians.
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  These physicians, according to the survey,
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  all work in large hospitals or health systems see patients
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  and are currently using a clinical decision support tool.
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  The survey found the following, 81% of physicians believe
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  that gen AI will enhance care team
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  interaction with patients.
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  More than half of physicians think
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  that Gen AI will save them 20% more, 20%
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  of time or more.
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  68% of physicians state that gen AI can save time
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  by swiftly searching medical literature.
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  59% of physicians believe that gen AI can save time
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  by summary summarizing patient data from the EHR.
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  Only 3% of physicians do not believe
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  that gen AI will improve interactions with patients.
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  Additionally, the survey found
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  that physicians sentiments towards gen AI have changed.
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  Or according to the survey, 60%.
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  68% of physicians have had a change
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  of opinion over the last year saying they are now inclined
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  to believe that gen AI would be beneficial for healthcare.
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  If you like the latest health IT
• 4:27
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