Iowa news
CyTown welcomes McFarland Clinic as first tenant
McFarland Clinic will be the first tenant in CyTown, a 40-acre, multiuse development between Jack Trice Stadium and Hilton Coliseum on the Iowa State University campus in Ames. Ground is expected to be broken on the 60,000-square-foot, multilevel facility next summer. It will be the first building constructed in the CyTown development. CyTown also is expected to feature restaurants, retail, luxury sites, entertainment venues and a hotel. The clinic will offer primary and specialty care as well as urgent care. It will serve ISU faculty, staff and students, as well as patients from the community and surrounding area. McFarland has facilities in 19 communities in central and western Iowa. It’s the state’s largest physician-owned, multispecialty clinic. (Business Record)
Sanford Health is expanding its executive team with several changes designed to support progress toward its goals and to position the organization for even greater impact. Sanford Chief Strategy and Development Officer Nathan Peterson will transition full time to chief of staff to lead the office of the president and CEO. Sanford’s leadership team is adding the role of chief external affairs officer, which will be held by Erika Batcheller, who is vice president of media relations and corporate communications. In addition, The system is adding the role of chief technology officer, for which it will conduct an external search. A national search will begin for a permanent CFO to replace Bill Marlette, who came out of retirement to be the interim CFO in June. And John Snyder, president of Sanford Health Plan, will retire at the end of 2024. Sanford will begin searching for his replacement soon. The Sioux Falls, South Dakota-based Sanford Health is a system member of IHA. (Becker’s Hospital Review)
Des Moines children’s hospitals among nonprofits supported by the Principal Charity Classic
The 2023 Principal Charity Classic raised more than $8 million in support of Iowa children’s charities, including Blank Children’s Hospital, MercyOne Children’s Hospital, the United Way of Central Iowa and Variety – the Children’s Charity of Iowa. Additionally, the event’s Birdies for Charity program supports more than 100 nonprofits throughout Iowa. The annual PGA Tour Champions event in Des Moines has now raised $53.7 million for Iowa children’s charities since Principal Financial Group became the title sponsor in 2007. The Charity Classic benefits more than 130,000 Iowa children each year in areas of education, health, arts and culture. (Business Record)
National news
FDA clears new COVID-19 boosters: Five things to know
The Food and Drug Administration has greenlighted updated COVID-19 boosters from Pfizer and Moderna. The shots, which are formulated to target the XBB.1.5 subvariant, are expected to be available later this week, after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention signs off on them. Anyone 5 and older can get an updated booster shot from either Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna, despite whether they were previously vaccinated. People who have been vaccinated should wait at least two months after their last COVID-19 shot before getting the new booster. (NBC News)
CMS launching population health-focused payment model for states, hospitals
CMS is launching a new population health-focused payment model aimed at addressing chronic disease, behavioral health and improvement of care management for states’ populations. The agency will award as many as eight states up to $12 million each to implement the States Advancing All-Payer Health Equity Approaches and Development Model, which is the next iteration of the CMS Innovation Center’s multipayer total cost of care models. States participating in the AHEAD model will be accountable for quality and population health outcomes, along with reducing avoidable spending. Participants will partner with providers and leverage existing relationships to recruit hospitals — participating hospitals will receive an annual fixed payment. (Becker’s Health IT and CIO Report)
At-home COVID-19 testing: When to test and what your results mean
With COVID-19 on the rise once again, you may find yourself reaching for an at-home test for the first time in months. COVID-19 activity is picking up, with hospitalizations increasing in recent weeks, wastewater tracking picking up the virus in samples, and chances rising that someone you know has tested positive recently. Here’s a refresher on how and when to test for COVID-19, and what your at-home results really mean. (NBC News)