Top stories of the past 5 days: Latest COVID jab | The 4 E's | Unionizing residents | more

The latest COVID-19 vaccine began entering recipients’ bodies last September. Now comes early CDC data supporting the formulation’s general effectiveness.

The proposed 4 E’s strategy is based on a hierarchy of effectiveness, suggesting that, while initial steps like education are crucial, they must be complemented by more robust measures to ensure durable change.

Specific demands are forthcoming, but union leaders aim to negotiate for improved wages, benefits and working conditions, reflecting concerns similar to those raised by healthcare workers nationwide.

It’s not easy to get patients, providers, payers, vendors and regulators to agree on any one aspect of healthcare delivery. But the CDRH recently managed to get everyone to settle on a working definition of transparency.

Cigna said the deal will enable it to free up around $400 million in capital it can redeploy, effectively pushing the transaction to $3.7 billion.