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☆ UnitedHealth bags Amedisys for $3.3 bln as home health firm scraps Option deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

June 26 (Reuters) - Home health and hospice caregiver Amedisys (AMED.O) on Monday agreed to a $3.3 billion sweetened cash offer from UnitedHealth Group (UNH.N) and scrapped an all-stock deal with Option Care Health (OPCH.O). Meanwhile, Option Care said it was "disappointed" with the cancellation of the deal and will get $106 million from Amedisys as per its May agreement. Option Care shares rose 3% in early trading, while those of Amedisys and UnitedHealth were largely flat. Option Care investors had largely disapproved of its deal for Amedisys as they believed the company was capable of recording strong growth on its own. Its shares had slumped 14% in May due to the Amedisys deal, but rose nearly 10% this month after UnitedHealth entered the race.

Persons: Amedisys, UnitedHealth, William Blair, Matt Larew, Leroy Leo, Saumyadeb Chakrabarty, Arun Koyyur Organizations: UnitedHealth, Care, LHC, Amedisys, Thomson Locations: Amedisys, Bengaluru

REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo/File PhotoJune 14 (Reuters) - Health insurer stocks dropped sharply on Wednesday after UnitedHealth Group (UNH.N) said costs were on the rise for the largest U.S. healthcare provider by market value due to an increase in surgeries among older adults. Shares of industry bellwether UnitedHealth fell 7.3% to $455.11, wiping out roughly $42 billion from the company's market capitalization in the current trading session. Meanwhile, stocks of medical device makers and hospital operators rose, as increased frequency of surgeries mean more revenue for them. The company highlighted strong demand for hip and knee procedures at outpatient centers, as well as for home health services and behavioral services. Elevance Health (ELV.N), CVS Health Corp (CVS.N), Centene Corp (CNC.N) and Cigna Group (CI.N) fell between 6% and 7.5%.

Persons: Mike Blake, bellwether, UnitedHealth, Jefferies, Brian Tanquilut, Zimmer Biomet, Leroy Leo, Bhanvi, Manas Mishra, Shinjini Organizations: REUTERS, UnitedHealth, Medicare, Humana Inc, Reuters Graphics, Elevance, CVS Health Corp, Centene Corp, Cigna, Elevance Health Inc, CVS, Healthcare, Tenet Healthcare, Stryker, Thomson Locations: Santa Ana , California, U.S, Bengaluru

Ms. Hanif’s family history illustrates how Bangladeshi Kensington came to be. While the corner is often a male-dominated space, she and other Bangladeshi American women have carved out their own places there. Ms. Saeed wants to buy a house, but real estate in Kensington has become far too expensive. Ms. Saeed also faced opposition as she was growing up, from relatives on her mother’s side who frowned upon dance. With other public spaces so dominated by men, Ms. Ferdous sees it as vital that women gather to keep their traditions alive.

Persons: Shahana Hanif, Hanif’s, Hanif, Radhuni, Ms, Mir Hossain, Hossain, “, ”, Sala Miah, Rubel, Tarek Aziz, Uddin, Farojan Saeed, Syed Rehan, Saeed, Annie Ferdous, Ferdous, Eid, Mr, Mahmud Organizations: Young, City Council, Bangladesh Institute of Performing Arts, Bangladeshi Institute of Performing Arts, McDonald Locations: Kensington, Bangladesh, Pakistan, “, United States, America, Bengal, Noakhali, Chittagong, Sandwip, Brooklyn, East, South America, Colombia, Panama, Dhaka, Bangladeshi, Manhattan, East New York, Jackson Heights, Ozone, New York, Motiul, Philadelphia, Jessore District, Jamaica, Queens

But while the Fed in 2019 was asking "'is this as strong as the labor market can get?' Fed rate hikes could have "very significant, uneven short-term impacts" on the job market. So far headline payroll employment growth remains strong. Reuters Graphics Reuters GraphicsWANTING IT BOTH WAYSFor now, though, the Fed might mark the pandemic labor rebound as essentially complete, despite the risks. The economy needs to create about 100,000 payroll jobs a month to keep pace with population growth.

Persons: Bryan Woolston, Michael Madowitz, Raphael Bostic, Trump, Howard Schneider, Dan Burns, Andrea Ricci Organizations: Kentucky, Center, REUTERS, . Federal Reserve, Washington Center for Equitable, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Atlanta Fed, BLS, American Progress, White House Council, Economic Advisers, Thomson Locations: Frankfort , Kentucky, U.S, Bryan Woolston WASHINGTON, COVID

☆ New York City Has Lost Tens of Thousands of Retail Jobs, Report Finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Stefanos Chen | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

More than 70 percent of the city’s 301,700 retail jobs are held by Black, Hispanic and Asian workers, a disproportionate share of whom did not finish college. But that amounted to only 4,300 new jobs, Mr. Bowles said. The growth of home health care services has also been sharp, with a gain of 41,700 new jobs, but those positions tend to pay far less than some retail jobs. The working-age population of New York City was down 400,000 people in March and April of 2023, compared to the start of 2020, which hurt retail demand, Dr. Parrott said. To counter the losses in retail, Mr. Bowles said, the city should invest in job training programs that can help retail workers transition to other fields.

Persons: Mr, Bowles, James Parrott, Jobs, Parrott, “ They’re, ” Organizations: Black New Yorkers, Yorkers, City, New York, Center, New York City Affairs, New School, Mr Locations: New York, New New York, New, New York City

☆ UnitedHealth offers over $3 bln for home health firm Amedisys
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Leroy Leo | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

June 5 (Reuters) - UnitedHealth Group (UNH.N) on Monday made a surprise $3.26 billion all-cash offer to acquire Amedisys Inc (AMED.O), pitting itself against another healthcare company set to buy the home health and hospice care firm. UnitedHealth, through its Optum unit, offered to pay $100 per share in cash, just a month after Amedisys agreed to be bought by Option Care Health Inc (OPCH.O) for $97.38 per share in an all-stock deal. If Optum's offer is accepted by Amedisys, the deal will expand UnitedHealth's presence in home healthcare that it bolstered this year through a $5.4 billion deal to buy Amedisys' rival, LHC Group. Several analysts raised concerns that a UnitedHealth deal would likely face scrutiny from the Federal Trade Commission, given UnitedHealth's home health presence. Amedisys' board has not yet determined whether Optum's offer is superior to Option Health's and is currently in exploratory discussions with the UnitedHealth unit.

Persons: Amedisys, Jefferies, Brian Tanquilut, Oppenheimer, Michael Wiederhorn, Leroy Leo, Shounak Dasgupta, Shinjini Organizations: UnitedHealth, Amedisys Inc, Care Health Inc, LHC, Federal Trade Commission, FTC, Care, Thomson Locations: Bengaluru

☆ Where Do You Draw the Line on P.D.A.?
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Gina Cherelus | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Another argued that maybe she just doesn’t like P.D.A. For the average person, being comfortable with P.D.A. Ms. Condé, who is of West African descent and was raised Muslim, said that the one place she probably wouldn’t engage in P.D.A. “They just go in on it like they’re complimenting, but it feels like ostracization in a way,” Ms. Condé said. was one of the reasons he and his boyfriend broke up three weeks ago: “He’s not so into P.D.A., and I need P.D.A.”

Persons: Damson Idris, Lori Harvey, Idris, Harvey, he’s, Condé, ”, “, ” Ms, it’s, it’ll, ” David Mendoza Locations: West

☆ As retirement confidence drops, experts say focusing on these 4 factors can help
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Lorie Konish | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Decide where you will live in retirement— Key deadline to watch: The sooner, the better. While you may start your Social Security retirement benefits as early as age 62, eligibility for Medicare generally does not start until age 65. Choose when to claim Social Security benefits— Key deadline to watch: By age 60, you should go to the Social Security Administration website and review your statement, recommends Copeland. When to claim Social Security retirement benefits is one of the big questions retirees face. "The later you can file for Social Security, the better it is as far as the amount you're going to get," John said.

Persons: Craig Copeland, Copeland, Dann Tardif, Susan Reinhard, It's, Reinhard, Jane Sung, Sung, Rupp, John Organizations: AARP, Institute, Social, Medicare, Security, State Health Insurance, Social Security, Social Security Administration, Sporrer, Getty

In midsized metros Metros with 250,000 to one million residents. An Emerging Divide Mobility has risen for college-educated workers, even as it has fallen for workers without a degree. College-educated workers leaving the most expensive parts of the country are also not spreading out equally everywhere — or even going to parts of the country that are struggling. Net migration among college graduates Loss Gain Among the 12 most expensive metros, net college migration has generally declined or turned negative. “Consumer cities,” as she puts it, are increasingly replacing “producer cities” as the places where college graduates want to live.

☆ 'Hope is action': White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre tells Rice grads 'change is possible'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Rebecca Picciotto | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre delivered the commencement speech to Rice University's undergraduate class of 2023 on May 6. Throughout the 22-minute address, Jean-Pierre had one central message, which she repeated 12 times: "Hope is action." "My parents worked hard jobs, and even harder hours, to make sure my siblings and I got the education we needed," she said. It was a significant moment for Jean-Pierre and especially for her father. Still, Jean-Pierre points to voting as one of the key actions an individual can take to change their community.

☆ Heading into retirement? Here are 4 key tips for mapping out a game plan
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Lorie Konish | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Claiming Social Security benefits• Key deadline to watch: By age 60, you should go to the Social Security Administration website and review your statement, recommends Craig Copeland, director of wealth benefits research at EBRI. When to claim Social Security retirement benefits is one of the big questions retirees face. At full retirement age — 66 or 67, depending on your date of birth — you will receive 100% of the benefits you earned. "The later you can file for Social Security, the better it is as far as the amount you're going to get," John said. While you may start your Social Security retirement benefits at age 62, eligibility for Medicare generally does not start until age 65.

I used to love thrifting, but the disabled tax means that's not a viable choice for me due to long COVID. But I'd never heard of the disabled tax, or, as some disabled people have reclaimed it, the "crip tax." The disabled tax affects all disabled people differentlyLike the pink tax, the disabled tax isn't charged by governments, but by society itself. The disabled tax manifests in unique ways for all disabled people. Before long COVID, I'd long prided myself for a frugality that helped my family live well even on just one income.

☆ Hard work just doesn't pay like it used to
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Ethan Dodd | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Today's workers, especially gig workers, don't have the security that hard work once promised. Fueling the pessimism about hard work might be that Americans have "been doing nothing but hard work for the last two decades," Jennifer Klein, a Yale labor historian, told Insider. Blame the rise of gig work for hard work not paying offThough Americans work fewer hours now than they have in years past, they're working harder than ever. As a result, "people have experienced hard work and intensified work, but in very, very unpleasant and not particularly rewarding terms," she added. However, deregulation of employment and the dismantling of the New Deal structures of fair work have decoupled hard work and security, Klein said.

Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously ruled that Bayada Home Health Care Inc did not violate federal wage law by docking salaried employees' paid time off, or PTO, when they did not work required weekly hours. The case marked the first time that a U.S. appeals court was asked whether paid time off counts as part of an employee's salary. The question is important because salaried workers can become eligible for overtime pay if employers make deductions from their wages. A group of Bayada employees, including nurses, physical therapists and social workers, sued the company in Scranton, Pennsylvania federal court in 2016. Circuit Court of Appeals, No.

A deeper look at the company's billing practices revealed what appeared to be Medicare fraud, Pérez Aybar said. Fraud flourishesThat's just one of thousands of examples of how Medicare fraud is flourishing — not only in south Florida, but across the country. Taxpayers are losing more than $100 billion a year to Medicare and Medicaid fraud, according to estimates from the National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association. This convicted felon says Medicare and Medicaid fraud is "very easy" to get away with. The same pills could be sold and resold multiple times with different phony patients, billing Medicare each time.

☆ Best Buy teams up with Atrium to install home health-monitoring system
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

In this videoShare Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailBest Buy teams up with Atrium to install home health-monitoring systemCNBC's Melissa Repko reports on news from Best Buy and Atrium.

☆ U.S. Commerce to ask companies seeking chips funding to provide childcare for employees
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, Feb 27 (Reuters) - The U.S. Commerce Department said on Monday it plans to ask companies seeking at least $150 million in funding from a $52 billion semiconductor law to submit a plan for how they will provide affordable childcare for their workers. Commerce cited data that a lack of affordable and accessible childcare "is one of the largest constraints keeping Americans - and especially women" - out of the labor workforce in making the case that companies getting chips funding should show how they will provide affordable childcare. The provision that companies receiving CHIPS money provide childcare for workers is an important component." On Tuesday, the Commerce Department will release the first funding opportunity. Commerce said last year chips companies awards will be "no larger than is necessary to ensure the project happens here in the United States" and will discourage "race-to-the-bottom subsidy competitions between states and localities."

☆ Soros Fund adds First Horizon, Horizon Therapeutics and bond ETF
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Carolina Mandl | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Soros disclosed a $325.3 million stake, or 2.9 million shares, in biotech firm Horizon Therapeutics (HZNP.O), which was bought by Amgen (AMGN.O) in December for nearly $28 billion. The firm also bought 2.8 million shares, valued at $90 million, in home health assessment firm Signify Health (SGFY.N). It added $209.1 million, or 8.5 million shares, in Memphis-based financial services company First Horizon, which was acquired by Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD.TO) roughly a year ago for $13.4 billion. Shares in Zoom Technologies Inc (ZTNO.PK) and Airbnb Inc (ABNB.O) were sold, while it reduced its holdings in Amazon.com (AMZN.O), by 54.5%, to 901 million shares. The regulatory filing also showed Soros bought $255 million in an investment grade corporate bond ETF.

☆ CVS pays exorbitant $10 bln price to diversify
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Robert Cyran | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

NEW YORK, Feb 8 (Reuters Breakingviews) - CVS Health (CVS.N) keeps marching ahead with its plan to create an American healthcare colossus. Its latest acquisition involves paying $10.6 billion, including debt, to buy Oak Street Health (OSH.N). CVS is buying home-healthcare assessment provider Signify Health (SGFY.N) for $8 billion, and now Oak Street, to beef up its capabilities. CVS is valuing each Oak Street healthcare provider at more than $17 million, and each patient at about $67,000. In September, CVS agreed to buy Signify Health, a home healthcare provider mostly for Medicare patients, for $8 billion.

☆ Is the Fed ignoring long Covid in its inflation fight?
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

But it’s premature to say that Covid is no longer an economic issue when long Covid has such a significant effect on America’s workforce, economists and health care officials say. Long Covid, which stems from a Covid-19 infection, is considered a chronic illness that is sometimes debilitating. As many as 30% of Americans, about 23 million people, develop long Covid after a Covid infection, said the US Department of Health and Human Services in November. “Long Covid has harmed the workforce,” said the report, compiled by the New York State Insurance Fund. Caregiving for those suffering from Covid or long Covid is also affecting the labor imbalance, said Giacomo Santangelo, an economics professor at Fordham University.

☆ If you're a gig worker, your boss might be using a technicality to underpay you
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | Madison Hoff | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Many workers are classified by employers as independent contractors, rather than employees. The Biden administration has proposed a rule making it easier for gig workers to be counted as employees. NELP finds that 10% to 30% of employers — and potentially more — misclassify workers as independent contractors, "which indicates that several million workers nationally may be misclassified." Truck drivers misclassified as independent contractors may lose between $11,076 and $18,053, according to EPI's estimates. The Biden administration is taking aim at misclassification, hoping to crack down on it and offer an easier pathway for independent contractors to be considered employees.

☆ A 'January Effect' rally is happening in small cap stocks. Jefferies has some names to keep playing it
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Carmen Reinicke | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Small-cap stocks have surged in the first few weeks of January, confirming an outperformance that's often seen early on in a new year. So far this year, the Russell 2000 Index – which tracks small-cap stocks — is up 7.4% through Monday's close, outperforming its large-cap counterpart, the Russell 1000, which is up 5% in the same period. Even within small-cap names, the smallest companies by market share have performed the best, according to a Jan. 24 note from Jefferies. "With the calendar turning to the new year, we have seen a nice relief rally in the smallest of the small caps with names below $500M [in market capitalization] up 11.3%," wrote Jefferies small-cap strategist Steven DeSanctis. Restaurants Bloomin' Brands —which owns chains such as Outback Steakhouse and Bonefish Grill — and Dave & Buster's top the Jefferies list of small-cap names with higher-quality themes.

☆ Small-town nursing homes closing amid staffing crunch
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( Tony Leys | Kaiser Health News | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +10 min

In Iowa, 13 of the 15 nursing homes that closed in 2022 were in rural areas, according to the Iowa Health Care Association. “We’ve had more nursing homes go bankrupt in the last year than in the last 10 years combined,” she said. Nationally, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services reported recently that 129 nursing homes had closed in 2022. In Iowa, Medicaid pays nursing homes about $215 per day per resident, according to the Iowa Health Care Association. Willett said a recent survey found that 72% of Iowa’s remaining nursing homes were freezing or limiting admissions below their capacity.

☆ Top Wall Street analysts pick these stocks to climb 2023’s wall of worry
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( Tipranks.Com Staff | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

To help with the process, here are five stocks chosen by Wall Street's top analysts, according to TipRanks, a platform that ranks analysts based on their past performances. Nonetheless, Monness Crespi Hardt analyst Brian White expects the results to be in line with, or marginally above, Street expectations. Looking ahead, White sees pent-up demand for iPhones come into play in the forthcoming quarters, once Apple overcomes the production snags. (See Spotify Stock Chart on TipRanks) White is particularly upbeat about the waning mobile app store monopolies, after the European Union passed the Digital Markets Act last year. The analyst is also placed 431st among more than 8,000 analysts on TipRanks.

☆ A booming market for gear to help seniors grow older at home is creating an opportunity for investors
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-21 | by ( Michelle Fox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +13 min

Alphabet, Amazon and Best Buy are among the fund's plays on the aging in place theme. Best Buy breaks into the space It's Best Buy that has really been doubling down on its efforts to break into the space. Best Buy sees the role of technology within health care becoming much more important. Medicare Advantage's health care at home coverage includes primary care, transitional care when someone is released from a hospital and often hospice care, she said. That should lead to higher earnings power, said Baker, who has a buy rating and $237 price target on Lowe's stock.

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