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Higher prescription drug sales and lower legal costs drove Johnson & Johnson's fourth-quarter profit 32% higher. The world's biggest maker of health care products on Wednesday reported net income of $4.01 billion, or $1.50 per share. That's up from $3.04 billion, or $1.12, a year earlier. (1/22)

J&J’s fourth-quarter adjusted earnings topped Wall Street estimates, but its sales fell just short of expectations. J&J shares declined 1.1% to $147.63 in morning trading Wednesday. Alex Gorsky, chief executive of the New Jersey-based health-products company, told analysts on a conference call the company’s performance was strong in 2019, especially in light of challenges including “today’s litigious environment”—a reference to lawsuits against J&J over the safety and marketing of various products such as opioids and baby powder. (Sebastian and Loftus, 1/22)

Johnson & Johnson posted weaker-than-expected sales in the final quarter of 2019, raising the stakes for the health-care conglomerate as it banks on new cancer and immunology drugs to replace a group of aging blockbusters.Some of the company’s most lucrative medicines are facing competition from generics and biosimilars. Arthritis drug Remicade’s sales fell more than 16% from a year earlier in the quarter, while Zytiga, an older treatment for prostate cancer, saw a nearly 14% decline. (Griffin, 1/22)

Consumers who bought short-term health insurance thinking they had found a better deal than “Obamacare” during the open enrollment season may be in for a shock when they show up at their doctor’s office this year. The low-cost plans aren't required to cover basics such as prescription drugs or maternity care. (Kennedy, 1/22)

Health insurers Centene Corp. and WellCare Health Plans said they expect to close their $17 billion merger on Thursday, creating one of the largest providers of government-sponsored health plans with roughly 22 million members. The insurers announced late Tuesday that they have cleared all the necessary regulatory hurdles to close the deal, including passing a review by the U.S. Justice Department. The companies previously entered agreements to divest parts of their businesses in several locations, all of which will be completed this week. (Livingston, 1/22)

“At the time, going to CVS was like a business, you order your medicine and everything else, and you leave,” Phillips said. A year later, his CVS in Spring is still standing, as is he, cane-free. Phillips now comes to the store weekly to attend free yoga classes and learn about new ways to manage his illnesses at the drugstore’s CVS HealthHUB, an expanded offering of health care services being rolled out to Houston-area CVS stores.The HealthHUBs are designed to feel like a doctor’s office, with touch screens to manage patient check-ins and tables for employees to explain CVS products and healthier living plans. It is part of a broader foray by the Woonsocket, R.I.-based pharmacy retailer into the health care space. (Wu, 1/23)

Kaiser Health News: In-Home Teeth-Straightening Business Is Booming ― But Better Brace Yourself

Though Anna Rosemond, now 33, had braces when she was young, a couple of years ago she noticed her teeth were again starting to crowd. So when she saw a Groupon deal for SmileDirectClub, she jumped on it. “I thought, ‘This looks like a really cool way to do braces,’” said Rosemond, who made her own teeth impressions with putty and used a “smile stretcher” ― a device that pulls apart the lips and cheeks ― to take pictures of her mouth. A few weeks after she submitted the items, plastic aligners arrived in the mail, beginning what the company describes as Rosemond’s “smile journey.” (Appleby and Knight, 1/23)

CommonSpirit Health will become the latest health system to drop the dual CEO model when longtime CEO Kevin Lofton retires this summer. When he steps down June 30, Lofton will have served 17 years as CEO of Catholic Health Initiatives, the predecessor organization that merged with Dignity Health on Feb. 1, 2019 to form Chicago-based CommonSpirit, a massive not-for-profit system with 142 hospitals. (Bannow, 1/22)

Patient volume is on the rise at Little Company of Mary Hospital in Evergreen Park, Ill., as it prepares to join Peoria, Ill.-based OSF HealthCare. At a time when many community hospitals are struggling to attract patients amid increased competition, the 298-bed hospital—which will become OSF HealthCare Little Company of Mary Medical Center when the deal closes Feb. 1—is seeing more demand. (Goldberg, 1/22)

In America, poverty is linked to shorter lifespans. The wealthiest 1% of Americans live more than a decade longer than the poorest 1%, and that gap has grown wider in recent years. The medical community is increasingly examining the role that poverty and difficult social circumstances play in illness. Some people are asking whether the health care system could do more to address the things that influence people’s health beyond their medical care. This week on Prognosis, we look at one startup that’s trying to redesign care for some of the most vulnerable patients, taking into account the complex realities of their lives. The company is trying to improve care for people and communities whom the medical system often fails – and it believes that fixing those failures will not only make people healthier, it will also save money. (Tozzi, 1/23)