What's in store for Moderna and J&J booster shots

Hello,

Welcome to Insider Healthcare. I'm healthcare editor Leah Rosenbaum, and this week in healthcare news:

• An FDA advisory group recommended that people in high-risk groups get a booster shot of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine;
• UnitedHealth has a new strategy to partner with hospital systems;
• Our reporters analyze the latest trends in healthcare investing.

First - if you're headed out to Boston for the HLTH conference starting October 17, keep an eye out for some of the Insider team! We'll be there moderating panels, catching up with sources, and keeping an eye out for more stories. Be sure to say hi!

And as always, if you're new to this newsletter, sign up here. Let's get to it.

An FDA panel paves the way for a Moderna booster shot authorization

There was a lot of news about COVID-19 booster shots this week.

But perhaps the most exciting news came on Thursday afternoon: an FDA advisory panel unanimously recommended that people in certain high-risk groups who got the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine should get a booster shot. As Andrew Dunn reports, the FDA often agrees with its advisory panel when making its official recommendations - though not always.

In other booster shot news, a recent study found that people who got the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine actually had a better immune response when they got a Pfizer or Moderna booster.

An FDA advisory panel plans to make recommendations for a Johnson & Johnson booster shot on Friday afternoon.

Get the latest info>>

The FDA's expert panel just unanimously backed Moderna's booster shot for high-risk groups, paving way for the agency's OK

UnitedHealth's new hospital strategy

UnitedHealth has made a fortune by keeping people out of the hospital. Now, the healthcare giant is turning its gaze back to hospital systems.

Shelby Livingston reports on UnitedHealth's new strategy: to partner with hospitals and provide them with administrative solutions like patient billing.

Just last week, UnitedHealth's Optum division inked a 10-year deal with health system SSM Health, one of the largest healthcare systems in the Midwest.

Get an inside look>>

UnitedHealth has made a fortune from its sprawling network of doctors and clinics. Now it's setting its sights on hospitals.

The latest healthcare investing trends

What are healthcare investors interested in these days? The answers are varied and, at times, surprising.

Megan Hernbroth found that the women's health sector is heating up, including startups focused on the symptoms of menopause like Alloy.

Jade Khatib found that investors are continuing to place big bets on the telehealth space, and teletherapy is likely here to stay.

And Mohana Ravindranath tracked an unprecedented boom in funding for startups that are serving Medicaid populations.

Check it out>>

Here is the 23-slide presentation a former Marie Claire editor-in-chief used to get millennial men to invest in a startup that treats menopause symptoms

More stories that kept us busy this week:

• Allison DeAngelis spoke to a top biotech VC about how her anger-driven strategy leads to new investments.
• Merck is set to make billions off its COVID-19 pill, Andrew reports. Here's why some countries will pay more than others.
• Andrew and science reporter Aria Bendix took a look at the needle-free COVID treatments scientists are testing right now.
• Dr. Catherine Schuster-Bruce spoke to experts about why vaccinated people who have already had COVID should be last in line for boosters.
• Legal correspondent Sindhu Sundar rounded up the 13 need-to-know lawyers advising life-sciences companies through the biotech feeding frenzy.

-Leah