In other news, the Pirola Covid variant is now the third most prevalent strain in the U.S., with Pfizer-BioNTech, Novavax, and Moderna claiming their vaccines offer some protection against it. Moody's predicts a stable outlook for big health insurers for the rest of 2023, UnitedHealth Group is estimating $400 billion in revenue next year, and the FDA issued a warning about a safety issue with one of Philips' sleep apnea machines. U.S. life expectancy rose in 2022 after two years of declines due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and the U.K. reported its first case of a new swine flu strain in humans.
Key takeaways:
- Forbes 30 Under 30 Healthcare list includes rising stars such as Reid Waldman, Emma West, and Connor Tsuchida who are using technology and innovation to develop solutions to healthcare challenges.
- The XPrize Foundation is offering a $101 million prize to innovators who can reverse age-related degradation in healthy adults aged 65-80.
- The Japanese Ministry of Health has approved a self-amplifying mRNA Covid-19 vaccine, ARCT-154, developed by CSL and Arcturus Therapeutics. The vaccine generates multiple copies of mRNA strands in the body, producing a stronger immune response than comparable mRNA vaccines against Covid.
- Pirola, or BA.2.86, is the third most prevalent Covid strain in the U.S. Pfizer-BioNTech, Novavax, and Moderna have all reported that their latest vaccines offer some protection from this strain.