• District of Columbia: HHS on Tuesday released a white paper outlining potential steps to prevent and mitigate persistent drug shortages. In the paper, the agency proposed creating two nongovernmental organizations that would assess drugmakers' and hospitals' drug supply-related issues. The Manufacturing Resiliency Assessment Program would develop metrics to evaluate drugmakers' practices for monitoring shortages and improving their manufacturing performance. A separate Hospital Resilient Supply Program would provide incentives and penalties for hospitals based on their drug purchasing practices. "All across our Department, we are working to ensure that millions of Americans will have access to medication, treatment, and services that save lives and improve health outcomes," said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. "That's why advancing and implementing solutions to the nation's drug shortages are so important, and why we want members of Congress and all actors in the supply chain to consider and act on the policy options presented in today's white paper." (HHS news release, 4/2; Wilkerson, STAT+ [subscription required], 4/2; King, POLITICO Pro [subscription required], 4/2)
• District of Columbia: Kaiser Permanente has completed its acquisition of Geisinger Health, forming a new nonprofit organization called Risant health, which is focused on value-based care. The deal was originally announced last year. According to Geisinger president and CEO Jaewon Ryu, Geisinger will keep its name as it works under Risant. Ryu is expected to transition into a new role as Risant's CEO in the coming weeks, and Terry Gilliland, a former executive at Cogitativo, has been named Ryu's successor at Geisinger. "It's very exciting to finally be at this day and really be able to set forth in earnest on all the work," Ryu said. "The goal, first and foremost, is to transform health." Risant plans to acquire four or five more health systems within the next five years. It also plans to invest at least $100 million in Geisinger through 2028 to expand care delivery and health plan services. An additional $115 million a year will be invested over the next 10 years to support Geisinger's research and education initiatives. (Hudson, Modern Healthcare, 4/2)
• Washington: Costco now offers its members access to a weight-loss program through Sesame, a healthcare marketplace. Last September, Costco announced a partnership with Sesame to offer its members discounts on outpatient medical services, including virtual primary care visits and online mental health therapy. Through the new weight-loss program, Costco members will have an initial live video consultation with a clinician and receive three months of clinical consultation. When clinically appropriate, clinicians may also prescribe patients weight-loss medication, such as Wegovy or Zepbound. The service costs $179 for three months and became available April 2. "We are witnessing important innovations in medically supervised weight loss," said David Goldhill, Sesame's co-founder and CEO. "Sesame's unique model allows us not only to make high-quality specialty care like weight loss much more accessible and affordable but also to empower clinicians to create care plans that are specific to − and appropriate for − each individual patient." (Lin-Fisher, USA Today, 4/2; Landi, Fierce Healthcare, 4/2)

Last year Kaiser Permanente  announced it is acquiring Geisinger Health, and Geisinger will operate independently under a new subsidiary of Kaiser called  Risant Health. Here's Advisory Board 's take.