Inside the downfall of poop-testing startup uBiome

Hello,

Welcome to Insider Healthcare. I'm Lydia Ramsey Pflanzer, and today in healthcare news:

• Inside the downfall of uBiome, the once-hot microbiome company whose founders have been charged with fraud;
• AstraZeneca's COVID-19 shot proved to be safe and effective in a US trial;
• A heath system is spinning out a company to help other hospitals fend off big tech.

If you're new to this newsletter, sign up here. Comments, tips, recipes? Email me at [email protected] or tweet @lydiaramsey125. Now, let's get to it…

Inside the downfall of microbiome startup uBiome, which won a $600 million valuation from top VCs, then went bankrupt, and now has 2 founders facing fraud charges

• The DOJ and SEC have charged two founders of now-shuttered poop-testing startup uBiome with fraud.
• The complaints paint a picture of a company that sought to make money by deceiving doctors, insurers and investors.
• Here's all that we know about uBiome's failure and the founders allegedly fraudulent practices.

We break down the full saga here>>

AstraZeneca's COVID-19 shot was 79% effective in a trial involving 32,000 people, paving the way for US authorization

• The COVID-19 shot from Oxford University and AstraZeneca proved effective in a large US trial.
• The vaccine was safe, and there was no evidence of blood clots.
• AstraZeneca now plans to submit the data to the FDA to seek authorization for the shot.

Read the full story>>

A health system in Amazon's backyard is launching a startup to help other hospitals fend off big tech by helping patients find care online

• Providence is launching a new health-tech company called DexCare.
• It helps health systems match patients with the appropriate care quickly.
• Fearing tech disruption, Providence began ramping up digital capabilities like this years ago.

Get the full scoop here>>

More stories we're reading today:

• One map shows when all adults will be eligible to get a coronavirus vaccine in each US state (Insider)
• A new lobbying group backed by Amazon Care and health systems is pushing for more at-home care (Stat News)
• Investigations into possible rare, serious vaccine side effects are not worrying - they're reassuring (Insider)
• Expect to hear about cases where people get COVID-19 after getting vaccinated (The Atlantic)

- Lydia