Morning Headlines 11/20/18

The health care venture from Amazon, Berkshire and JP Morgan just hired its first female exec, and she comes from a big insurance company

The ABJ health initiative hires Dana Safran (BCBS of Massachusetts) as head of measurement, leading analysts to surmise the still-unnamed joint venture will focus heavily on health data analytics.

Update on our Smart Lens program with Alcon

Citing insufficient consistency in measurements, Verily shuts down its four-year smart contact lens project with the eye-care division of Novartis, which sought to help diabetics manage their disease through tear-based glucose measurement.

Information on Medicare Telehealth

CMS reports that telemedicine utilization by Medicare beneficiaries increased 50 percent between 2014 and 2016, with members in rural areas making up the bulk of visits for mostly mental health and chronic conditions.