Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1439541
33 INNOVATION Atrium Health's $1.5B innovation district: 5 details By Katie Adams C harlotte, N.C.-based Atrium Health on Nov. 9 revealed more details about its $1.5 billion innovation district that will surround its future medical school, the Wake Forest University School of Medicine Char- lotte, according to e Charlotte Observer. Five things to know: 1. e medical school is scheduled to open in 2024. Charlotte is the largest city in the U.S. without a four-year medical school, according to Atrium. 2. e innovation district will include four re- search towers, an education building, 1.4 acres of open space in front of the educational build- ing, two parking lots with a combined 2,000 spaces, a residential tower with 350 units, a hotel, mixed-use lots and 17,800 square feet of ground-level retail space. 3. e system is requesting $75 million from Charlotte and Mecklenburg County. at money could be used to establish a 800-space parking deck, 4,358 feet of new or improved roads, four new intersections and other infra- structure work, according to a presentation at the board of commissioners meeting. 4. e innovation district is expected to create 1,853 jobs in 2025, a county analysis found. 5. As part of the innovation district, Atrium Health said it will donate 14 acres in Char- lotte's NoDa neighborhood valued at about $25 million to Inlivian, the city's housing au- thority. e land is beside 14 acres Inlivian owns, and the 28 acres will be used for about 400 units of affordable housing. n CMS nixes Medicare coverage of breakthrough medical devices: 4 things to know By Alia Paavola C MS said Nov. 12 it will rescind a rule introduced by for- mer President Donald Trump's administration that allows Medicare to quickly cover medical devices deemed "breakthrough" technologies by the FDA. Four things to know: 1. CMS, under the previous administration, issued the Medicare Coverage of Innovative Technology and Definition of "Reason- able and Necessary" in January 2020, days before President Joe Biden took office. The final rule aimed to create a new and accelerated Medicare coverage process for innovative devices and technologies deemed "breakthrough," which the FDA ap- proves on an expedited basis. 2. CMS said it will rescind the rule because of concerns over Medicare patient safety. "Although we continue to be in favor of enhancing access to new technologies, we are mindful that they may have unknown or un- expected risks and must first ensure such technologies improve health outcomes for Medicare beneficiaries," CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure said in a Nov. 12 news release. 3. CMS said it will explore different coverage process improve- ments to enhance Medicare beneficiaries access to break- through medical devices. 4. CMS had proposed rescinding the rule Sept. 15, 2021. CMS also delayed the final rule twice in 2021, first in March and again in May, so the agency could "address all of the issues raised by stakeholders, especially Medicare patient protections, evidence criteria and lack of coordination between coverage, coding and payment." n Providence taps executive to lead innovation center's product, technology incubation push By Jackie Drees T he Providence Innovation Group, a health innovation center within Renton, Wash.-based Providence, named Andy Chu its senior vice president of product and technology incubation, Providence said Nov. 3. In his new role, Mr. Chu will oversee the incubation of digital healthcare products and software-as-a-service tools into commercial offerings for healthcare systems. Mr. Chu has more than 20 years of leadership expe- rience in career management, consumer messaging and enterprise software industries, including Microsoft and various startups. As senior vice president of prod- uct and technology incubation, he will report to Aaron Martin, executive vice president and chief digital officer of Providence, according to a news release. The Providence Digital Innovation Group has commer- cialized three technologies and comprises a team of software engineers, marketers and investors who work with the health system's clinical and operational teams to develop technologies and products. In 2017, Providence Digital Innovation Group spun out Xealth, which lets clinicians prescribe and monitor digital health content, apps and services similarly to how they manage medications or orders. The next spinout was women's health technology company Wildflower Health in 2018, followed by DexCare, a digital platform for man- aging health system care capacity, in March 2021. n