Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/977748
45 CIO / HEALTH IT Theranos CEO charged with fraud By Julie Spitzer T heranos, a health technology company, and its founder and CEO Eliz- abeth Holmes are facing "massive fraud" charges for lying to investors, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Theranos was charged with "deceiving investors by making it appear as if Thera- nos had successfully developed a commercially-ready portable blood analyzer that could perform a full range of laboratory tests from a small sample of blood," according to the SEC filing. Theranos, which was founded in 2003, promised an innovative blood testing device that would offer quicker results with just a single drop of blood, and it raised more than $700 million between 2013 and 2015. However, a 2015 Wall Street Journal report revealed the devices were flawed and inaccurate. At times, Theranos' proprietary analyzer could only do about 12 tests of the more than 200 tests it advertised, according to the SEC. The SEC's complaint alleged Ms. Holmes and the company's former president, Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani, "made numerous false and misleading statements in investor presentations, product demonstrations and media articles" about its key product. Ms. Holmes agreed to pay a civil fine of $500,000 and can no longer serve as an officer or director of any publicly-listed company for 10 years. She must also return all of her company shares. The SEC filed a separate action against Mr. Balwani. n Google's parent Alphabet, Microsoft and Apple have filed 300+ healthcare patents: 5 things to know By Alia Paavola A lphabet, Microsoft and Apple filed more than 300 healthcare patents be- tween 2013 and 2017 — revealing the tech giants' increasing desire to dis- rupt the healthcare space, according to a report by Ernst & Young. Here are five things to know. 1. Between 2013 and 2017, Google's parent company Alphabet filed 186 pat- ents, Microsoft filed 73 and Apple filed 54. 2. Alphabet's patents mainly focused on investments for DeepMind, its artificial in- telligence startup, and Verily Life Sciences, its healthcare and disease research arm. 3. Apple, on the other hand, filed patents to turn its iPhone into a medical de- vice that can monitor biometric data such as blood pressure and body fat levels. The company also partnered with Stanford (Calif.) University to develop algo- rithms to predict abnormal heart rates. 4. Based on the filed patents analyzed by E&Y, Microsoft is focusing on expand- ing its AI capabilities and developing monitoring devices for chronic conditions. 5. As a result of these disruptors and tech advancements, many providers, bio- pharma and meditech companies have responded with digital partnerships and pilot programs of their own. n Intermountain to build global DNA registry with 23andMe, AncestryDNA data By Jessica Kim Cohen A team of researchers from Salt Lake City-based Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute plan to build a global DNA database of genetic test results and EHR histories, Intermountain Health- care announced March 1. e project, dubbed the GeneRosity Reg- istry and funded by the Intermountain Research and Medical Foundation, will compile data from adults who have already purchased direct-to-consumer genetic tests from commercial sites like AncestryDNA, MyHeritage or 23andMe. ese participants will have the option to voluntarily upload raw and unprocessed genetic test results to the project's website. Along with genetic test results, the research- ers will also request medical histories from participants, including health information about himself or herself and three genera- tions of relatives, including children, siblings and parents. e researchers will store this genetic and historical information in a se- cure database, which may only be accessed by those involved in the GeneRosity Regis- try project. e GeneRosity Registry will serve as a re- search resource to inform future studies. For example, researchers may use data collected for the project to identify genetic markers that determine a patient's risk of developing select health conditions. "We'll be able to use the information people submit to validate new genetic and disease findings, discover new genetic mutation and genetic profiles, and drive future studies," Stacey Knight, PhD, a cardiovascular and genetic epidemiologist at the Intermoun- tain Medical Center Heart Institute, said in a March 1 statement. n