Power Women | Vaccines And Omicron | $100M For Nomi Health

Plus: Viagra use may reduce the risk of getting Alzheimer’s

Forbes released its annual list of the World’s 100 Most Powerful Women this week which included 4 health industry CEOs in the top 20: Karen Lynch of CVS Health (#11), Emma Walmsley of GlaxoSmithKline (#13), Gail Boudreaux of Anthem (#16),  and Rosalind Brewer of Walgreens Boots Alliance. (#17). Brewer, the former chief operating officer of Starbucks who took the helm of Walgreens in March, is currently the only Black woman running an S&P 500 company, ForbesWomen editor Maggie McGrath reports. BioNTech cofounder and immunologist Özlem Türeci made her list debut at #48 thanks to her role in leading the company’s developed of a Covid-19 vaccine in partnership with Pfizer. 

Plus, 23andMe cofounder and CEO Anne Wojcicki (#90) spoke with Forbes assistant managing editor Diane Brady about her path to power. Wojcicki became a self-made billionaire earlier this year, after 23andMe went public in a SPAC deal. “I’m lucky. My sisters and I were all raised with this idea that you can do anything,” says Wojcicki. “I never thought about my gender as a child. It was all about this mindset that the world is super interesting and everyone is good at something, so go find what you’re good at. Find your passion. For me, that was science.”

And if you missed the Forbes Healthcare Summit last week, you can catch up with our recap here. 

Nomi Health, a startup that delivers health services directly to millions of Americans without going through third-party health insurance, has raised $110 million in Series A funding. The company, which launched in 2019, currently serves 30,000 people per day across 10 states, Forbes contributor Deb Gordon reports. It contracts directly with local governments, universities, and businesses to provide basic healthcare services, such as Covid-19 testing, vaccinations, and treatment, as well as other preventive screenings. 

Noteworthy

Obamacare premiums for individual coverage dropped more than 3% on average across the U.S. for the 2022 coverage year.

As Medicare decides whether to pay for Biogen’s Alzheimer’s drug Aduhelm, its future success is uncertain.

A behind-the-scenes look at why Bassett Healthcare Network, an independent not-for-profit health system in upstate New York, decided to partner with Optum. 

Coronavirus Updates

The Australian state of Queensland detected a new lineage of the omicron variant of the coronavirus in a traveler who arrived from South Africa, a finding that may further complicate efforts for scientists who are still trying to understand the transmissibility and virulence of the omicron variant. Concern over omicron is driving a surge in booster vaccine shots, with nearly 7 million administered in the past week. One thing omicron isn’t changing? Investor enthusiasm for cruise and other travel-related stocks, which surged even higher today after staging a recent comeback. 

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In other coronavirus news:

Novak Djokovic was named in the entry list of players for the 2022 Australian Open, despite a lack of clarity about the tennis star’s Covid-19 vaccination status in the face of the Australian government mandating shots for all visiting athletes.

A pre-print study from NIAID suggests that multiple combinations of primary vaccine and boosters bolster immunity against Covid-19. 

BioNTech CEO Uğur Şahin says the Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine should be considered a three-dose vaccine series instead of a two-dose one when it comes to the omicron variant.

Across Forbes

• Japanese Billionaire Yusaku Maezawa Turns Space Tourist, Blasts Off To International Space Station Aboard Russian Craft

• Bill Gates Reflects On His Divorce, Being Alone During Covid And The ‘Most Difficult’ Year Of His Life

• U.S. Government Will Test Ibogaine As An Addiction Treatment

What Else We Are Reading

• Texas Toughens Ban on Medication-by-Mail Abortions With Jail Time and Hefty Fine (Kaiser Health News)

• Growing use of home Covid-19 tests leaves health agencies in the dark about unreported cases (STAT)

• Ex-FDA chief Stephen Hahn lands another new gig, this time as CEO of a cancer testing startup (Endpoints News)