This Week Health: Newsroom

June 9, 2025: Healthcare organizations face an unprecedented challenge as potential Medicaid cuts threaten heavy IT staff reductions, but what if the real solution lies hidden in plain sight within their own systems? Jason Rose , CEO of Clearsense , discusses how "zombie applications" - applications that are neither fully alive nor completely dead - are silently draining millions from healthcare b...

Drex covers four major healthcare cybersecurity developments: Kettering Health's Epic systems recovery following their May 20th cyber attack, with core components now operational while inbound calling systems remain down. Covenant Health faces a new cybersecurity incident affecting three hospitals in Maine and New Hampshire. Seattle's Fred Hutch Cancer Center agreed to a $52 million class action s...

Drex covers Kettering Health's week-long cyber attack recovery with radiation oncology back online, the mass exodus of CISA leadership amid federal downsizing, and the growing frustration over lack of comprehensive federal cybersecurity strategy for healthcare. Discussion includes regional coordination during cyber incidents and the reality that hospitals are fighting nation-state actors without a...

June 2, 2025: Chris Jenkins , EVP of Digital Strategy and Enterprise Imaging for Healthlink Advisors , joins Bill for the news. As the industry appears to shift focus from cybersecurity to AI adoption, they explore whether this transition is happening too quickly. Then, what does it mean when four major health systems make strategic investments in companies like Rad AI? The conversation also cover...

Drex explores two critical cybersecurity threats facing healthcare: the rise of "vibe coding" where non-programmers use AI like Anthropic's Claude to create functional code, creating potential operational risks from undocumented projects, and increasingly sophisticated AI deepfakes from tools like Google's VO3 that cybercriminals are weaponizing for phishing attacks. He emphasizes the need for hea...

May 26, 2025: Ryan Pfeffer , Head of Engineering at Notable , joins Sarah for the news. How are healthcare CIOs navigating the overwhelming influx of AI vendors in a market projected to exceed $500 billion by 2032? The conversation explores the practical challenges of integration, testing processes, and the importance of transparent, explainable features. How is natural language processing transfo...

Drex covers in-depth look at the ongoing ransomware attack on Kettering Health, attributed to the Interlock gang known for double extortion tactics - stealing data before encrypting systems. The health system demonstrates exemplary crisis communication while maintaining operations and warning patients about related scams. Next, the Scattered Spider cybercriminal group shifts focus to European reta...

Drex covers three critical cybersecurity stories in healthcare: Kettering Health Network's ransomware crisis affecting 14 hospitals with patient data at risk, a landmark $700,000 civil penalty against Breach Forums founder Connor Fitzpatrick, and the release of Have I Been Pwned (HIBP) 2.0 with enhanced breach monitoring capabilities. Stay informed on the latest healthcare security threats and sol...

May 26, 2025: Amy Oliver , VP of Marketing at Panda Health , joins Sarah for the news. What does World Health Day 2025's focus on maternal health reveal about global disparities, and how can digital solutions bridge these gaps? The conversation delves into alarming statistics showing the United States has the highest maternal mortality rate among developed nations, with 80% of these deaths being p...

Learn about a new VMware Tools vulnerability allowing privilege escalation, Microsoft's Patch Tuesday releasing fixes for 70 vulnerabilities including 5 actively exploited zero-days, and Apple's comprehensive OS updates. The episode highlights the importance of patching industrial control systems from Siemens, Schneider Electric, and Phoenix Contact that may be present in healthcare facility autom...

In this episode, Drex covers three key security stories: the HSCC's "On the Edge" report on rural healthcare cybersecurity vulnerabilities, Mossimo's security breach affecting their manufacturing operations, and the hacking of LockBit ransomware gang which exposed Bitcoin wallets and negotiation messages. Drex also mentions his panel at HIMSS Southern California on healthcare cybersecurity. Rememb...

May 12, 2025: Drex DeFord and Sarah Richardson join Bill for the news. How do you prioritize when everything seems urgent? The group shares stories of impossible expectations and political realities while debating the true cost of innovation in healthcare. Bill, Drex, and Sarah discuss the rising number of CXOs who are shifting to new jobs throughout the industry. With insider insights, this discu...

In this episode, Drex highlights former HCA CSO Paul Connolly's practical cyber insurance guidance, introduces OpenAI's new "Operator" AI agent that can independently perform web tasks, and examines the emerging organizational risks of "shadow AI" as employees implement unauthorized AI solutions in their workflows without proper oversight. Remember, Stay a Little Paranoid  X: This Week Health...

Drex DeFord covers critical security updates affecting healthcare organizations. Ascension Health is notifying hundreds of thousands of patients about security incidents involving third-party partners. UnitedHealth Group has deployed thousands of AI applications across their operations. A new study reveals alarming password practices, with 8-character passwords and common words still widely used....

May 5, 2025: Christian Boucher , Head of Healthcare Strategy and Solutions at Island , joins Drex for the news. They discuss the recent VMware price shock situation, diving into a deeper industry-wide issue: what happens when healthcare becomes overly dependent on specific technology pillars? Are health systems flexible enough to pivot when market forces dramatically shift the technology landscape...

Drex covers essential cybersecurity reports including the HIMSS Survey, Cincinnati's Healthcare Cybersecurity Benchmarking Study, CrowdStrike's 2025 Global Threat Report, and Verizon's DBIR. Also highlighted: an Oracle engineering error affecting 45 hospitals' EHRs, Yale New Haven's breach impacting 5.5 million patients, and Blue Shield of California's Google Analytics configuration mistake exposi...

Drex covers three critical cybersecurity stories: The FBI's annual Internet Crime Complaints Center report revealing a 9% increase in ransomware attacks and 67 new ransomware variants; JP Morgan Chase's CISO's open letter on third-party supply chain vulnerabilities; and a major data breach at Work Composer exposing 21 million employee screenshots stored in an unsecured Amazon S3 bucket. Key lesson...

April 28, 2025: Laura O'Toole , CEO of SureTest , joins Sarah for the news. What strategies can healthcare leaders implement to demonstrate measurable ROI while addressing staff burnout and retention issues? The conversation delves into the delicate balance between innovation and change management, revealing how automation can empower healthcare professionals to focus on true, meaningful work. Lau...

Drex covers three urgent cybersecurity threats: a cybersecurity CEO caught installing malware on hospital computers in Oklahoma, government systems shutdown in Abilene following a cyber attack, and a dangerous malware campaign targeting Cisco WebEx users. Learn how employee vigilance stopped the hospital breach, how Texas is responding to reduced federal cybersecurity support, and critical steps t...

Drex covers three key security stories: Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth's alleged sharing of classified information via Signal, resulting in a 13% increase in Signal usage; CISA recommendations following two Oracle breaches affecting healthcare customers and Cloud login data; and crosswalk buttons being hacked to play AI-spoofed voices of tech executives due to unchanged default passwords. X : T...

April 21, 2025: Nikhil Buduma , Co-Founder and Chief Scientist of Ambience Healthcare , discusses healthcare's past and how AI is shifting its future. As Nikhil reflects on 25 years of hospital operations evolution they contemplate whether the administrative burden placed on clinicians was an unintended consequence of digitization. What could healthcare look like in the next decade if AI becomes t...

Drex covers three critical security stories: the government's reversal of its decision to defund Mitre's Common Vulnerability and Exposure (CVE) program, a ransomware attack on DaVita's 3,100+ dialysis facilities across 14 countries, and former CISA Assistant Director Chris Krebs' resignation from Sentinel One following an executive order targeting him. Remember, Stay a Little Paranoid  X: Th...

Drex discusses significant disruptions in federal cybersecurity leadership, including the investigation of former CISA Director Chris Krebs, government officials withdrawing from the RSA Security Conference, and potential 40% personnel cuts at CISA. Drex emphasizes that healthcare organizations should not expect federal cybersecurity assistance and must instead build their own community of securit...

Excited to share with you our new direction.

April 14, 2025: George Pappas , CEO of Intraprise Health , joins Drex DeFord for the news. The conversation explores Chris Hughes' insights on how machine-readable security controls and dynamic monitoring could revolutionize cybersecurity frameworks. How are rural hospitals surviving in a landscape where financial constraints clash with escalating security demands? The discussion takes a critical...