Following the overturn of Roe v. Wade, Beverly Gray told Healthcare Brew she knows providers who left states with abortion bans as a result of changing laws. It’s a “complicated” and “personal” decision, she said.

For the Duke University School of Medicine professor of obstetrics and gynecology, though, leaving was never an option. A born-and-raised North Carolinian, she decided to hunker down and provide the best care possible.

Ob-gyns’ lives quickly changed on June 24, 2022, when the Supreme Court overruled Roe v. Wade and removed federal constitutional abortion protections.

Depending on the state and practice, doctors have faced completely different policies around reproductive care. In states where abortion remained legal, providers may have seen an influx of patients coming from states where new bans were implemented. In others, where abortion was made illegal, they may have seen clinics close.

“It’s frustrating that we have to alter the care that we provide to meet the demands of a law that’s not evidence-based,” she told us. “We are really trying to do our very best to make sure that patients can get the care that they need.”

Find the latest in our Day in the Life series here.—CM

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Richard Fine, Zocdoc’s chief business officer, has been with the company, which helps match patients and providers, for 11 years. Recently—other than being an ad for your favorite podcast—the company announced it was implementing an AI voice agent, Zo, into its scheduling assistance service in May.

From chief commercial officer to VP of strategy, he’s now working closely with the company’s CEO to “operationalize the company’s long-term direction,” he told Healthcare Brew. Fine spoke with us about the changes he’s made at the company and what he’s most—and least—optimistic about in the healthcare industry.

See the full conversation here.—CM

The middlemen that work between health plans, drug manufacturers, and pharmacies to negotiate prices are being pressed to become more transparent in a new rule issued by the Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration.

The proposed rule, issued on Jan. 29, would require pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to disclose information about rebates and other forms of compensation they receive from the pharmaceutical industry.

Requiring PBMs to be more transparent “will allow employers to see the full extent of the fees charged by pharmacy benefit managers, enabling them to negotiate a better deal for themselves and American workers,” Deputy Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling said in a statement.

Keep reading on HR Brew.—CV