Diamonds and Dogs

3/20/17

Jazz Pharma (JAZZ) is all jazzed up. The drug stock rose 7% to a six month high on positive test results for patients with breathing interrupts and sleep apnea. In a second six-week study, 126 patients reported "much" or "very much" improvement at week four on the Patient Global Impression of Change scale, which scores a patient's belief about the efficacy of treatment. Good news for the patients and Jazz Pharma.

The hospitals seem to be losers in the repeal of Obamacare. Community Health Systems (CYH) has been on a roller-coaster ride since the inauguration of President Donald Trump. The stock is down 4% today and 80% in the last two years as the Republican replacement for the Affordable Care Act revives an expensive problem for U.S. hospitals: Who pays for the uninsured? The latest Republican bill to replace Obamacare would add millions of people to the uninsured rolls, however, and in turn would increase the amount of care that hospitals end up providing without getting paid.