HITshow Daily: December 15, 2025 (Monday)

Today on HITshow: Stability is getting expensive across healthcare. The VA plans to eliminate up to 35,000 healthcare positions, 57 health systems push back on proposed cybersecurity rules, and Cencora takes majority control of OneOncology in a $7.4B deal. Plus: Connecticut approves a hospital acquisition with strict access guardrails, and Philips moves to acquire SpectraWAVE for AI-enabled coronary imaging. HOST: RHONDA BROOKS 📍 Healthcare Policy & Advocacy --- Anika Shah The Veterans Affairs system is planning to cut up to 35,000 healthcare positions, largely roles currently unfilled. The concern for hospital leaders isn't just federal belt-tightening but second-order effects: if VA capacity tightens or hiring slows in certain markets, pressure could shift into community care through ED volume, outpatient access, and specialty bottlenecks. .📍 Cybersecurity --- Peter Betterworth A group of 57 health systems is urging HHS to rescind a proposed cybersecurity rule, arguing the requirements and timelines could be financially and operationally unrealistic. If the rule moves forward as written, it could force faster spending decisions on controls, audits, documentation, and staffing, landing on clinical uptime, third-party risk, and enterprise governance. 📍 Finance & Capital --- Logan Stokes Cencora is taking majority control of OneOncology in a deal valuing the business at about $7.4B. The practical message for health system leaders is that the community oncology ecosystem keeps getting more organized and better-capitalized, affecting referral dynamics, site-of-care strategy, infusion economics, and partnerships. 📍 Strategy & Transformation --- Teresa Vaughn Connecticut regulators approved Hartford HealthCare's acquisition of Manchester Memorial and Rockville General with specific conditions, including keeping the Rockville emergency department open 24/7 for at least three years and maintaining inpatient behavioral health services within a set radius. States are increasingly writing access guarantees and service-line protections into M&A approvals. 📍 Digital Health --- Nate Collier Philips agreed to acquire SpectraWAVE, adding technology focused on coronary intravascular imaging and physiological assessment with an emphasis on AI. Vendors are stacking capabilities to own more of the interventional workflow, including imaging, interpretation support, and decision guidance. 🎙️ Subscribe here or wherever you listen to podcasts, and if you like our show, please follow us on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/hit_show. HITshow is made possible by EY, Ovatient, and Kimmchi.