Get caught up to speed on news from Wisconsin’s innovation community with these recent headlines:
—Madison-based Exact Sciences (NASDAQ: [[ticker:EXAS]]) said that Cologuard, the company’s stool-based DNA test for colorectal cancer, is slated to be included in the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Medicare Advantage Star Ratings. CMS publishes the Star Ratings each year to measure quality in Medicare Advantage health insurance programs. The proposal to include Cologuard in the Star Ratings marks “an important step toward it becoming a standard of care for colon cancer screening,” said Kevin Conroy, Exact’s chairman and CEO, in a prepared statement.
In October, Exact announced that Cologuard had been included in a group of quality measures for colorectal cancer screening, known as Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS). The company said last week that Medicare Advantage Star Ratings are directly affected by HEDIS data, which among other things are used to assess Medicare plans.
—OnKöl, a Milwaukee-based startup that has developed a box-shaped “hub” aimed at older adults that ties together numerous home and health monitoring devices, was nominated in the “Connected Life” category at the Global Mobile Awards. Winners will be announced at the 2017 Mobile World Congress in Spain, which kicks off later this month.
—Madison-based EatStreet acquired part of Zoomer, a Philadelphia-based food delivery startup that recently announced plans to shut down. Under the terms of the deal, EatStreet, which claims its food ordering software serves more than 15,000 restaurants across the U.S., received a number of the contracts Zoomer had signed with delivery drivers and eateries. About 1,000 drivers and 30 corporate employees are joining EatStreet from Zoomer, the company said.
—More food tech news, in case you’re still hungry: MealSteals said its software application that’s designed to help bars and restaurants advertise food and drink specials has launched in Milwaukee, where the startup is based. The “MealSteals for Business” app, which users can download from the App Store or Google Play, complements one the company released previously for deal hunters. MealSteals said it plans to introduce its technology to bars and restaurants in Chicago next month.
—Waukesha-based Telkonet introduced a new wireless thermostat for use in hotels, college dormitories, business offices, and other types of buildings. The device, known as “EcoTouch+ Battery,” is the latest product in Telkonet’s (OTCMKTS: [[ticker:TKOI]]) EcoSmart product line, which includes connected light switches and standalone sensors. The company unveiled the new device at the International Air-Conditioning, Heating, Refrigerating Expo, which was held last week in Las Vegas.
—The Brookfield-based financial services giant Fiserv (NASDAQ: [[ticker:FISV]]) sold assets related to “item processing” to Genpact (NYSE: [[ticker:G]]), a large multinational based in Bermuda. According to a report by RTT News, the assets were previously held by a business division of Fiserv that’s located in Australia and “serves three of the four major retail banks” there. The companies did not disclose financial terms of the deal.
—The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s news service profiled the school’s Law & Entrepreneurship Clinic, which provides company founders with free advice on options for incorporating, intellectual property, and other legal and business matters. The clinic has worked with about 1,500 clients in the eight years it has operated, the school said. It is reportedly getting set to offer “specialized outreach” to early-stage companies in the food and beverage industry.
—Understory, a Madison-based startup that’s developing a solar-powered device to measure precipitation and collect additional weather data, was named to the THRIVE Top 50, a ranking of leading agtech companies. Understory is in the “big data and
