Wegovy users have less kidney-related health problems, analysis of Novo study finds
By Maggie Fick LONDON (Reuters) - Novo Nordisk's Wegovy obesity drug reduced adverse kidney-related events by 22% in overweight and obese people in a large study, according to a new analysis the Danish drugmaker published on Saturday. The analysis,...
May 25, 2024
Explainer-What does Louisiana's new abortion pill law mean for patients?
By Ahmed Aboulenein and Brendan Pierson (Reuters) - The Louisiana Senate's vote on Thursday to reclassify the two drugs used in medication abortion as controlled substances marks the latest development in a nationwide battle over abortion pills. He...
May 25, 2024
Louisiana governor signs bill classifying abortion pills as controlled substances
(Reuters) - Louisiana's governor on Friday signed a bill making his state the first in the U.S. to classify two abortion-inducing medications as controlled substances, a category that healthcare regulators typically reserve for drugs that may be ab...
May 24, 2024
US FDA panel votes against use of Novo Nordisk's weekly insulin in type 1 diabetes patients
(Reuters) - A panel of independent experts to the U.S. health regulator on Friday voted against the use of Novo Nordisk's weekly insulin in patients with type 1 diabetes due to risks of low blood sugar. The Food and Drug Administration's panel vote...
May 24, 2024
US restricts import of certain poultry from Australia state on bird flu concerns
(Reuters) - The U.S. is restricting the import of certain poultry and byproducts from Victoria, Australia after determining that avian influenza in domestic birds, the Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service said on F...
May 24, 2024
Novavax awaits FDA decision on whether its next COVID shot can be offered in US
By Michael Erman (Reuters) - Novavax will only be able to offer a COVID-19 vaccine in the United States this autumn if regulators accept the shot it has started manufacturing that targets a variant that was dominant earlier this year, the company s...
May 24, 2024
Raw milk containing bird flu virus infects mice in study
(Reuters) - Feeding raw milk contaminated with bird flu to mice infected them with the virus, adding to evidence that consumption of unpasteurized milk is not safe for humans, according to a study published on Friday in the New England Journal of M...
May 24, 2024
Emcure, HDT settle legal fight over COVID vaccine technology
By Blake Brittain (Reuters) - Indian generic drugmaker Emcure Pharmaceuticals and U.S. vaccine developer HDT Bio have settled allegations that Emcure stole HDT trade secrets during their joint work on a COVID-19 shot, the companies said in a press ...
May 24, 2024
Lilly invests further $5.3 billion in new Indiana site as obesity drug demand soars
By Patrick Wingrove (Reuters) - Eli Lilly said on Friday it has invested another $5.3 billion in its new Lebanon, Indiana manufacturing plant, more than doubling its previous investment, as it scrambles to meet soaring demand for its weight-loss a...
May 24, 2024
Novo Nordisk's Ozempic slows diabetic kidney disease progression in trial
By Nancy Lapid (Reuters) - Novo Nordisk's Ozempic slowed the worsening of kidney dysfunction in patients with type 2 diabetes and lowered the risk of kidney failure, heart problems, stroke and death, according to detailed results from a late-stage ...
May 24, 2024
UK's Sunak confirms anti-smoking plan will not become law before election
LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's plan to ban smoking for younger generations will not become law after he called a snap election leaving no time to push through one of his flagship policies. "The smoking ban, of course, disap...
May 24, 2024
Explainer-What are the FLiRT COVID variants and are they more contagious?
By Michael Erman NEW YORK (Reuters) - The so-called FLiRT variants of SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus that cause COVID-19 have been the dominant forms of the virus circulating this year globally, according to the World Health Organization The moniker FLiRT ...
May 24, 2024
Explainer-How the World Health Organization could fight future pandemics
By Emma Farge and Jennifer Rigby GENEVA (Reuters) - Health officials from the 194 member states of the World Health Organization (WHO) hope next week to complete more than two years of negotiations on new rules for responding to pandemics when they...
May 24, 2024
Louisiana lawmakers vote to reclassify abortion pills as controlled substances
By Steve Gorman and Brad Brooks (Reuters) - The Louisiana Senate gave final legislative approval on Thursday to a bill that would make the state the first in the U.S. to reclassify two abortion-inducing drugs as controlled substances that carry the...
May 24, 2024
US CDC warns of multi-state salmonella outbreak linked to backyard poultry
(Reuters) - The U.S. Centers for Disease Control said on Thursday that public health officials are investigating multi-state outbreaks of salmonella linked to contact with backyard poultry. The CDC said that 109 people from 29 states have gotten si...
May 23, 2024
U.S. FDA advisers back approval for Guardant's blood-based cancer test
By Puyaan Singh and Leroy Leo (Reuters) -Advisers to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday recommended for the approval of Guardant Health's blood test to detect a cancer that begins in the colon or rectum. The panel voted seven-to-two in ...
May 23, 2024
CVS seeks private equity funding for Oak Street Health, Bloomberg reports
(Reuters) -CVS Health Corp has been seeking a private equity partner to fund growth at Oak Street Health, a primary care provider it bought a year ago, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday. The company has been working with financial advisers to help fi...
May 23, 2024
EU reports no bird flu cases in humans or cows as virus spreads in US
By Sybille de La Hamaide PARIS (Reuters) - There have been no reports in the European Union of bird flu infecting a human or cow but research is ongoing on the virus's transmission, an EU official said on Thursday, one day after U.S. officials conf...
May 23, 2024
Zantac not a cause of woman's cancer, jury says in first trial over drug
By Diana Novak Jones CHICAGO (Reuters) - A jury in Chicago on Thursday rejected an Illinois woman's claim that the now discontinued heartburn drug Zantac caused her colon cancer, in the first trial out of thousands of lawsuits making similar allega...
May 23, 2024
Tobacco industry aims to hook new generation on vapes, WHO says
LONDON (Reuters) -Tobacco companies still actively target young people via social media, sports and music festivals and new, flavoured products, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday, accusing companies of trying to hook a new generation...
May 23, 2024
UK's anti-smoking laws could be lost in pre-election parliamentary rush
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's proposed law to ban smoking for younger generations could be shelved after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called a surprise election, putting one of his flagship policies in jeopardy as there is only limited time for bills ...
May 23, 2024
Australia reports new avian flu case at poultry farm
SINGAPORE (Reuters) - A new case of highly pathogenic avian influenza has been detected at a poultry farm in Australia's southeastern Victoria state, officials said on Thursday, a day after the country reported its first human case of the virus and...
May 23, 2024
Thailand plans to require permits for medical, research use of cannabis
BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand plans to relist cannabis as a narcotic and issue permits only to those who grow and use it for medical purposes and research, Public Health Minister Somsak Thepsutin said on social media on Thursday. The comments follow...
May 23, 2024
Medtronic beats quarterly profit estimates on medical devices strength
(Reuters) -Health tech firm Medtronic beat Wall Street estimates for quarterly profit and revenue on Thursday, as a post-pandemic pickup in surgical volumes at hospitals boosted demand for its medical devices. Medtronic joins medical device makers such...
May 23, 2024
Many US dairy workers yet to receive protective gear for bird flu
By Tom Polansek and Heather Schlitz CHICAGO (Reuters) - Many U.S. dairy farms have not yet increased health protections against bird flu for employees during an outbreak in cows, according to workers, activists and farmers, worrying health experts ...
May 23, 2024