Reactions to US Supreme Court ruling to preserve access to abortion pill
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court rejected a bid by anti-abortion groups and doctors to restrict access to the abortion pill, handing a victory on Thursday to President Joe Biden's administration in its efforts to preserve broad access ...
8h ago
US Supreme Court rules against effort to restrict access to abortion pill mifepristone
By Andrew Chung (Reuters) -The U.S. Supreme Court rejected a bid by anti-abortion groups and doctors to restrict access to the abortion pill, handing a victory on Thursday to President Joe Biden's administration in its efforts to preserve broad access ...
9h ago
AbbVie inks immune disorder drug licensing deal with China's FutureGen
(Reuters) - U.S. drugmaker AbbVie will develop and commercialize an experimental treatment for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) from China's FutureGen Biopharmaceutical under a licensing agreement, the companies said on Thursday. WHY IT'S IMPORTANT...
9h ago
High-risk health workers can get routine Ebola vaccine, says Gavi
By Jennifer Rigby LONDON (Reuters) - A global stockpile of Ebola vaccines can be used to protect frontline health workers in high-risk countries routinely, rather than just as an emergency measure during outbreaks, international vaccine group Gavi ...
11h ago
Future Pak raises cash portion of buyout offer for Vanda
(Reuters) -Contract manufacturer Future Pak said on Thursday it has raised the cash portion of its buyout offer as part of a final attempt to acquire Vanda Pharmaceuticals. It raised the portion to $8.50-$9.00 per share alongside previously proposed co...
11h ago
Moderna's next-gen COVID vaccine shows non-inferiority to its current shot
(Reuters) -Moderna said on Thursday its next-generation COVID-19 vaccine candidate met its main goal in a late-stage study by showing vaccine efficacy that was non-inferior compared with the company's commercial shot. The company has been working on mu...
13h ago
Alchem accused of pharma price fixing by EU watchdog
By Foo Yun Chee BRUSSELS (Reuters) -EU antitrust regulators has accused Indian drugmaker Alchem International of taking part in a pharmaceutical cartel to fix prices of a key ingredient, which could lead to a hefty fine for the company. The European Co...
14h ago
South Africa reports second mpox death this week
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) -A second person has died in South Africa this week from the viral infection mpox, the health ministry said on Thursday, less than 24 hours after it announced the first death. The second person who died was a 38-year-old man. He ...
18h ago
Sigma's $5.9 billion merger with Australia's Chemist Warehouse raises regulatory concerns
By Scott Murdoch and Roushni Nair SYDNEY (Reuters) -Australia's competition regulator on Thursday flagged major concerns with Sigma Healthcare's proposed merger with retailer Chemist Warehouse Group to form a A$8.8 billion ($5.9 billion) company. The A...
23h ago
Pfizer's gene therapy for a muscle-wasting disorder misses main goal of late-stage study
(Reuters) - Pfizer said on Wednesday its experimental gene therapy for a type of muscle-wasting disorder did not meet the main goal of a late-stage trial. The study's main goal was improvement in motor function among boys aged 4 to 7 years sufferin...
Jun 12, 2024
Cara Therapeutics discontinues study on a neurological condition as drug fails
(Reuters) - Cara Therapeutics said on Wednesday it will discontinue a mid-to-late stage study for a neurological condition that causes itching after its experimental drug did not demonstrate a meaningful clinical benefit compared to placebo. (Repo...
Jun 12, 2024
Two dozen companies working to find bird flu vaccine for cows, US agriculture secretary says
By Leah Douglas (Reuters) - Twenty-four companies are working to develop an avian flu vaccine for cattle, as the virus spreads among U.S. dairy herds, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack told Reuters on Wednesday. Bird flu has infected 90 dairy herds...
Jun 12, 2024
Elevance exec says Medicaid attrition has changed mix of members
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Elevance Health executive Peter Haytaian said on Wednesday that a decrease in the number of people eligible for its Medicaid plans this year, as well as changes the company made in where it operates those plans, shifted its bal...
Jun 12, 2024
Cancer victims ask court to block J&J talc bankruptcy
By Mike Spector NEW YORK (Reuters) - A group of cancer victims asked a federal judge to block Johnson & Johnson's proposed bankruptcy settlement of tens of thousands of lawsuits alleging the company's baby powder and other talc products caused thei...
Jun 12, 2024
Probiotics maker Seed Health explores $1 billion sale, sources say
By Abigail Summerville and Anirban Sen (Reuters) - The owners of Seed Health, one of the few profitable U.S. biotechnology startups, are exploring a sale of the probiotics maker that could value it at more than $1 billion, according to people famil...
Jun 12, 2024
US Southern Baptists effort to enshrine ban on women pastors falls short
By Brad Brooks (Reuters) - The Southern Baptist Convention on Wednesday fell just short of the two-thirds majority vote needed to enshrine in its constitution a ban on women as church pastors. Issues impacting women are prominent at this year's ann...
Jun 12, 2024
Biogen executive says its Alzheimer's drug will do well in market despite competition
(Reuters) - Biogen's Alzheimer's drug, Leqembi, will do well in the market, whether a competitor will come or not, a company executive said at the Goldman Sachs Global Healthcare Conference on Wednesday. (Reporting by Sriparna Roy in Bengaluru; Ed...
Jun 12, 2024
WHO says risk to public health from avian influenza A (H5N1) remains low
GENEVA (Reuters) - The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday that the risk to public health from the avian influenza A (H5N1) virus remained low despite its spread among dairy cattle in the United States. Tedros Adhanom Gheb...
Jun 12, 2024
Federal authorities say Unitedhealth can notify victims of massive data breach, WSJ reports
(Reuters) - The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on May 31 agreed to allow UnitedHealth Group to notify people whose data was exposed during a hack on its Change Healthcare unit in February, the Wall Street Journal report...
Jun 12, 2024
South Africa records first mpox death after five cases confirmed
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - A 37-year-old man has become South Africa's first recorded death from mpox after five laboratory-confirmed cases of the viral infection were recorded in the past month, the health minister said on Wednesday. The man died in...
Jun 12, 2024
WHO confirms a human case of avian influenza in India
(Reuters) - The World Health Organisation on Tuesday said a case of human infection with avian influenza A(H9N2) virus was detected in a child in West Bengal state in India. (Reporting by Urvi Dugar in Bengaluru; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
Jun 11, 2024
Merck looks for next-generation opportunities in cardiometabolic drugs
(Reuters) -Merck is focused on second- and third-generation opportunities in the cardiometabolic drugs market, which includes weight-loss treatments, the U.S. drugmaker said on Tuesday. "We think more in terms of small molecule orals, versus injectable...
Jun 11, 2024
UnitedHealth hack impacted outpatient claims for Cigna - GS conference
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Cigna's CFO Brian Evanko said the company's "outpatient dynamic" was impacted by the Change Healthcare hack which disrupted claims during the first quarter of 2024. The February ransomware attack on the largest U.S. insurer sto...
Jun 11, 2024
US Senate panel to weigh Novo Nordisk subpoena over Ozempic, Wegovy prices
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate health panel said on Tuesday it would vote later this month on whether to subpoena Novo Nordisk over the high U.S. prices for weight loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy compared to those offered in other countries. ...
Jun 11, 2024
Data from all-civilian crew details health effects of space travel
By Will Dunham WASHINGTON (Reuters) - When pediatric cancer survivor Hayley Arceneaux and a trio of crewmates spent three days in space in 2021 as part of SpaceX's Inspiration4 mission, they made history not only as the first all-civilian team to o...
Jun 11, 2024