Reuters - Health Report

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Friday, September 29, 2017

Senators close to bipartisan deal on health exchanges: Schumer

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two U.S. senators from both parties are close to finalizing a bipartisan deal to shore up the health insurance exchanges created under Obamacare, the chamber's top Democrat said on Thursday.

Roche's Perjeta regimen gets FDA priority review in breast cancer

ZURICH (Reuters) - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted priority review for Roche's Perjeta in combination with Herceptin and chemotherapy for treating HER2-positive early breast cancer after surgery, Roche said on Friday.

Illinois Republican governor signs controversial abortion bill

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Illinois Republican Governor Bruce Rauner signed a controversial bill into law on Thursday to expand state-funded coverage of abortions for low-income residents on Medicaid and state employees.

Washington state sues OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma

(Reuters) - Washington state on Thursday sued OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma LP, becoming the latest state or local government to file a lawsuit seeking to hold pharmaceutical companies accountable for a national opioid addiction epidemic.

A single genetic glitch may explain how Zika became so dangerous

CHICAGO (Reuters) - A single genetic change that occurred in 2013 may explain how Zika acquired the ability to attack fetal nerve cells, causing a severe birth defect in babies whose mothers were infected while pregnant, Chinese and U.S. researchers reported on Thursday.

WHO tells governments to reject Philip Morris-funded smoking foundation

GENEVA (Reuters) - The World Health Organization told governments on Thursday not to get involved in a foundation funded by tobacco firm Philip Morris International to look at ways of reducing the harm from smoking.

Makers of fast-acting opioids will have to pay for training: FDA

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Makers of fast-acting opioids will have to fund voluntary training for healthcare professionals who prescribe the drugs, including education on safe prescribing practices and non-opioid alternatives, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said on Thursday.

AbbVie, Amgen settlement sets Humira U.S. biosimilar launch for 2023

(Reuters) - Amgen Inc has reached a settlement with AbbVie Inc that will delay the U.S. launch of Amgen's cheaper biosimilar version of AbbVie's cash cow, the blockbuster rheumatoid arthritis drug Humira, until Jan. 31, 2023, the companies said on Thursday.

PTC Therapeutics Duchenne drug may work, data inconclusive: FDA panel

(Reuters) - PTC Therapeutics Inc's experimental drug to treat Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a devastating degenerative disease that mostly affects young boys, may work but the company will need to do more work to prove it, an advisory panel to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration concluded on Thursday.

Trial data suggest new typhoid shot could halve infection rate

LONDON (Reuters) - A new typhoid vaccine developed by privately-held Bharat Biotech proved safe and highly immunogenic in a study and could be used to prevent millions of infections if it succeeds in final-stage clinical trials, researchers said on Friday.