Abbott (NYSE:ABT) said this month that it’s maintaining the worldwide halt on implantations of the Nanostim leadless pacemaker made by its St. Jude Medical subsidiary after reports surfaced of problems with the device’s docking button. The 3.6mm docking button is designed to allow the Nanostim device to be retrieved after implantation; it’s meant to connect with the […]
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Sanofi touts head-to-head comparison of long-acting insulin products
Sanofi‘s (NYSE:SNY) long-acting insulin glargine, Toujeo, met the primary objective of a head-to-head trial comparing it to Novo Nordisk‘s (NYSE:NVO) insulin degludec, Tresiba, the company reported today. The insulin-maker said it plans to report full results from the Bright trial sometime next year. The study’s primary objective was to determine if Toujeo had a similar effect […]
CVS Health to buy Aetna in $69B merger
CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) plans to buy health insurer Aetna (NYSE:AET) in a $69 billion merger, according to a report from The New York Times. The deal comes as companies like Amazon (NSDQ:AMZN), which is reportedly trying to launch into the pharmacy business, are looking to change the way that consumers interact with the healthcare industry. Get the full story at our sister […]
TPG Capital adds $108m to Exactech price
Exactech (NSDQ:EXAC) said today that TPG Capital raised its go-private bid for the orthopedics company by some $108 million, or more than 17%. TPG in October offered $42 per share for the Gainesville, Fla.-based company, for a valuation of about $625 million. Today Exactech said TPG raised the bid 17.3% to $49.25 per share, which would put the […]
Novocure nabs reimbursement for Optune in Japan
Novocure (NSDQ:NVCR) shares were up this morning after the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare agreed to reimburse for Optune as a treatment for newly-diagnosed glioblastoma. The Optune device delivers low-intensity, intermediate frequency, alternating electric fields, called “Tumor Treating Fields,” to inhibit cancer cell replication. As a treatment for newly-diagnosed glioblastoma, Novocure combines its device with the […]
Smith & Nephew deals topical anesthetic gel to Alliance Pharma
Alliance Pharma (LON:APH) has acquired the rights to Smith & Nephew‘s (NYSE:SNN) anesthetic gel Ametop for $7.5 million, according to the specialty pharmaceutical company. The product, which Smith & Nephew has been selling in the U.K., Ireland, New Zealand and Canada for at least 10 years, is designed to numb a patient’s skin before an injection. Get the […]
FDA’s Gottlieb updates on Puerto Rico and medical product shortages
FDA commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb provided an update today to the work that the agency is doing to help medical device manufacturers in Puerto Rico in the weeks following Hurricanes Irma and Maria. The FDA chief noted that even though some major medical product manufacturers have regained power, many firms continue to run on generator […]
Report: HeartFlow’s estimated $150m Series E would make it medtech’s latest unicorn
A reported Series E round for HeartFlow, estimated at $150 million, would value the company at more than $1 billion, vaulting it into unicorn territory. Redwood City, Calif.-based HeartFlow’s FFRct technology works by taking the data from a standard CT scan and applying algorithms that result in a color-coded 3D “map” detailing the changes in flow across […]
Flexion CEO: Setting Zilretta up to succeed with a history lesson
Locally acting therapies are like a religion to Flexion Therapeutics (NSDQ:FLXN) co-founder & CEO Dr. Mike Clayman, who spent decades at Eli Lilly (NYSE:LLY) with the company’s co-founder, Dr. Neil Bodick, watching promising compounds fail in late-stage trials on the heels of unanticipated safety results. “That’s part of the reason, not the whole reason but part of the reason, […]
Medicare finalizes cuts to value-based healthcare programs
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services yesterday finalized cuts to a trio of bundled payment pilot programs aimed at lowering healthcare costs and improving outcomes. The federal health insurer cut the Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement Model, or CJR, effectively in half, from 67 geographic areas participating to 34, meaning about 470 hospital participants instead of 800. […]
Siemens plans Frankfurt listing for Healthineers business that could fetch $12B
Siemens (NYSE:SI) said this week that it’s planning to list its healthcare business on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange during the first half of 2018 in an initial public offering that could fetch nearly $12 billion. Siemens Healthineers, the German industrial conglomerate’s largest and most profitable division, is worth roughly $47.49 billion (€40 billion). The company plans […]