Healthcare reform laws decrease costs for retirees. Some medical costs have fallen this year thanks to new health care reform laws, according to a report by the Employee Benefit Research Institute, Reuters reports.
Electronic Medical Records drive PE investment. Health IT companies are attracting the attention of private-equity investors, according to The Wall Street Journal‘s Private Equity Beat blog.
Minnesota’s congressional delegation rallies behind medical device makers. A bipartisan group of Minnesota Senators and congress are raising concern about proposed changes to the Food & Drug Administration’s 510(k) approval process for medical devices, according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
Healthcare reform demands sacrifices. Efforts to rein in rapidly rising healthcare costs will require new team-based payment and delivery approaches, which would demand sacrifices from hospitals, doctors and insurers, according to The Boston Globe.
Anacor goes IPO. Palo Alto, California, small molecule therapeutics company Anacor Pharmaceuticals Inc. raised $70 million ($64.2 million, net of expenses) through its $5-a-share IPO on Tuesday — a far cry from the $16-to-$18 per share the company initially expected to raise.
Nurses’ union blasts Obama wage freeze. National Nurses United, whose 160,000 registered-nurse members include 7,000 Veterans Affairs RNs, blasted President Obama’s announcement of a two-year wage freeze for all nonmilitary federal workers, according to ModernHealthcare.
New Merck head promises innovation. Kenneth C. Frazier, named Tuesday as chief executive officer of Merck & Co., the second-biggest U.S. drug maker, vowed to develop innovative products and increase sales in emerging markets in his new post, Bloomberg Businessweek reports.
Synthes guilty of bone cement charges. West Chester, Pennsylvania, medical-device manufacturer Synthes Inc. and its Norian Corp. subsidiary pleaded guilty Tuesday to charges of illegally experimenting with a bone cement on patients’ spines and will pay fines totaling $23.2 million, The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
Novartis cutting jobs, too. Swiss drug company Novartis Pharmaceuticals will cut 1,400 jobs out of its U.S. General Medicines business by Jan. 1 “to reflect changes in the product portfolio and align resources with strategic growth priorities,” according to Yahoo News. Two weeks ago, competing Swiss drug maker Roche said it would cut 4,800 jobs worldwide.
Material from MedCity News was used in this report.
