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Test vote on health bill for Ground Zero workers expected today

The Wall Street Journal: Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., "is trying to find one additional Republican senator to vote for a $7.4 billion" health care bill for Ground Zero workers. The bill would "re-open a victim-compensation fund and provide 10 years of health tracking and treatment for those who have become sick from exposure to the toxic dust and debris of the World Trade Center site. A test vote on the bill is expected Wednesday" (Barrett, 12/6).

8 Dec 2010

BioMimetic Therapeutics to assess safety, clinical utility of Augment Rotator Cuff Graft

BioMimetic Therapeutics, Inc. today announced it initiated enrollment in a pilot clinical trial to assess the safety and clinical utility of AugmentTM Rotator Cuff Graft for the repair of large rotator cuff tears. The randomized, controlled pilot trial is expected to include enrollment of up to 30 patients.

8 Dec 2010

Proactive therapies may prove to avert stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation

One evening last March, Larry Ambrose left his bed in the middle of the night to check the time. Much to the 71-year-old's surprise, he was only able to see three out of the four glowing numbers on the digital clock in his kitchen. Ambrose returned to bed, but within days was hospitalized for what was later diagnosed as a stroke. After extensive testing, his physicians told him they could not determine the cause.

8 Dec 2010

AMR begins nationwide initiative to implement Stryker-PRO XT powered stretchers

In an effort to further improve patient care and reduce lifting injuries, American Medical Response has started a nationwide initiative to replace its manual stretchers with state-of-the-art Stryker-PRO XT powered stretchers in every community it serves.

From Stryker 8 Dec 2010

Diabetes has negative impact on women's sex lives

Almost half of women in the US who suffer from Type 1 or 2 diabetes report that it has a negative impact on their sex lives, according to a new study released today by MicroMass Communications, Inc., a leader in behavioral marketing in the healthcare industry. The research, which highlighted the need for improved education and support to help women build confidence in their ability to overcome the challenges of the disease, was conducted with a representative sample of more than 800 women with diabetes.

8 Dec 2010

Alexza Pharmaceuticals to meet with FDA to discuss CRL regarding its NDA for AZ-004

Alexza Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today that the Company has scheduled an End-of Review meeting with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in December to discuss the Complete Response Letter regarding the Company's New Drug Application for AZ-004 (Staccato loxapine).

8 Dec 2010

N.Y. charges 33 with selling prescriptions to dealers

The Associated Press: Thirty-three people have been charged in Buffalo, N.Y., "in a large-scale investigation that has opened a window into an emerging class of suppliers in the illicit drug trade: medical patients, including many who rely on the publicly funded Medicaid program to pay for their appointments and prescriptions" who sell their prescription drugs.

8 Dec 2010

Conn. addresses insurance rates, Mass. physician groups evaluate controversial payment plan

"House and Senate leaders are eyeing passage of a second midyear spending bill before the start of the next legislative session to address more caseload-driven accounts that are running short on funds five months after Gov. Deval Patrick signed the fiscal 2011 budget. The deficiencies, which follow inaccurate enrollment estimates for MassHealth and other social service programs, threaten to eat into some the revenue surpluses the state has amassed over the first half of fiscal 2011, when tax receipts have exceeded projections" (Murphy, 12/7).

8 Dec 2010

FDA Advisory Committee votes in favor of Orexigen's Contrave for treatment of obesity

Orexigen® Therapeutics, Inc. and Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee voted 13 to 7 that the available data adequately demonstrate that the potential benefits of Contrave® (naltrexone sustained release (SR)/bupropion SR) outweigh the potential risks when used long-term in a population of overweight and obese individuals and support approval.

8 Dec 2010

QLT's oral synthetic retinoid granted orphan drug designation for treatment of Leber Congenital Amaurosis

QLT Inc. today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted orphan drug designation for QLT091001, its oral synthetic retinoid, for the treatment of Leber Congenital Amaurosis (LCA). LCA is an inherited progressive retinal degenerative disease that leads to retinal dysfunction and visual impairment beginning at birth. QLT091001 is an orally administered synthetic retinoid replacement for 11-cis-retinal, which is a key biochemical component of the visual retinoid cycle.

8 Dec 2010

Smoking is more prevalent in French women than male counterparts

The prevalence of smoking and exposure to tobacco smoke among men in France has fallen by more than 15 per cent since the mid 1980s, but over the same 20-year period has increased among women.

8 Dec 2010

Texas health officials confronting Medicaid costs

"The biggest culprit in Texas' growing debate over escalating Medicaid costs" is "[a] mathematical formula that calculates how much the federal government pays and what's left over for the state," Kaiser Health News, in collaboration with The Texas Tribune, reports. "Already facing a record budget shortfall, Texas' Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) will drop more than 2 percentage points in late 2011, equivalent to a $1.2 billion hit."

8 Dec 2010

Researchers synthesize wound-healing peptides

Newly-created bioactive peptides promote wound healing through the growth of new blood vessels and epithelial tissue, such as skin. These wound-healing peptides, synthesized by researchers at the Tufts Center for Innovations in Wound Healing Research, increased angiogenesis in vitro by 200 percent.

8 Dec 2010

Swissmedic authorizes Phase I/II clinical trial of human neural stem cells for chronic spinal cord injury

A therapy developed by Aileen Anderson and Brian Cummings of UC Irvine's Sue and Bill Gross Stem Cell Research Center in collaboration with researchers at StemCells Inc. will be the basis of the world's first clinical trial using human neural stem cells to treat spinal cord injury.

8 Dec 2010

FDA grants QLT's QLT091001 orphan drug designation for treatment of Retinitis Pigmentosa

QLT Inc. today announced that QLT091001, the Company's oral synthetic retinoid, has been granted orphan drug designation for the treatment of Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This follows the FDA grant of orphan drug designation for QLT091001 for the treatment of Leber Congenital Amaurosis (LCA) also on December 7, 2010.

8 Dec 2010

Some in health industry raising concerns about Accountable Care Organizations

CQ HealthBeat: "The medical device industry told the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that it's concerned about whether accountable care organizations could give providers financial incentives to hold back on needed patient care, particularly on technology. Meanwhile, insurance plan executives warned CMS officials that the ACOs could give hospitals and doctors new bargaining leverage in negotiations with insurers.

8 Dec 2010

NIH awards Scripps Research $2.35M to study new treatment for obesity

The Scripps Research Institute has been awarded a $2.35 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to study a new way of treating obesity as part of a national consortium with the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

8 Dec 2010

Concentrated nicotine in E-cigarattes poses unknown risks to consumers

What do some pesticides and "electronic cigarettes" have in common? According to a new report published in the American Journal of Public Health, the answer is unregulated concentrations of nicotine that may pose unknown risks to consumers who are exposed to them.

8 Dec 2010

Military health costs skyrocket

CNNMoney: "The cost of health care is blowing the top off the Pentagon's budget. Mirroring the private sector trend, expenses have skyrocketed within the military's health system. The military spent $19 billion on health care in 2001 — and $49 billion in 2010. The Department of Defense forecasts a continued rise of 5% to 7% a year.

8 Dec 2010

One Lambda, Luminex renew 10-year human leukocyte antigen technology development partnership

One Lambda Inc., a leading manufacturer and supplier of quality products and technology for the HLA transplant community, and Luminex Corporation have agreed to a long-term renewal of their 10-year strategic partnership aimed at developing platforms and technologies for human leukocyte antigen (HLA).

From Luminex 8 Dec 2010

Medical News

Test vote on health bill for Ground Zero workers expected today

BioMimetic Therapeutics to assess safety, clinical utility of Augment Rotator Cuff Graft

Proactive therapies may prove to avert stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation

AMR begins nationwide initiative to implement Stryker-PRO XT powered stretchers

Diabetes has negative impact on women's sex lives

Alexza Pharmaceuticals to meet with FDA to discuss CRL regarding its NDA for AZ-004

N.Y. charges 33 with selling prescriptions to dealers

Conn. addresses insurance rates, Mass. physician groups evaluate controversial payment plan

FDA Advisory Committee votes in favor of Orexigen's Contrave for treatment of obesity

QLT's oral synthetic retinoid granted orphan drug designation for treatment of Leber Congenital Amaurosis

Smoking is more prevalent in French women than male counterparts

Texas health officials confronting Medicaid costs

Researchers synthesize wound-healing peptides

Swissmedic authorizes Phase I/II clinical trial of human neural stem cells for chronic spinal cord injury

FDA grants QLT's QLT091001 orphan drug designation for treatment of Retinitis Pigmentosa

Some in health industry raising concerns about Accountable Care Organizations

NIH awards Scripps Research $2.35M to study new treatment for obesity

Concentrated nicotine in E-cigarattes poses unknown risks to consumers

Military health costs skyrocket

One Lambda, Luminex renew 10-year human leukocyte antigen technology development partnership

Advancing brain microphysiological systems (bMPS)

PhD researcher at LifeArc

Unveiling Hidden Potential: Organoids for Disease Modeling in Neuroscience Research

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