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Otix Global announces shareholder approval for merger with William Demant Holding

Otix Global, Inc. announced today that its shareholders voted to approve the Agreement and Plan of Merger dated September 13, 2010 between Otix and William Demant Holding A/S (WDH), as subsequently amended on October 6, 2010 and October 14, 2010 (the merger agreement).

22 Nov 2010

Omega announces expiration of Senior Notes due 2020

Omega Healthcare Investors, Inc. announced today that its offer to exchange any and all of its outstanding $200 million of 7½% Senior Notes due 2020 that were issued in a private placement in February 2010, for $200 million of 7½% Senior Notes due 2020 that have been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, expired at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on Monday, November 22, 2010.

22 Nov 2010

New law's health insurance regulations could mean rebates for consumers

Kaiser Health News staff writer Julie Appleby reports: "Millions of Americans might be eligible for rebates starting in 2012 under regulations released Monday detailing the health care law's requirement that insurers spend at least 80 percent of their revenue on direct medical care.

22 Nov 2010

Medtronic enters merger agreement to acquire Ardian

Medtronic, Inc. and privately-held Ardian, Inc. announced today that they have entered into a merger agreement whereby Medtronic will acquire Ardian.

22 Nov 2010

Soligenix receives U.S patent for modified immunogen in RiVax vaccine

Soligenix, Inc., a late-stage biopharmaceutical company, announced today that the United States Patent and Trademark Office has granted patent #7,829,668, entitled Compositions and methods for modifying toxic effects of proteinaceous compounds.

22 Nov 2010

Transparent develops new medium for Cell-able array kit to maintain metabolite activity

Transparent Inc. announced that it has developed a more advanced medium for Cell-able, a human hepatocyte array kit that has the potential to reduce drug development costs and time-to-market for pharmaceutical companies. Transparent first introduced Cell-able in the United States a year ago.

22 Nov 2010

Pope says condoms are justified in some cases to prevent HIV infection

Pope Benedict XVI says in a new book that condoms can be justified for male prostitutes seeking to stop the spread of HIV, a stunning comment for a church criticized for its opposition to condoms and for a pontiff who has blamed them for making the AIDS crisis worse, the Associated Press/Washington Post reports.

22 Nov 2010

Winston announces Phase II study results of Dolorac for chronic migraine at Lazard Conference

Winston Pharmaceuticals, Inc. a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing novel pain management therapies, announced the results of its Phase II study on its patented Dolorac Nasal Solution (doxepin 0.4%) for prophylaxis of chronic migraine at the Lazard Capital Markets 7th Annual Healthcare Conference in New York.

22 Nov 2010

New simple diagnostic tool to detect dangerous viruses

Boston University researchers have developed a simple diagnostic tool that can quickly identify dangerous viruses like Ebola and Marburg. The biosensor, which is the size of a quarter and can detect viruses in a blood sample, could be used in developing nations, airports and other places where natural or man-made outbreaks could erupt.

22 Nov 2010

HHS details health law MLR requirement: insurers must spend at least 80 percent on medical care

The medical loss ratio, also know as MLR, rule requires insurance companies to spend at least 80 cents of the premium dollar on medical care and quality. For employer plans covering more than 50 people, the requirement is 85 cents, according to The Associated Press.

22 Nov 2010

UC San Diego designated as Blue Distinction Center

UC San Diego Health System has been designated as a Blue Distinction Center for Spine Surgery and a Blue Distinction Center for Knee and Hip Replacement. This honor is awarded to medical facilities that have demonstrated expertise in delivering quality health care in certain specialty medical areas by the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

22 Nov 2010

Confidisc introduces new anti-illegal drug syringe

ConfiDisc's anti-illegal drug syringe is an integral part of its syringe injection system. The disc, which is attached to the hub of a syringe device, acts as a physical barrier.

22 Nov 2010

State roundup: Calif. stem cell research; Mass. prisons change HIV medicine procedure; Native Americans' high suicide rates

When millionaire Silicon Valley real estate developer Bob Klein launched his ballot drive to create a $3-billion state fund for stem-cell research in 2004, he pitched it as a way of taking politics out of science and focusing on cures.

22 Nov 2010

Stem cell trial for eye disease receives FDA approval

The second clinical trial involving stem cells from human embryonic cells has received the go-ahead. The news came from Advanced Cell Technology Inc. this Monday. The company announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has cleared the way for its Phase I/II trial of retinal cells for patients with Stargardt’s macular dystrophy, a childhood version of macular degeneration.

22 Nov 2010

$7.5 million Queensland diabetes action plan to roll

According to the latest $7.5 million diabetes action plan, nearly 8,000 people across the Ipswich region who are living with the disease and have not been diagnosed will be helped. Diabetes is growing at a shocking rate with more than 50 Queenslanders diagnosed with the condition every day. Diabetes Australia Queensland says more than 8,000 people in the Ipswich and West Moreton region have been diagnosed with diabetes. Another 8,000 people have the condition but remain undiagnosed.

22 Nov 2010

Australian university students a ‘stressed out’ bunch: Study

According to the latest findings the rates of serious mental illness are more than five times higher among university students than in the general population. The study conducted by researchers at University of Queensland was published in the latest issue of Australian Psychologist. It also found that rate of pyschological distress among university students is almost three times higher than in the general population.

22 Nov 2010

Supermarket steaks as good as butcher’s: Survey

A study from consumer group Choice has found that beef steaks from Australian supermarkets rate as highly as some expensive butcher cuts. Choice commissioned three butchers with a combined experience of 75 years to test steak from Aldi, Coles and Woolworths against beef from a premium and a budget butcher. They included cuts of rump, sirloin, T-bone, scotch fillets, blade and eye fillet and graded them according to colour, marbling and fat.

22 Nov 2010

Asbestos awareness important to prevent related cancer: Experts

Experts from Perth speculate Western Australia is yet to see the peak of asbestos-induced cancer, with renovators still failing to take proper precautions. According to director of the National Centre for Asbestos Related Diseases, Bruce Robinson, the next and third wave of mesothelioma patients would come out of those putting themselves and others at risk while taking on DIY home renovation projects.

22 Nov 2010

The conservative way forward on health care

The landslide Republican victory, in taking the House and electing some strong conservatives to the Senate, can be interpreted as a mandate to rein in government spending, and specifically to repeal ObamaCare, as these issues were clearly behind the large turnout. There is still a very real possibility the Supreme Court will find the “individual mandate” to buy private insurance unconstitutional. If this provision is thrown out, it’s hard to see how the law survives, since the mandate is needed to finance it.

22 Nov 2010

Is the decade long flirtation with vaccines over?

In light of increasing competition, saturation of key vaccine sectors and a lack of innovative late-stage vaccine candidates, maintaining the strong growth of the last decade will be a major challenge for the vaccines industry suggests independent market analyst, Datamonitor.

22 Nov 2010