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Health overhaul skirmishes simmer over government fliers, drug benefits

Republicans are complaining that, while the IRS sent out 4 million fliers to publicize $40 billion in tax credits for small businesses, the agency did not make a similar effort to inform tanning salons and their customers about a new 10 percent tax on their services, Politico reports.

14 Jun 2010

Cytori Therapeutics enters $20 million secured loan facility

Cytori Therapeutics entered into a $20 million secured loan facility from GE Capital, Healthcare Financial Services, Oxford Finance Corporation, and Silicon Valley Bank. The loan funded June 14, 2010.

14 Jun 2010

First hospital in Mexico to use GORE HELEX Septal Occluder for transcatheter closure of ASD

W. L. Gore & Associates (Gore) today announced that Instituto Nacional De Cardiologia in Mexico City, Mexico, is the first hospital in the country to use the GORE® HELEX Septal Occluder for the transcatheter closure of an atrial septal defect (ASD). Department Chief, Dr. Carlos Zabal and Dr. Jose Garcia Montes of the Instituto Nacional de Cardiologia, in Mexico City, achieved the milestone procedure in March, 2010.

14 Jun 2010

Health reform continue to dominate campaigns

After voting "no" on the health reform bill earlier this year, Rep. John Barrow, D-Ga., has gotten significantly less support from colleagues than he did in previous re-election bids, The Hill reports. "Only five lawmakers ... have given money from their personal campaign funds to Barrow in the 2010 cycle. Five other elected Dems gave money to Barrow through their leadership political action committees."

14 Jun 2010

Fluorescent cancerous tumors for early detection

Researchers at the Ecole Polytechnique F-d-rale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland have established a procedure where cancerous tumors in the bladder become fluorescent and are more easily discoverable under blue light. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the technique- already in practice in Europe - for the American market. Under the name Cysview-, the product is commercialized by Photocure and GE Healthcare as the most efficient detection technique for early stage bladder cancer.

14 Jun 2010

Desert Medical Imaging to implement XIFIN's revenue cycle management system

XIFIN Inc., the leading provider of revenue cycle management for diagnostic service providers, announced today that Desert Medical Imaging, (DMI) a multi-modality diagnostic imaging center located in Indian Wells, CA, has selected XIFIN's revenue cycle management system to optimize and help manage its expanding imaging and radiology billing and claims management needs.

14 Jun 2010

AMA's support for health law sparks infighting

A fissure has developed in the American Medical Association, the powerful physicians' lobby that backed the health reform bill earlier this year, about support for the sweeping measure, according to news reports.

14 Jun 2010

Asterand subsidiary BioSeek signs agreement with Amylin

Asterand plc, a leading provider of human tissue and human tissue-based research services to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies engaged in drug discovery, today announces that its subsidiary BioSeek, LLC, a pioneer in the application of predictive human biology to drug discovery, has signed a one-year collaboration agreement with Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

14 Jun 2010

New path involving "innocent spectators" to defeat systemic sclerosis

There is a new path to defeat systemic sclerosis, also called scleroderma because of the hardening of the skin of the patients (from Greek skleros, "hard", and derma, "skin"). This path involves the B-cell of the immune system, so far only considered "innocent spectators," as Catholic University rheumatologist Gianfranco Ferraccioli, among the authors of the important research, puts it.

14 Jun 2010

Today's Opinions: Medicare advantage to shrink; Insurers anti-trust protection; Health law regulations; The need for maternity leave

In the long run, there's no getting around the fact that Advantage plans will shrink in generosity and availability (Austin Frakt, 6/14).

14 Jun 2010

UCB announces availability of Vimpat oral solution formulation

UCB today announced the availability of an oral solution formulation of Vimpat- (lacosamide) C-V, an antiepileptic drug (AED) for add-on treatment of partial-onset seizures in people with epilepsy age 17 years and older. Vimpat 10 mg/mL solution is now available in U.S. pharmacies.

14 Jun 2010

Ingen Technologies' new SMART Nasal Cannula unveiled at Alpha-1 19th National Education Conference

Ingen Technologies, Inc., a medical device manufacturer with an emerging new medical product line for the respiratory market worth an estimated $4 billion in the U.S. and $8 billion globally, unveiled their new SMART Nasal Cannula in Orlando-Florida last week at the Alpha-1 19th Annual National Education Conference.

14 Jun 2010

UMC introduces new software certification program for WHO Drug Dictionary Enhanced

Uppsala Monitoring Centre, a Collaborating Centre to the World Health Organisation and the global intelligence network for benefits and risk in medicinal products, today officially launches a software certification program that helps software developers integrate the WHO Drug Dictionary Enhanced quickly and easily.

14 Jun 2010

MultiCell retains CDSS to manage MCT-125 Phase IIb clinical trial for PMSF in UK

MultiCell Technologies, Inc. has retained Clinical Development & Support Services, Ltd. (CDSS) of Cheshire, England to manage its planned Phase IIb clinical trial in the United Kingdom for MCT-125, the Company's lead drug candidate for treatment of primary multiple sclerosis-related fatigue (PMSF).

14 Jun 2010

Phase Forward Central Coding application achieves UMC's new certification

Phase Forward, a leading provider of data management solutions for clinical trials and drug safety, today announced its Central Coding™ application has become the first product to achieve certification by the Uppsala Monitoring Center (UMC). Launched today ("Uppsala Monitoring Centre Launches Software Certification Program for WHO Drug Dictionary Enhanced"), UMC's new certification is designed to help software developers quickly and easily integrate the WHO Drug Dictionary Enhanced.

14 Jun 2010

Programs try cash incentives to get forgetful patients to take meds

The New York Times reports on a new approach to getting patients to take their medications consistently: financial incentives. "One-third to one-half of all patients do not take medication as prescribed, and up to one-quarter never fill prescriptions at all, experts say. Such lapses fuel more than $100 billion dollars in health costs annually because those patients often get sicker. Now, a controversial, and seemingly counterintuitive, effort to tackle the problem is gaining ground: paying people money to take medicine or to comply with prescribed treatment."

14 Jun 2010

MP Biomedicals to acquire ICPbio International

MP Biomedicals LLC announced today that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire the assets of ICPbio International LTD., an Auckland, New Zealand based protein biologics manufacturing company, subject to normal closing adjustments. This acquisition places MP Biomedicals in a strong position to pursue sales and distribution of serum protein products used in research and manufacturing in the Biopharmaceutical, In vitro diagnostic and Biotech sectors.

From MP Biomedicals, LLC 14 Jun 2010

Esperion, Cleveland Clinic collaborate to research new HDL therapies for cardiovascular disease

Esperion Therapeutics, a privately held biopharmaceutical company working to discover, develop and commercialize treatments for cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, today announced the establishment of a collaborative research agreement with Cleveland Clinic, one of the world's leading academic medical centers. The collaboration will work to advance research targeting new HDL therapies to treat cardiovascular disease.

14 Jun 2010

Coastal Contacts second-quarter sales up 12% to record $37.3 million

Coastal Contacts Inc. today announced its financial results for the second fiscal quarter, period ended April 30, 2010.

14 Jun 2010

Upsher-Smith commences global USL255 Phase III clinical trial for management of epilepsy

Upsher-Smith Laboratories, Inc. today announced the initiation of a global Phase III clinical trial for USL255 (extended-release topiramate), an internally developed program for the management of epilepsy in adults, using the company's proprietary formulation technology. USL255 is designed to provide convenient once-daily dosing and reduce fluctuations in topiramate blood levels observed with currently available topiramate options.

14 Jun 2010