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GeoVax Labs presents results of preclinical study on prototype HIV/AIDS vaccine at CROI

GeoVax Labs, Inc., an Atlanta-based, biopharmaceutical company developing vaccines for diseases caused by HIV-1 (Human Immunodeficiency Virus), today announced that it presented the results of a preclinical study on a prototype HIV/AIDS vaccine at the Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI) in San Francisco.

18 Feb 2010

AMICAS postpones Special Meeting of Stockholders to vote on pending merger agreement

AMICAS, Inc., a leader in image and information management solutions, today announced that it will convene and adjourn its Special Meeting of Stockholders to consider and vote on the pending merger agreement with an affiliate of Thoma Bravo, LLC.

18 Feb 2010

Dartmouth Atlas analyses of hospital spending called 'flawed'

The New York Times reports that certain hospitals, including the Mayo Clinic, are lauded "for delivering high-quality care at low costs" based on "a widely cited analysis called the Dartmouth Atlas of Health Care."

18 Feb 2010

Obama admin. to redouble campaign against insurers' rate hikes

After criticizing California insurer Anthem for raising premiums 10 days ago, Obama administration officials are preparing for more, The Washington Post reports. "Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius has scheduled a late-morning news conference, at which she is to cite half a dozen examples," where insurers have sought big rate hikes for individual coverage.

18 Feb 2010

NXT Nutritionals Holdings secures $2.35M financing

NXT Nutritionals Holdings, Inc., developer and marketer of SUSTA™ Natural Sweetener, the great tasting, all-natural, healthier sweetener, announced today that the Company has secured $2.35 million in financing through a private placement offering (the “Offering”). Proceeds from the Offering will be used for general corporate purposes and to fund further development and marketing of its SUSTA™ products.

18 Feb 2010

Rituxan, intended for patients with CLL receives FDA approval

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Rituxan (rituximab) to treat certain patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), a slowly progressing blood and bone marrow cancer.

18 Feb 2010

Highly fit MS patients perform better on tests of cognitive function than less-fit patients: Study

Highly fit multiple sclerosis patients perform significantly better on tests of cognitive function than similar less-fit patients, a new study shows.

18 Feb 2010

A selection of today's opinions and editorials

The epic of health care evolution is complex and is worth reviewing over the last five decades. Having practiced medicine in the same community in Southeast Missouri for more than 30 years, I have seen changes in health care beyond the scope of imagination (Dr. S.D. Madduri, 2/18).

18 Feb 2010

Humana schedules layoffs as insurers struggle to cut costs

Dow Jones Newswires/Wall Street Journal reports that Humana, one of the nation's largest health insurers, "said it will shed nearly 1,400 jobs, or 5% of its work force, this year" because of declines in enrollment. The company will cut a total of 2,500 jobs, but plans to hire 1,100 new employees to help with such issues as controlling medical costs and managing pharmacy benefits.

18 Feb 2010

Gen-Probe board authorizes $100M stock repurchase plan

Gen-Probe Incorporated announced today that its board of directors has authorized the repurchase of up to $100 million of the Company's common stock over the next year.

18 Feb 2010

Epeius Biotechnologies completes construction of VPU to manufacture targeted genetic medicines

Epeius Biotechnologies (www.epeiusbiotech.com) announces the completion of the design engineering and construction phase of a state-of-the-art Vector Production Unit (VPU) for the commercial manufacturing of its advanced targeted genetic medicines. In accordance with an FDA Critical Path initiative, which encourages innovation and the implementation of new technological advances in GMP, CMC, aseptic processing, and quality control, the Epeius VPU is poised to launch the large-scale production of targeted genetic medicine into the 21st century.

18 Feb 2010

Medical experts convene to discuss emotional and medical issues of young breast cancer survivors

One in eight women diagnosed with breast cancer is younger than 45 when diagnosed, yet their emotional and medical concerns are different than those of women over age 45, as is the impact of their diagnosis on family, friends, partners, colleagues and children.

18 Feb 2010

States' retiree benefits underfunded by at least $1 trillion

State governments' retiree pension and health plans are severely underfunded, according to a new report from the Pew Center on States.

18 Feb 2010

'Cadillac' tax would have non-union impact, analysis finds

"A proposed tax on high-cost ['Cadillac'] health insurance plans, an element of Democratic health-care legislation that has been strongly opposed by organized labor, would actually fall equally on nonunion plans, according to a new analysis. ... at least 80 percent of the workers whose plans would be subject to the tax in 2019 would be in nonunion jobs," according to Ken Jacobs of the University of California at Berkeley Labor Center and William H. Dow, professor of health economics at Berkeley and a member of President George W. Bush's Council of Economic Advisers.

18 Feb 2010

Anulex Technologies announces the commercial availability of Xclose Plus Tissue Repair System

Anulex Technologies, Inc., a privately held medical device manufacturer focusing on spinal disc Preservation & Anular Repair™ products, announced the commercial availability of the Xclose™ Plus Tissue Repair System at the AANS/CNS Joint Section on Disorders of the Spine and Peripheral Nerves meeting in Orlando, Florida.

18 Feb 2010

Johns Hopkins Medicine acquires Naviscan Positron Emission Mammography for radiotracer research

Johns Hopkins Medicine has become the latest academic medical center to acquire the Naviscan Positron Emission Mammography (PEM) scanner. The device will be utilized by Richard Wahl, M.D., F.A.C.R, Professor of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, in pre-clinical and translational research for the development of novel radiotracers.

18 Feb 2010

AltraVax acquires vaccine development technology package from Maxygen

AltraVax, Inc., a new, privately-held biopharmaceutical company, has acquired a vaccine development technology package from Maxygen, Inc. that gives AltraVax an exclusive license to develop vaccines for infectious diseases and is targeting influenza, a treatment for hepatitis B and HIV.

18 Feb 2010

Centene to acquire Columbia-based Carolina Crescent Health Plan

Centene Corporation today announced that its South Carolina subsidiary, Absolute Total Care, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Columbia-based Carolina Crescent Health Plan (CCHP), the state's largest non-profit Medicaid managed care organization, from University Health Services, Inc. (UHS). CCHP serves more than 40,000 Medicaid members in 46 counties across the state.

18 Feb 2010

Ear candles can cause serious injuries, warns FDA

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning consumers to steer clear of ear candles -- hollow cones that are about 10 inches long and made from a fabric tube soaked in beeswax, paraffin, or a mixture of the two.

18 Feb 2010

CryoLife discloses financial results for fourth-quarter and full-year 2009

CryoLife, Inc., an implantable biological medical device and cardiovascular tissue processing company, announced today that revenues for the fourth quarter of 2009 increased 12 percent to a quarterly record of $28.6 million compared to $25.5 million for the fourth quarter of 2008. This was the 12th consecutive quarter of profitability for the Company.

18 Feb 2010