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Massachusetts may require colleges to insure students; Hawaii plans to opt out of health overhaul

News outlets report on a proposal in Massachusetts to require colleges and universities to insure students, an insurer in Massachusetts that is expected to try to alter the "fee for service" model and a plan in Hawaii to opt out of the national health care overhaul.

30 Nov 2009

The Senate health bill: Seven things you didn't know were in it

Kaiser Health News staff writers Mary Agnes Carey, Phil Galewitz and Laurie McGinley team up to look inside the Senate's pending health overhaul legislation. "Pay attention: The "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act" -- better known as the Senate health care overhaul bill - is chock full of interesting but little publicized provisions affecting consumers.

30 Nov 2009

GLUMETZA patent infringement lawsuit against Lupin

Depomed, Inc. today announced that it has filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California against Lupin Limited and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Lupin Pharmaceuticals, Inc., for infringement of the patents listed in the Orange Book for GLUMETZA® (metformin hydrochloride extended release tablets).

30 Nov 2009

Details of the policies inside the Senate's health overhaul bill

Hot-button provisions in the Senate health Bill, such as the public option, cost controls and subsidies to expand coverage continue to get a lot of attention, while some interesting details have gone with little notice.

30 Nov 2009

Clinical trials of personalised vaccines to fight glioblastomas

The University of Navarra Hospital has launched a series of clinical trials in order to assess the efficacy of an immunotherapy treatment. This approach involves the application of personalised vaccines —produced from healthy and tumour cells from the patient him or herself— and designed to combat glioblastomas, one of the most aggressive and frequent malignant tumours.

30 Nov 2009

Medical identity theft is on the rise

"Medical identity theft is on the rise and expected to worsen," The Wall Street Journal reports. "The problem has grown during the recession as more uninsured people use the coverage of a friend, relative or even a stranger to get care. Of particular concern is the fact that most of the fraud is committed by people who pay medical workers for patients' information."

30 Nov 2009

QRxPharma commences Phase 3 pivotal trial of MoxDuo IR

QRxPharma Limited announced today, as part of its Phase 3 program, the initiation of a registration (also called pivotal) trial (Study 008) comparing efficacy and safety profiles of MoxDuo(TM)IR against component doses of morphine and oxycodone alone for the management of moderate to severe post-operative pain following bunionectomy surgery. The Company expects to complete dosing by close of Q2 2010.

30 Nov 2009

Today's selection of opinions and editorials

As things stand, it's a wonder that so many people are fighting so much over something so toothless (11/30).

30 Nov 2009

Global CRO PRA International achieves Rave Accredited Plus status in the ASPire to Win program

Medidata Solutions, a leading global provider of hosted clinical development solutions, today announced that PRA International, a global clinical research organization (CRO), has achieved Rave Accredited Plus status in the ASPire to Win® program for CROs and other service providers.

30 Nov 2009

Europe may offer lessons for health care rationing debate

Fears about rationing are a hot-button issue in the health care debate, but some health experts argue that the U.S. system already faces rationing. Others point out that the U.S. may look to Europe for examples of how private-market systems can cost less without raising concerns of rationing care.

30 Nov 2009

Tripep completes phase I clinical study of its ChronVac-C hepatitis C virus DNA vaccine

Inovio Biomedical Corporation, a leader in DNA vaccine design, development and delivery, announced today that its partner Tripep AB of Sweden has completed its phase I clinical study of its ChronVac-C hepatitis C virus DNA vaccine delivered using Inovio’s electroporation technology.

30 Nov 2009

Pharmacists could play important role in reform

Pharmacists may play an important role in the health care system by filling in health care gaps and advising patients, according to a series of articles in The Los Angeles Times, which reports on one clinical pharmacist Steven Chen and the "Patient Safety and Clinical Pharmacy Services Collaborative, a national project under the Health Resources and Services Administration that is working to integrate clinical pharmacy services into the care of patients with chronic diseases.

30 Nov 2009

BioMarin Pharmaceutical receives FDA orphan drug designation for 3,4-DAP

BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. announced today that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted orphan drug designation for 3,4-diaminopyridine (3,4-DAP), amifampridine phosphate, for the rare autoimmune disease Lambert Eaton Myasthenic Syndrome (LEMS). 3,4-DAP has previously received orphan drug designation in the E.U.

30 Nov 2009

Medicare prescription drug plan premiums to average 11 percent rise in 2010

Premiums for Medicare Part D plans will rise an average of 11 percent next year, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. The cost for all Medicare prescription plans has increased 50 percent nationally since 2006.

30 Nov 2009

Law seeks to improve female veterans' health care

The [Tacoma, Wash.] News-Tribune reports that "elected officials worry that women face barriers to veterans benefits, especially health care. 'Once they get in, they see progress,' Sen. Patty Murray told The News Tribune in a phone interview last week. 'But the barriers they face now mean they don't always get the care they need.'

30 Nov 2009

Applied Spine Technologies awarded U.S patent relating to mounting mechanisms for pedicle screws

Applied Spine Technologies, Inc., a medical device company focused on motion preservation of the lumbar spine, has been awarded a new patent titled "Mounting mechanisms for pedicle screws and related assemblies”.

30 Nov 2009

Primers on health reform and the legislative process

Some news outlets offer primers on the proposed health care overhaul.

30 Nov 2009

Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals commences enrollment in florbetaben Phase III clinical trials

Today at the 95th Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA), Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals Inc. announced the enrollment of the first patient in an international Phase III clinical trial to evaluate the efficacy and safety of florbetaben (BAY 94-9172) PET imaging in the detection of beta-Amyloid plaques in the brain, which are a pathological hallmark of Alzheimer's disease.

30 Nov 2009

Exclusion of illegal immigrants will leave many Californians out of health insurance system

"No matter what health care bill emerges from Congress, roughly one in six uninsured Californians will be excluded because they are not legal residents," Mercury News/California News Service reports.

30 Nov 2009

DALSA launches its XRI-1600 digital image processor at the RSNA 2009

DALSA, a global leader in digital imaging technology, today announced the introduction of its XRI-1600 digital image processor, which is ideal for X-ray imaging applications. At RSNA 2009, the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America held at McCormick Place in Chicago, DALSA will be demonstrating the XRI-1600 at Booth #7117 (North Building, Hall B) from November 29 - December 4, 2009.

30 Nov 2009