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Pfizer,DNDi partner to Identify NTD drugs; Sanofi-Aventis, medicines for malaria launch drug study

Pfizer and the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDi) on Wednesday announced plans to team up in an effort to identify new drug candidates for the treatment of three tropical diseases, the Associated Press/Business Week reports. The scientists will test the efficacy of Pfizer drug candidates against sleeping sickness, visceral leishmaniasis, and Chagas disease.

19 Nov 2009

Senate health bill's abortion language triggers mixed reactions

The Hill reports that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi "prefers abortion language in the Senate healthcare legislation to the House approach." Pelosi said she was pleased with the Senate bill's treatment of abortion, saying "'I think it's pretty clear no federal funds would be used to pay for abortion.'" Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid left out Rep. Bart Stupak's abortion amendment from his merged Senate health care reform bill, opting instead to "maintain current law where that is applicable and extend it to new programs created by the legislation."

19 Nov 2009

Op-Eds: HIV travel ban; improving sanitation; counterfeit drugs

A "blot" on U.S. HIV/AIDS leadership "ended last month when President [Barack] Obama lifted the prohibition" that kept HIV-positive foreigners from visiting the U.S. or seeking residency, according to a Washington Post editorial. "The process for eliminating the travel ban started under President George W. Bush in July 2008, when he signed legislation that repealed the original statute."

19 Nov 2009

CleveMed to distribute its products in Europe and Canada following receipt of the CE Mark and CMDCAS

CleveMed recently received ISO 13485 certification issued by BSI Management Systems America Inc., one of the foremost auditing bodies in the world. CleveMed has also received the CE Mark and CMDCAS allowing its products to be distributed to the large European and the Canadian markets which will strengthen its worldwide market presence.

19 Nov 2009

For World Toilet Day, news outlets examine poor sanitation conditions around world

In light of World Toilet Day Thursday, several news outlets examine the impact of poor sanitation on health.

19 Nov 2009

World Summit on Food Security wraps up

The U.N. World Summit on Food Security ended Wednesday in Rome with Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) head Jacques Diouf calling for the global community to shift the fight against global hunger from "words to action," Agence France-Press reports. Diouf said, "We must do this to have a more prosperous world, fairer, more equitable and more peaceful. But above all we must do this fast: the poor and starving can not wait" (11/18).

19 Nov 2009

Family planning drive launched during conference in Uganda

Agence France-Presse examines a new U.S.-backed "12 million dollar family planning drive launched" Wednesday during a three-day conference on family planning in Kampala, Uganda. The project aims to "improve access to contraceptives for women in six African nations [including Uganda, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania and Kenya] as well as Indonesia and Pakistan," the news service writes (Simon, 11/18).

19 Nov 2009

Also in Global Health News: HIV/AIDS grant giving; Africa's water resources; sex workers in Malawi

HIV/AIDS program grants made by U.S.-based foundations totaled $618 billion in 2008, an 11 percent increase from the previous year, according to a new report by Funders Concerned About AIDS, the Chronicle of Philanthropy reports. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation accounted for the majority of the grants, and when it was "excluded, foundation giving [for HIV/AIDS] actually declined 3 percent compared to 2007."

19 Nov 2009

UnitedHealthcare receives Business Insurance magazine’s Readers Choice Award

UnitedHealthcare, a UnitedHealth Group company, has been named the “Best Health Plan Provider” by the readers of Business Insurance in the magazine’s fifth annual Readers Choice Awards.

19 Nov 2009

NIMS’ Exer-Rest acceleration therapeutic platform awarded Japanese patent

Non-Invasive Monitoring Systems, Inc. announced that the Nogawa Patent Office in Japan issued Patent number 4391595 to NIMS on October 16, 2009. This patent, entitled “Reciprocating Movement Platform for Shifting Subject To and Fro In Headwards-Footwards Direction,” relates to the comprehensively researched technology underlying NIMS’ Exer-Rest acceleration therapeutic platform.

19 Nov 2009

MONITORING FORCE files for Flibanserin orphan drug status designation with the EMEA

MONITORING FORCE GmbH announced that they have filed on November 16th, 2009 Flibanserin in the indication treatment-relevant levodopa-induced dyskinesia in Parkinson's disease for orphan drug status designation with the European Medicines Agency (EMEA). Levodopa-induced dyskinesia is a complication of the mainstay treatment in advanced Parkinson's and a serious burden to some of those affected, since it may be disabling for the patients and preventing them from receiving optimal treatment for Parkinson's.

19 Nov 2009

Senate health bill released, another step toward Democratic-backed reforms

"Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid set the stage for a climactic debate in the Senate over health care by unveiling a 10-year, $848 billion bill that would extend insurance to 31 million Americans without coverage," The Wall Street Journal reports.

19 Nov 2009

Aware to introduce its new AccuRad ImageShare Platform at the 2009 RSNA meeting

Aware, Inc., a global provider of imaging and biometrics software, today announced it will showcase its new AccuRad ImageShare Platform, a standards-based cross-enterprise image sharing platform for health information exchange (HIE), at the RSNA 2009 Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting.

19 Nov 2009

Reid tries to balance many interests in Senate health bill

Kaiser Health News staff writers Mary Agnes Carey and Phil Galewitz write about last night's big news. "In one of the most anticipated events in the health reform debate, Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., tonight released the bill expected to go to the Senate floor. Reid added new taxes and modified major provisions of health bills passed by two Senate panels in his quest to meet President Barack Obama's target of health legislation that would cost less than $900 billion and win 60 votes in the Senate" (11/18).

19 Nov 2009

AcroMetrix introduces the OptiQual HPV Genotype Panel

AcroMetrix, a leading manufacturer of quality control material for clinical diagnostic and blood testing laboratories, announced today the launch of its OptiQual HPV Genotype Panel. Designed to help clinical laboratories comply with CLIA guidelines for qualitative molecular assays that detect Human Papillomavirus (HPV), this addition to AcroMetrix’s line of women’s health products can assist laboratorians with the validation and verification of their molecular HPV tests.

19 Nov 2009

CBO: Senate health bill would reduce deficit $130 billion over a decade

Democratic leaders were jubilant that the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office determined that the Senate bill would cut federal deficits by $130 billion over the next decade. That projection, released shortly before midnight Wednesday, represents the biggest cost savings of any legislation to come before the House or Senate this year, but the measure's effective date also was pushed back by one year, to 2014.

19 Nov 2009

Insurers say they won't alter mammogram coverage despite new guidelines

Insurance companies say mammogram coverage is unlikely to change despite the debate over the effectiveness of breast cancer screenings for women in their forties.

19 Nov 2009

SPG establishes a nationwide sales force to meet demand for its Zip-Outs

StreamWorks Products Group, Inc. (SPG), renowned for developing innovative consumer products across several industries, has announced that its new PlugsSafety™ division, a cutting-edge line of hearing protection solutions, has contracted with seven regional sales groups across the country to establish a nationwide sales force following the tremendous debut of the company’s newest product, Zip-Outs™.

19 Nov 2009

Daschle still making voice heard on health care

The Hill reports that former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle helped Obama Administration officials strategize to win health care reform votes from Senators on Capitol Hill Wednesday.

19 Nov 2009

Advanced Cell Technology files an IND with the FDA for study using embryonic stem cells to treat SMD

Advanced Cell Technology, Inc. announced today that it filed an Investigational New Drug (IND) Application with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to initiate a Phase I/II multicenter study using embryonic stem cell derived retinal cells to treat patients with Stargardt’s Macular Dystrophy (SMD). Among the most common causes of untreatable blindness in the world are degenerative diseases of the retina.

19 Nov 2009