| PPD Reports First Quarter 2010 Financial Results (Business Wire) WILMINGTON, N.C.----PPD, Inc. today reported its financial and operating results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2010. us.rd.yahoo.com |
Novartis: Gilenia Clears Latest Regulatory Hurdle With Ease EP Vantage submits:The phrase "medical breakthrough" is often overused and misplaced, but in Gilenia’s (fingolimod) case this is truly appropriate as it is on the verge of becoming the first oral drug to treat MS patients, up to 40% of whom are estimated to delay or refuse initial treatment with currently available injectable agents.An FDA advisory committee yesterday issued a surprisingly unanimous recommendation to approve the Novartis (NVS) drug, although the Swiss group is likely to keep celebrations on ice until formal approval is granted in September given the regulator’s recent unpredictability; InterMune’s (ITMN) experience with pirfenidone bears testimony to this. The committee votes were surprising, given safety concerns with the drug and the fact that approval as a first line therapy was also strongly endorsed (Event – Gilenia’s safety the main focus of advisory committee, June 7, 2010). Novartis’ shares gained 3% today to SFr55.55 as multiple analysts announced major upgrades to their Gilenia forecasts, current consensus for which sits at $952m by 2016.Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |
J&J Discloses Payments to Doctors J&J publicly disclosed payments to doctors for the first time, becoming the latest drug maker to try to improve transparency surrounding its marketing practices. online.wsj.com |
Medical Bracelets Go High-Tech New bracelets and other medical-identification systems can fill in first responders on practically a patient's complete health history. They're a far cry from the simple identification bracelets of the past. online.wsj.com |
Some Medicare Rate Hikes Denied The Obama administration said Tuesday it denied rate increases and benefit cuts sought by 298 privately run Medicare plans, in a sign of the toughening regulatory climate for health insurers. online.wsj.com |