May 17, 2019 A study published in January 2019 in the Journal of the American Medical Association (AMA) adds to a growing body of evidence suggesting that human-derived formulations of insulin are as clinically effective at treating Type 2 diabetes as pricier “designer” analogues that get used more commonly. That could offer patients relief from … Read more
May 09, 2019 The mutation, which occurs in a gene regulator called TERT and is the most common mutation in glioblastoma, gives cancer cells “immortality,” or the ability to divide and spread indefinitely. By studying cells from glioblastoma patients, the UCSF researchers discovered that a particular form of a protein called GABP drives TERT promoter … Read more
May 07, 2019 In August 2019, the Senate voted to include legislation from Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., that directs the HHS to form rules about requiring pharmaceutical pricing in DTC advertising. The legislation came in the form of an amendment to a healthcare spending bill; the House of Representatives still … Read more
April 30, 2019 During his visit to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, the head of Her Majesty’s Treasury, Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond, described the move as a way to help future-proof the U.K. economy going forward. The money is part of the country’s Industrial Strategy and will fund research into technology for … Read more
April 25, 2019 Looking at health insurance claims from 13,800 to 16,200 people with Type 1 diabetes who use employer-sponsored health insurance, researchers found insulin spending per person in the U.S. was $5,700 in 2016, a 97% increase from $2,900 in 2012. The average annual cost for individuals to manage their diabetes reached $18,500 in 2016, … Read more
April 23, 2019 In a 355-page lawsuit, UnitedHealthcare sued the companies for collusion, naming a group of “core conspirators” that includes Teva and Mylan, as well as dozens of other drugmakers. UnitedHealthcare, the largest insurer in the U.S., aims to claw back financial losses it says it suffered because of the inflated prices. Filed in Minnesota … Read more
April 18, 2019 The Sackler family, composed of former Purdue CEO Richard Sackler plus other family members Beverly, David, Ilene, Lefcourt, Jonathan, Kathe, Mortimer, and Theresa, controlled the Purdue board and should be held accountable for Massachusetts’ opioid epidemic, Healey said in an amended lawsuit filed in Massachusetts state court. Along the way, they avoided leaving … Read more
April 16, 2019 Congolese health authorities started administering mAb114, a monoclonal antibody developed by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), on Aug. 11, 2018 Reuters reported. The treatment is based on an antibody found in the blood of a patient who had survived an earlier Ebola epidemic in Congo. The 10 patients … Read more
April 11, 2019 It was at an anticipated “yes-or-no” vote meeting in December 2018 where Councilman Bill Greenlee and Councilwoman Cindy Bass announced they were pulling the proposal before a vote could be taken. Greenlee, however, had already signaled the withdrawal in a series of Twitter posts the day before that called the bill a … Read more
April 09, 2019 FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D., was due to reveal the new office in early January 2019 via videolink at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference. In creating the office, Gottlieb thinks the FDA can leverage improved understanding of biomarkers and other advances to build tools that take some of the risks and costs … Read more