Reuters Health News Summary
Following is a summary of current health news briefs.
Ocular Therapeutix gets subpoena from SEC over eye pain drug
Ocular Therapeutix Inc said on Friday the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had issued a subpoena seeking information about the company's eye-pain drug Dextenza. Shares of the company were down 7.2 percent at $4.25 in after-marketing trading.
U.S. judge tosses verdict against AbbVie in AndroGel case
A U.S. judge on Friday overturned a $150 million verdict against AbbVie Inc that was the first to result from lawsuits claiming that the company fraudulently misrepresented the risks of its testosterone replacement drug AndroGel. U.S. District Judge Matthew Kennelly in Chicago ruled that the findings by the jury that rendered the verdict in July in favor of Oregon resident Jesse Mitchell were "logically incompatible."
U.S. FDA plans to let device makers report malfunctions less frequently
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Friday said it plans to let medical device makers report less serious malfunctions of some devices on a quarterly basis to cut down on repeated reviews of common problems. The FDA said in a statement that it is proposing to allow the manufacturers to report certain malfunctions in summary reports, rather than having to file individual reports for each malfunction. They would still be required to file individual reports for deaths and serious injuries, the agency said.
FDA rejects Agile's contraceptive patch, shares plunge
Agile Therapeutics Inc said on Friday the U.S. Food and Drug Administration declined to approve its contraceptive patch for the second time, sending the drug developer's shares down about 50 percent. The health regulator cited deficiencies related to its quality adhesion test methods and asked the company to resolve the observations found during an inspection of its third-party manufacturing facility, Corium International Inc.
Common blood pressure drug tied to increased risk of skin cancer
People who take a certain water pill prescribed to control fluid retention and treat high blood pressure may be more likely to get skin cancer than other individuals, a Danish study suggests. While the drug, hydrochlorothiazide, has long been linked to an increased risk of sunburns, the current study offers fresh evidence that this commonly prescribed medication may also make people more likely to develop two types of skin cancer: basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma.
Boston-area paramedics on front lines of U.S. opioid crisis
The paramedics find them everywhere - slumped over car steering wheels, barely breathing in doughnut shop bathrooms or dead in derelict apartments and expensive mansions. For the Cataldo Ambulance Service crews outside Boston on the front lines of the U.S. opioid epidemic, the flood of overdose calls is a grim daily reality, despite expanded access to overdose reversal drugs.
Novelion unit asks U.S. judge to approve plea deal, cites money woes
Aegerion Pharmaceuticals Inc has asked a U.S. judge to quickly approve a new plea agreement aimed at resolving probes into its promotion of a cholesterol drug, saying its parent company has been blocked from capital markets due to the case's uncertainty. The Novelion Therapeutics Inc unit asked U.S. District Judge William Young in Boston on Thursday to schedule a hearing so it can plead guilty to any new deal aimed at overcoming his objections to an earlier one. Young, who had rejected an earlier agreement, on Friday scheduled a hearing for Jan. 30.
Kmart to pay $32 million to settle drug overbilling allegations
Kmart Corp, a unit of Sears Holdings Corp, has agreed to pay $32.3 million to settle allegations that its pharmacies failed to report discounted prescription drug prices to federal health programs, the U.S. Justice Department said on Friday. The settlement agreement with the United States is a part of a global $59 million settlement that includes a resolution of state Medicaid and insurance claims against Kmart, the Justice Department said.
Valeant says Bausch & Lomb's over-the-counter eye drop gets FDA nod
Canadian drugmaker Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Lumify drop to treat eye redness. The eye drop, made by the company's Bausch & Lomb eye care business, has been approved for over-the-counter sale, Valeant said.
Racial disparities in trauma deaths not seen with Tricare
With the same health insurance and access to the same medical providers, black trauma patients may be no more likely to die than their white counterparts, a U.S. study suggests. Even though all U.S. hospitals are required to treat trauma patients regardless of their ability to pay, plenty of previous research has found minority patients often have worse survival odds and more complications than white patients. One of the many reasons for this may be that white patients have better medical benefits and an easier time accessing and affording care.
