Highlights of the important and interesting in the world of healthcare:
Nashville medical trade center key for economy. Forty-four percent of the people who took a poll by the Nashville Business Journal think their city’s medical trade center project is key for economic development so it should get state tax credits to draw tenants.
Behavioral Health, Interoperability and eConsent: Meeting the Demands of CMS Final Rule Compliance
In a webinar on April 16 at 1pm ET, Aneesh Chopra will moderate a discussion with executives from DocuSign, Velatura, and behavioral health providers on eConsent, health information exchange and compliance with the CMS Final Rule on interoperability.
Healthcare jobs healthy now, but… The healthcare sector continues to create jobs as the economy recovers, but there are indications this may taper off, according to a report in American Medical News.
Aastrom on fast track to stem cell therapy. Aastrom Biosciences in Ann Arbor, Michigan, has gotten the Food and Drug Administration’s fast track designation for its pivotal clinical trial plan of an adult stem cell treatment to help people with severe cardiovascular disease avoid limb amputations, according to Xconomy Detroit.
Pfizer goes to India. Pfizer has turned to India’s Biocon to help it develop biosimilar insulin products to increase its global market share, paying $200 million upfront and promising another $150 million in milestone payments, according to Fierce Biotech.
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
Prescription drug plans and personalized medicine. While the market is driving increasing complexity in value-based prescription drug benefits, health reform and the Accountable Care Act will further shape prescription drug use and spending, according to the HEALTHPopuli blog.
Doctors on Pharma’s payroll. ProPublica has identified more than 17,000 healthcare providers (mostly doctors) who have accepted payments from pharmaceutical companies dating back to 2009, according to Consumer Reports’ Health blog.
