IPOs make a comeback (Morning Read)

Current medical news and unique business news for anyone who cares about the healthcare industry. […]

Current medical news and unique business news for anyone who cares about the healthcare industry.

A comeback for IPOs? At 31, monthly filings for U.S. initial public offerings in April are at the highest in more than three years, Renaissance Capital said. The surge may be attributable to copycat IPOs. For example, in healthcare, hospital operator Vanguard Health Systems Inc. said earlier this month that it plans a $600 million IPO after a successful public offering last month from competitor HCA.

J&J’s big buy: In the largest purchase in its history, Johnson & Johnson will buy device maker Synthes for $21.3 billion. The deal should boost J&J’s orthopedics and trauma businesses.

An ad win for Big Pharma? The Supreme Court is hearing arguments in a case that could determine whether states can forbid pharmacies from selling to drugmakers the confidential prescription records of physicians. Though the case hasn’t been decided, it’s looking good for pharmaceuticals firms.

Single payer in the U.S.: Vermont moves a step closer to a single-payer healthcare system.

The price of medical technology: Drug-eluting stents have added as much as $1.57 billion to U.S. health costs since their introduction in 2003, according to a study in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

“It is time to clearly define what the value of this extraordinary investment has been in terms of patient benefits and study the harms and determine if we are getting good value for this outlay,” the journal’s editor said.

Confused Americans: More than 60 percent of Americans think sea salt is a low-sodium version of table salt, and 76 percent said drinking wine is good for the heart — but didn’t know the recommended daily limits, according to a poll from the American Heart Association.

Photo from flickr user Katrina.Tuliao

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