TOP STORIES
“Introducing PfizerKline.” That certainly gets your attention. Deutsche Bank likes the GSK-Pfizer merger because of tax benefits (lame) and mentions “needle-moving deals.” A CitiGroup analyst doesn’t like the idea, though. The PharmaTimes dredges up a survey of BioSpace readers in which 63 percent believe Pfizer will bid for GSK, 48 percent believe the offer will be made in the third quarter of this year, and 35 percent think the offer will be more than $120 billion. Then it must be true!
LIFE SCIENCE
RegenxBio has now raised more than $100 million this year (it just announced a new $70 million round).
A lovefest for Denali Therpapeutics, its strategy and why it raised the money it did.
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.
Companion Medical raised $3 million for its smart insulin pen.
Canada’s Medicago, a biotech that is using plant technology to manufacture vaccines against Ebola and other viruses, will build a $200 million manufacturing facility in Quebec City.
Warburg-backed startup Outset Medical has received $60 million to market an all-in-one dialysis device.
Check out the list of new MassChallenge startups.
Among China’s new billionaires: Liang Guiqiu, the co-founder of Shenzhen Glory Medical. The shares have doubled in the past year (he used to run Yibao Pharmaceutical)
PAYERS-PROVIDERS
Health workers have been attacked in 17 countries since 2014. But researchers think the problem is much bigger.
Seven doctors were among the 41 arrested for selling illegal prescription drugs.
Following the earthquake and aftershocks in Nepal in late April, San Diego-based Scripps Health deployed its medical response team May 1 to the country to help provide much needed medical care to Nepalese survivors. After nearly three weeks operating out of medical tents, the Scripps team is preparing for its return to the U.S.
Almost half of hospitals around Philadelphia lost money.
Here’s a look at Becker’s Hospital Review’s 50 great health systems to be familiar with.
TECH
A look at how big data is progressing generally: Maana launches with $14.2 million.
Spotify is adding specific health-related features.
Chief Product Officer Gustav Söderström said Spotify will now use the sensors on your phone to detect the pace at which you’re running. Then, when you hit the running man button in Spotify, the app uses your tempo to select the right tracks. And if you want to change the tempo, Söderström said, “We’ll find the right music for that, again and again and again.”
POLITICS
The 21st Century Cures Act is being put on hold.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee markup of the 21st Century Cures Act is delayed until 8:30 a.m. Thursday, the committee announced this morning. The action was to begin today at 10 a.m., but leaders are struggling to come up with a way to pay for the estimated $13 billion legislation.
The California Medical Association dropped its opposition to physician-assisted suicide. A bill there would make the practice legal.
One-quarter of people with healthcare coverage are paying so much for deductibles and out-of-pocket expenses that they are considered underinsured, according to a new study.
A new group launched Wednesday is seeking to reform the process for liver transplants to reduce geographic differences in wait times, an issue that has split lawmakers.
A LITTLE EXTRA
L’Oreal wants to 3D print human skin for cosmetics testing.
Although still an unfortunate necessity for the development of pharmaceuticals, animal testing within the cosmetics industry has thankfully witnessed a decline over the years. Following pressure from the public and animal rights groups, as well as an outright ban in the European Union and several other countries, various beauty product giants have announced they’ve stamped out the practice.
The Morning Read provides a 24-hour wrap up of everything else healthcare’s innovators need to know about the business of medicine (and beyond). The author of The Read published it but all full-time MedCity News journalists contribute to its content.
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