Morning Read: Full Baxalta-Shire repercussions, a higher-bar for Aetna and Cigna mergers

TOP STORIES

Here’s the day-after interpretation and fallout from the Baxalta-Shire merger:

• Shire CEO Flemming Ornskov “faces a career-defining challenge” to make the combined companies a giant in the rare-disease space. Much of the skepticism focuses on concerns about competitive threats to Baxalta’s haemophilia business. – Financial Times
• Shire’s $32 billion cash-and-stock deal appears to have rested on its evolving view of the U.S. tax code. – The Wall Street Journal
• Shire is increasing its debt to over two times EBITDA, from less than one currently. – Reuters
• Two things appear to concern analysts. First, there are some extremely ambitious targets for savings from the merger. Second, it is difficult to see how the coming together of these two quite different businesses can accelerate growth for the combined entity. – Irish Times
• Preserving the “tax-free status” of the Baxalta spinoff was a key component of the takeover discussions. – The New York Times

The Aetna-Humana and Anthem-Cigna mergers just got tougher: about 15 state attorneys general have joined the Justice Department’s probe of the deals. – Reuters

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LIFE SCIENCES

Medtronic will spend the $9.3 billion from the Covidien integration to pay down debt as it looks to regain its A credit rating and return at least half of cash through dividends or buybacks. – MassDevice

Mylan filed for FDA approval its generic version of GlaxoSmithKline’s Advair. Expect it on the market by next year. – Reuters

Nestle added another $120 million into Seres Therapeutics, which is developing “healthy gut” drugs to treat the likes of Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) and inflammatory bowel disease. – Reuters

Dr. Joshua Resnick, former president and managing partner at MRL Ventures Fund, has joined SV Life Sciences as a partner. – PRNewswire

Heart-failure device company V-Wave, which is developing a implantable interatrial shunt, closed $28 million from investors including Johnson & Johnson and Edwards Lifesciences. – Business Wire

Vascular Pharmaceuticals raised $3 million to increase the size of a clinical trial for its diabetic nephropathy treatment. – Triangle Business Journal

PAYERS-PROVIDERS

British doctors staged a 24-hour walkout – the first strike in 40 year – over plans by the government to restructure their pay. More are coming. – Reuters

Problems with hospital M&A in Oregon: National Nurses United wants the state’s attorney general to block the merger of Providence Health & Services and St. Joseph Health System. – Portland Business Journal

TECHNOLOGY

Ezekiel “Zeke” J. Emanuel has become a venture partner at Oak HC/FT. – Business Wire

Another app looking to disrupt insurance brokerage: Switzerland’s FinanceFox raises $5.5 million backs by Salesforce Ventures. – TechCrunch

POLITICS

Here’s the background on 35 CPT codes the American Telemedicine Association wants reimbursed for rehabilitation, physical therapy, home dialysis, critical care services and behavioral health. – mHealthIntelligence

Dr. Robert Califf FDA commissioner vote could be today (smooth sailing still expected). – STAT

Kentucky’s new Republican governor, Matt Bevin, has notified the Obama administration that he plans to dismantle the state’s ObamaCare marketplace.- The Hill

Hey, no fair! Only industry can game the system! Payers are compaining that Obamacare customers are buying coverage only after they find out they’re ill and need expensive care. – Politico

Meet the 121 new Medicare Accountable Care Organizations (we’re now up to 477). – Health and Human Services (h/t HISTalk)

A LITTLE BIT EXTRA

The many faces of the late David Bowie. – Reddit