Note: MedCity News did not publish a newsletter on Monday due to technical issues. We are sorry for any inconvenience.
TOP STORIES
When Investment Rhymes with Canada
Canada has a proud history of achievement in the areas of science and technology, and the field of biomanufacturing and life sciences is no exception.
AstraZeneca is selling the U.S. marketing rights to its FDA-approved gout drug, Zurampic, in a deal valued at $265 million, to Ironwood Pharmaceuticals. — Reuters, Boston Business Journal
The Campaign for Sustainable Rx Pricing – a coalition of hospitals, insurers and seniors – has banded together and proposed measures to rein in drug costs. This includes shorter exclusivity windows for biotechnology companies and a mandate that drugmakers release more information about their pricing structure. — Washington Post
LIFE SCIENCES
Exelixis won its second FDA approval for its oncology drug cabozantinib — this time with a tablet against the most common form of adult kidney cancer. — San Francisco Business Times
An FDA panel has rejected Sarepta Therapeutics’ Duchenne muscular dystrophy treatment, voting 7-6 to prevent its sale in the United States. The clinical trial was poorly constructed, the panel said, and didn’t show enough efficacy that Sarepta’s drug could treat the degenerative disorder. —Boston Globe
Zimmer Biomet Holdings will acquire Cayenne Medical, adding to its sports medicine portfolio. The Arizona startup markets knee, shoulder and extremity soft-tissue repair products. —Fierce Medical Devices
For those morbidly curious in watching the steady demise of a once promising startup: You can now see nearly 200 pages of documents dictating the compliance issues our friends at Theranos are up against. — TechCrunch
The newly bankrupt Palmaz Scientific, a Texas prosthetics company which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last month, is in dispute with Jefferies & Co. over a founding round in 2012 and 2013. — MassDevice
TECHNOLOGY
Veritas Capital has acquired Verisk Analytics’ health data analysis business in an $820 million deal. — PE Hub
At-home pregnancy testmaker First Response has released a new Bluetooth-enabled pregnancy test. The test works like your standard pregnancy test, but it sends results to an app that educates the user about fertility and pregnancy. —MobiHealthNews
PAYERS-PROVIDERS
Middle-market healthcare executives at companies with revenue between $25 million and $1 billion are optimistic about their organizations’ finances in 2016, according to a recent study from CIT Group. — Becker’s Hospital Review
The federal government on Monday issued a long-awaited final rule for Medicaid managed care plans that creates a quality rating system, allows states to set network adequacy standards and limits how much insurers can spend on administrative costs. — FierceHealthPayer
POLITICS
The Supreme Court is grappling with new government procedures that make it easier for companies, or individuals, to challenge patents without prolonged and costly court battles. — The Wall Street Journal
A LITTLE BIT EXTRA
How does the American Psychiatry Association want to transform the care of mental health patients? With smartphone apps. — The Week
