TOP STORY
Peter Thiel-backed stealth startup Auris Surgical Robots will acquire Hansen Medical in a deal valued $80 million. Hansen develops minimally invasive robotic surgery devices. — FierceMedicalDevices
Medtronic voluntarily initiated a recall of nearly 10,000 battery packs for medical devices to monitor patients’ breathing after receiving reports of a defect that can cause heat damage. The battery packs are used for Covidien Oridion labeled Capnostream(TM)20 and Capnostream(TM) 20p Patient Monitors. So far, seven of the battery packs have caused heat damage and in one case, there was a fire causing minor burns and smoke inhalation. — MarketWatch, Medtronic
LIFE SCIENCES
Basilea Pharmaceutica has landed a $100 million BARDA contract over four and a half years to support phase 3 U.S. trials of its antibiotic, ceftobiprole medocaril — which is already being marketing in Europe as Zevtera. — Reuters
BioMarin has reported preliminary data on phase 1/2 trial for its hemophilia A therapy – finding that most patients in the small studied improved. — Xconomy
GlaxoSmithKline and San Diego’s Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute have teamed up, creating a new center for translational neuroscience. It’ll work to identify and validate new therapeutic targets that affect brain function. — BioCentury
The FDA is letting companies filing NDAs and ANDAs that clinical and bioanalytical studies conducted by a Bangalore, India-based CRO Semler Research isn’t acceptable in terms of data integrity. — RAPS
SeraCare and Toma Bio have developed a solid tumor gene analysis kit. — GenomeWeb
Massachusetts diagnostics firm Alere lost half a billion dollars in market value today, because investors are worried that the planned acquisition by Abbott Laboratories might fall through. — Boston Business Journal
A new CRISPR system can switch single letters of the genome cleanly and efficiently, refining how it might repair disease-causing mutations. — STAT
TECHNOLOGY
Boston’s Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center is piloting an app from startup Everseat that lets patients schedule appointments and arrange for rides via Lyft. — MobiHealthNews
Malawi has started testing drones to speed up how long it takes to test infants in rural areas for HIV. — Reuters
PAYERS/PROVIDERS
Medical transportation company Logisticare has reached more than $1 billion in revenue thanks to the Affordable Care Act. — Atlanta Business Chronicle
Kansas healthcare providers want KanCare, the state’s Medicaid and CHIP managed care program, expanded. — KWCH12
Cigna’s CEO has implemented financial incentives and wellness resources to its own employees – and has found that it’s led to lower premiums. — Hartford Courant
POLITICS
An FDA official testified at a congressional hearing to say the agency is working to improve its lab safety. This comes after new report highlighted deficiencies in its bioresearch lab safety — such as mishandling dangerous biological materials like smallpox and anthrax. — RAPS
A LITTLE BIT EXTRA
Right in time for 420: Marijuana legalization activists said Wednesday that White House officials had invited them to chat next week about issues involving the drug. — Reuters