Top Story

Morning Read: Medical device M&A includes Medtronic orthopedics deal, Zimmer’s $1B offer for LDR

Also, Roswell Park Cancer Institute has formed a for-profit spinoff company, Global Biotechnology & Cancer Therapeutics. Health Outcome has launched a crowdsourcing platform for patients to rate their treatment.

Medtronic peopleTOP STORIES

Medtronic has agreed to acquire Minnesota startup Responsive Orthopedics as it moves into the world of hip and knee replacement. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. — Minnesota/St. Paul Business Journal

Indiana-based Zimmer Biomet Holdings is making a tender offer for LDR Holding to support the expansion of its spinal business in a $1 billion deal. — Denver Business Journal

LIFE SCIENCES

A phase 3 study of 1,670 patients to assess an injectible rheumatoid arthritis drug jointly developed by Johnson & Johnson and GSK showed the drug slowed joint damage and improved symptoms. — Reuters

Allergan secured approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to add new indications for its drug Teflaro for pediatric patients two months of age to less than 18 years of age with acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections  including infections caused by superbugs such as MRSA and community-acquired bacterial pneumonia caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae. — Drugs.com

Roswell Park Cancer Institute has formed a for-profit spinoff company. Global Biotechnology & Cancer Therapeutics will support biotech and life sciences startups with fundraising, obtaining regulatory approvals and licensing their technology through the institute’s Office of Technology Transfer. Among the institute’s startup alumni are OmniSeq and Cleveland BioLabs. — The Buffalo News

Skyepharma has licensed Lucideon’s iCRT proprietary oral drug delivery technology that bakes in abuse- deterrence so that opioids have a controlled release even if users try to tamper with them. Skyepharma has signed an exclusive feasibility, development and license agreement with Lucideo. — Pharma Times

Ekso Bionics, which developed an exoskeleton that secured FDA clearance for stroke patients and people recovering from spinal cord injuries, has added Internet of Things connectivity through a deal with Vodaphone. The collaboration is intended to improve communication for diagnostic data and make it easier for patients to access data from the device. — Mass Device

PAYERS-PROVIDERS

Gardens Regional Hospital, a Los Angeles medical center for low-income patients, has filed for bankruptcy. — The Wall Street Journal

TECHNOLOGY

Health Outcome, a consumer website founded by Ofer Ben-Shachar, launched a crowdsourcing platform for patients to rate their treatment and to help others find evidence-based cures. —BusinessWire

Withings has added a new connected scale that it claims can detect indicators for hypertension. — MobiHealthNews

OhMD launched a free version of its OhMD app for secure communication between healthcare providers, care teams and patients. It’s available in the iTunes and Google Play app stores. —OhMD

Former Phytel CTO Patrick Flynn, whose company was acquired by IBM,  has joined Aventura as COO. — Aventura

Cisco has chosen Redox for its entrepreneurs-in-residence program in the Silicon Valley, one of three companies to do so. Also participating are deep learning technology business Nervana and big data business Unravel. — Cisco

POLITICS

Representatives Mike Fitzpatrick and Louise Slaughter will make a case for new bills aimed at fixing shortcomings to the process the FDA uses to review medical devices in light of two devices that have caused patients pain and suffering — Essure, a permanent female sterilization device, and a surgical device to cut tissue that was shown to spread cancerous tissue. — STAT

In a North Carolina primary race, which Rep Renee Ellmers ultimately lost, she attracted the support of healthcare organizations for her stance on easing meaningful use requirements. Of the $1.3 million her campaign raised, more than $200,000 came from doctors, hospitals and healthcare organizations, compared with the $70,000 her victorious opponent Rep. George Holding collected from the healthcare industry. Her donors include the American Medical Association PAC, American Academy of Family Physicians PAC, the American Academy of Neurology’s Brain PAC, the American College of Cardiology PAC and American Congress of Ob-Gyns PAC and Intermountain Healthcare, among others. . Politico

A LITTLE BIT EXTRA

Here’s a question to spice up the daily watercooler chat: will humans one day be able to regenerate lost limbs? And how will that affect the accidental death and dismemberment insurance industry? Here’s a look at some of the research in this area, particularly by Professor Hiromitsu Nakauchi of the University of Tokyo Institute of Medicine and a faculty member of Stanford University. — Forbes

Photo: Flickr user Charlie

 

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