Current medical news and unique business news for anyone who cares about healthcare.
Covidien (NYSE:COV) will spin out its pharmaceutical business a la Abbott sometime in the next 18 months. Once the no-growth pharmaceutical business is standing alone, the medical device business should boast an annual growth rate of more than 8 percent, the company said in a release. Abbott Laboratories and Pfizer Inc. have recently made similar splits. Covidien shares rose 3.7 percent Thursday afternoon.
The leader of the world’s largest biotechnology company is retiring. Kevin Sharer, CEO of Amgen Inc., will hand over the reigns to COO Robert Bradway in May when Sharer retires after 12 years as chief executive. Under his leadership, the company’s sales quadrupled, but shares gained an annual return of only half of a percent.
With the Rise of AI, What IP Disputes in Healthcare Are Likely to Emerge?
Munck Wilson Mandala Partner Greg Howison shared his perspective on some of the legal ramifications around AI, IP, connected devices and the data they generate, in response to emailed questions.
Costco takes EHRs to retail. In a partnership with Etransmedia Technology, discount warehouse Costco will begin selling Allscripts’ electronic health records systems. You won’t find any deep discounts for the products, but Costco says it’s “simplifying the buying process” by offering them in stores. In 2009, Walmart Stores Inc. made a similar but unsuccessful attempt to sell eClinical Works and Dell’s bundled EMR/computer package at Sam’s Club, which only lasted a few months.
FDA to keep closer watch on critical drug producers. As part of an effort to prevent drug shortages in the future, President Obama issued an interim final rule Thursday requiring drug manufacturers that are the sole producers of certain critical drugs to report all interruptions in manufacturing to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
A CFO is still a doctor. If you’re a doctor and you’ve given serious thought to leaving your practice to pursue something else, don’t feel guilty. Apparently, most doctors do at some point. Here’s one doctor’s take on why she left medicine.
Telehealth a priority in the U.K. The U.K. is undertaking an ambitious campaign to extend the use of mobile medical devices to 3 million patients over the next 5 years. It’s still in early stages of development, though, because of that one little nagging issue — funding.
