Judge Orders Drug Maker to Provide Experimental Treatment to Terminally Ill Teenager - NYTimes.com

Judge Orders Drug Maker to Provide Experimental Treatment to Terminally Ill Teenager - NYTimes.com: "A 16-year-old patient, terminally ill with a rare form of muscular dystrophy, should be allowed to use an experimental drug treatment despite objections from the drug’s developer, a federal judge in Newark ruled on Wednesday."

Obama Says Single-Payer Health Care Makes Sense-WSJ Health Blog

Obama Says Single-Payer Health Care Makes Sense-WSJ Health Blog: "Barack Obama said he would consider embracing a single-payer health-care system sometime in the future as his plan for broader health coverage evolves, the WSJ’s Amy Chozick reports from the campaign trail."

Tools Help Patients Interface With Doctors - WSJ.com

Tools Help Patients Interface With Doctors - WSJ.com: "Technology companies are jumping into the "self-care" tools market, developing devices to help people monitor their own health and receive feedback from caregivers."

Clinical Trial Touches Off Drug Access Fight - NYTimes.com

Clinical Trial Touches Off Drug Access Fight - NYTimes.com: "NEWARK — Lawyers for a Gonvick, Minn., family suing to gain access to an experimental muscular dystrophy drug for their 16-year-old son argued on Tuesday that a drug company led them to believe he could participate in a clinical trial but then went back on its word."

FDA Says Chemical Found In Plastic Bottles Is Safe - WSJ.com

FDA Says Chemical Found In Plastic Bottles Is Safe - WSJ.com: "WASHINGTON -- Despite ongoing safety concerns from parents, consumer groups and politicians, a chemical used in baby bottles, canned food and other items is not dangerous, federal regulators said Friday."

Top medical journal advises Supreme Court not to bar lawsuits over FDA-approved drugs -- OrlandoSentinel.com

Top medical journal advises Supreme Court not to bar lawsuits over FDA-approved drugs -- OrlandoSentinel.com: "The Food and Drug Administration 'is in no position' to guarantee drug safety, the editors of the New England Journal of Medicine said in a friend-of-the-court brief. Lawsuits can serve as 'a vital deterrent' and protect consumers if drug companies don't disclose risks."

Clinton to Get Roll-Call Vote at Nominating Convention - washingtonpost.com

Clinton to Get Roll-Call Vote at Nominating Convention - washingtonpost.com: "After weeks of maneuvering aimed at producing a display of unity when Democrats gather in Denver later this month, Sen. Barack Obama's presidential campaign announced yesterday that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton will be formally nominated and her name included in a roll-call vote at the Democratic National Convention."

OPINION: Hospital Infections: Preventable and Unacceptable - WSJ.com

Hospital Infections: Preventable and Unacceptable - WSJ.com: ". . . [N]ow there is proof that nearly all hospital infections are avoidable when doctors and staff clean their hands and rigorously practice proper hygiene and other preventive measures."

OPINION: Realistic options for the uninsured - Washington Times

OPINION: Realistic options for the uninsured - Washington Times: "The first rule of health legislation, like medicine, should be 'do no harm.' Voters want improvement, but they don't want politicians taking needless risks with what they have today."

New Therapy for Sepsis Infections Raises Hope but Many Questions - WSJ.com

New Therapy for Sepsis Infections Raises Hope but Many Questions - WSJ.com: "Seven years ago, doctors got some hopeful news about sepsis, a fast-moving bloodstream infection that kills four million people a year world-wide. A study said an aggressive new therapy cut the death rate by a third. Two medical groups endorsed the new therapy, and scores of U.S. hospitals have adopted it. But now some doctors are questioning the rigor of the research behind it, which was done at a single hospital. Adding to the concerns: That hospital held patents on a medical device critical to the therapy. And one of the groups that later endorsed the treatment had financial backing from the maker of the device."

Devices for Lawyers - WSJ.com

Devices for Lawyers - WSJ.com: "If Congress really wants to improve the quality of medical products for consumers, it would better spend its energy on reforming the bureaucratic morass that is the FDA."

Changes Brewing on Capitol Hill for Health Insurance-WSJ Health Blog

Changes Brewing on Capitol Hill for Health Insurance-WSJ Health Blog: "Next year could see the biggest push in more than a decade to transform how health insurance works in this country. Obama and McCain have both proposed significant changes, and the Democrats just hammered out a platform plank that says the party is “united around a commitment to provide every American access to affordable, comprehensive health care.”"

Drug Makers Protest Plan on Legal Costs - WSJ.com

Drug Makers Protest Plan on Legal Costs - WSJ.com: "Six leading drug makers sent a letter Friday to accounting-rule lawmakers, objecting to a proposed rule that would require companies to disclose estimated costs of all continuing litigation. Providing such an estimate would be futile, costly and unlikely to provide meaningful information for investors, they said."

Massachusetts Law Curbs Drugmakers' Gifts and Boosts Primary Care-WSJ Health Blog

Massachusetts Law Curbs Drugmakers' Gifts and Boosts Primary Care-WSJ Health Blog: "Massachusetts is getting tough on drug and device reps.
Over the weekend, Governor Deval Patrick signed into law a broad health bill that requires drugmakers and medical devices companies to disclose any gifts to doctors worth more than $50, the Boston Globe reports."

Japan might cut approval time for U.S.-made medical devices - Finance and Commerce

Japan might cut approval time for U.S.-made medical devices - Finance and Commerce: "Japan, one of the major markets for U.S. medical-device companies, may soon speed up lengthy approval processes that typically delay the introduction of new products in that country."

MA Biotech industry battles doctor gift legislation - The Boston Globe

MA Biotech industry battles doctor gift legislation - The Boston Globe: "The state's biotech industry and other business groups are urging Governor Deval Patrick to strike from a healthcare bill on his desk a provision that would clamp down on drug companies' gifts and meals to doctors."

US Senator Kohl Asks Questions About Cardiology Pact - WSJ HealthBlog

US Senator Kohl Asks Questions About Cardiology Pact - WSJ HealthBlog: The Wall Street Journal ". . . recently got a copy of a letter that Kohl sent the ACC asking about the deal [between the Cardiovascular Research Foundation (CRF) and the American College of Cardiology]. He zeroed in on how the CRF, which receives funding from a variety of device makers, might affect the way the ACC runs things. Kohl wrote, “The potential for this partnership to influence clinical practice raises questions concerning the impartiality of your organization.”"

AdvaMed Responds to House & Senate preemption bills - AdvaMed

AdvaMed Responds to House & Senate preemption bills - AdvaMed: "If enacted, this legislation would create a patchwork approach to medical device approvals where state courts would effectively review and regulate medical devices. It would likely result in a dizzying array of conflicting labeling and indications for use and ultimately may result in life-saving, life-enhancing technologies simply not being available for patients."

Medicare adds to do-not-pay list - Peoria, IL - pjstar.com

Medicare adds to do-not-pay list - Peoria, IL - pjstar.com: "Medicare officials announced Thursday that it no longer will pay the extra-care costs associated with treating dangerous blood clots in the leg following knee or hip-replacement. The program also will not pay extra for complications stemming from poor control of blood sugar levels."