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Bansky thanks NHS staff in Southampton with original painting

The elusive artist's latest work, Game Changer, is on display at Southampton General Hospital.




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Tekashi69 Sounds Off In Live Stream, Sets Records With Epic Rant

Tekashi just streamed from in-home incarceration, setting an Instagram Live record with 2 million people tuning in. 6ix9ine trolled off the bat, bumping "Bad Boys" while toying with a pair of handcuffs. Tekashi got a lot off his plate ... admitting…




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UFC's Jacare Souza Tests Positive for COVID-19, Out of UFC 249

UFC fighter Jacare Souza has tested positive for coronavirus and will NOT participate in his scheduled fight at UFC 249 on Saturday, the UFC confirms to TMZ Sports. The 40-year-old Brazilian was slated to fight Uriah Hall on the undercard of the…




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StreamLink Software Secures $2,600,000 New Funding Round

StreamLink Software began as nonprofit executives saw a need for solutions to common management issues. When it became clear there was gap in quality, affordable products, StreamLink Software was formed to develop them.




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Solovis Receives $1,250,000 New Financing

You’re not just getting great software. We’ve sat in your seat and wished there was a better way, so we built it. We provide a multi-asset class portfolio management and reporting system.




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The Voice contestants team up for NHS song after coronavirus stopped live shows

The show was postponed last month because of the COVID-19 pandemic




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Gemma Atkinson opens up about her new diet that proved people wrong

The Hits Radio host is feeling better than ever




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Jason Manford 'livid' after being knocked back by Tesco for a job

The Salford comic applied for a job at the Aldery Road Express store in Wilmslow




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Tesco issues lovely response to Jason Manford after he is rejected for job

Jason, from Salford, joked that he was 'livid' at the response but admitted he did genuinely apply for the supermarket job




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Iceland has given Jason Manford a very generous offer after Tesco knockback

Iceland has put in a job offer for the Salford comic after Tesco didn't hire him




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Adele's former personal trainer speaks about star's dramatic weight loss

The singer shared a post on Instagram to mark her 32nd birthday, revealing her slimmer frame




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Corrie star Colson Smith almost unrecognisable after incredible weight loss

The Corrie favourite has stunned fans with his new look after taking up running




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The Enterprise 2020 Report: Software CEO Briefing

At the annual invite-only 2020 Enterprise Retreat in Half Moon Bay, CA, 100 enterprise leaders gathered in a social-media free environment, to network, discuss hot topics and dive into provocative, insightful off-the-record 'State of the Union' presentations. This report details their findings.

Keep on reading: The Enterprise 2020 Report: Software CEO Briefing




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Finance ministry set to extend anti─dumping duty on import of sodium citrate from China




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WBPC soon to open DIC at Council office to provide information on medication & safety measures to combat COVID─19




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Soft Actuator and Sensor for Underactive Bladder Treatment

Researchers at the National University of Singapore have developed a soft sensor and actuator to monitor bladder volume and help empty it on-demand. The device is intended to be implanted on the bladder surface during a surgical procedure to treat patients who cannot completely empty their bladders voluntarily. Patients can suffer from an underactive bladder […]




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Stanford Bioengineers Innovate Multiple Solutions to Tackle COVID-19

The current pandemic is revealing the level of commitment needed from multiple sectors to deliver innovative solutions to tackle severe shortages of personal protective equipment, ventilators, and raw materials. Researchers at the Prakash lab at Stanford University are no stranger to taking up extreme challenges, and they have kept up their reputation by coming up […]




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Aquadex Ultrafiltration for Critical COVID Patients: Interview with John Erb, CEO at CHF Solutions

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, many healthcare facilities around the world are inundated with critically ill patients, and resources such as equipment and staff are stretched thin. Shortages of critical equipment, such as ventilators, can mean the difference between life and death for patients, and the need to keep critically ill patients comfortable and alive […]




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How Compounding Solutions are meeting the demand for medical materials during Covid-19

Since early February, custom material solutions provider, Compounding Solutions, has been working hard to meet material demands related to Covid-19.




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The force: How to improve ultrasonic plastic welding

Tom Hoover, senior medical business development manager – Americas, assembly technologies, at global technology and manufacturing company, Emerson, explains how ultrasonic plastic welding is improved through improved force control.




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Ventilators from Dyson are 'no longer required' in UK

The Dyson CoVent ventilators are no longer required in the UK, according to a statement from Sir James Dyson.




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University of Glasgow issues plea for acetate sheets to help produce plastic visors

Engineers from the University of Glasgow are responding to the coronavirus pandemic by producing up to 1,000 pieces of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) each day.




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FDA May Renege on Soy Heart Claim (Reuters</em>)

Says the evidence is equivocal




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GSK hires computational drug design expert Dr Kim Branson as new head of machine learning and AI

British multinational GlaxoSmithKline have hired computational drug design expert Dr Kim Branson as the company’s new Senior Vice President, Global Head of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning.

In his new role, the biotech veteran will oversee projects which use AI to identify novel targets for potential medicines.

Dr Branson brings to the role more than 15 years’ worth of experience in biotech and academia having held positions at a number of Silicon Valley firms including Gliimpse, Lumia and Hessian Informatics.

read more




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Dr John McHutchinson steps down from Gilead with $1.1 million goodbye

Gilead has said that Dr John McHutchison is stepping down after nine years at the firm.

Gilead’s Chief Scientific Officer and Head of Research and Development has decided to leave the company next month, Gilead said.

Under McHutchinson, Gilead developed five new hepatitis drugs, which have been used by as many as 3.2 million people around the world.

read more




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ABPI Chief Executive Mike Thompson to retire by the end of 2019

Chief Executive Mike Thompson is to retire from his role at the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) by the end of this year.

His decision to leave the association marks the end of a three-year run beginning in March 2016, when stepped in to take up the mantle from Alison Clough, who had served as the acting Chief Executive for much of 2015.

read more




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Troy Robinson promoted to managing director of Chugai Pharma Europe

Troy Robinson has been taken on as the new managing director of Chugai Pharma Europe. Mike Crosher will succeed him in his current role as managing director of Chugai Pharma UK.

Chugai Pharma Europe (CPE) has promoted Troy Robinson and Mike Crosher into the positions of managing director of CPE and managing director of the firm’s UK subsidiary, Chugai Pharma UK (CPU).

read more




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Gilead appoints Andrew Dickinson as CFO

Gilead Sciences have announced that Andrew Dickinson has been appointed as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) effective 1 November.

Dickinson currently serves as the company’s Executive Vice President of Corporate Development and Strategy and in his new role will become part of a senior leadership team reporting directly to Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Daniel O’Day.

read more




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Access to Drugs Before FDA Approval: Video Explainer with Christopher Robertson

In this video explainer, Christopher Robertson discusses the Right to Try Act and off-label use of pharmaceuticals with Alison Bateman-House.

The post Access to Drugs Before FDA Approval: Video Explainer with Christopher Robertson appeared first on Bill of Health.




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A $100 Million Biotech Deal Is Also A Tale Of Two Executives Facing Their Kids’ Deadly Diseases

“John, I’m very aware of your family’s journey, Twelve years ago I was one of the producers considering bidding on your life rights.”




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EPS taps CluePoints for trial management solution

The Japanese pharma development firm will harness risk-based quality management solutions to help sponsors improve trial quality and safety.




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Research collaboration drives to accelerate COVID-19 solutions

Led by Medable, the multi-company effort is geared toward ramping up development of treatments, diagnostics and other solutions for the pandemic-causing virus.




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Insurers + PBMs + Specialty Pharmacies + Providers: Will Vertical Consolidation Disrupt Drug Channels in 2020? (rerun)

This week, I’m rerunning some popular posts while I prepare for this Friday’s video webinar: Industry Update and COVID-19 Impact: PBMs & Payers.

Life was very different when I originally published today’s article. 2020 is not turning out to be quite what any of us expected. However, the pandemic has exposed some intriguing pros and cons of vertical consolidation. Click here to see the original post and comments from December 2019.


The largest insurers, PBMs, and specialty pharmacies have now combined into vertically-integrated organizations. As I explain below, these companies have also been rapidly integrating with healthcare providers.

I also provide an updated look at these companies and highlight strategies that they are using—or could use—to control the channel. I believe that these insurer / PBM / specialty pharmacy / provider organizations are poised to restructure U.S. drug channels by exerting greater control over patient access, sites of care/dispensing, and pricing.

If they can effectively coordinate their sprawling business operations, they will pose a substantial threat of disruption to the existing commercial strategies of pharma companies.

Will they succeed by better managing care and costs, or merely by extracting higher profits from our convoluted system?
Read more »
        




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Express Scripts vs. CVS Health: Five Lessons From the 2020 Formulary Exclusions and Some Thoughts on Patient Impact (rerun)

This week, I’m rerunning some popular posts while I prepare for this Friday’s video webinar: Industry Update and COVID-19 Impact: PBMs & Payers.

Today's rerun highlights one of the most effective tactics that PBMs have developed to extract deeper discounts from brand-name drug makers. COVID-19 seems likely shift the U.S. payer mix away from commercial health plans. Expect even tighter formulary management and more restrictions as PBMs work even harder to cut costs for their plan sponsor clients.

Click here to see the original post and comments from January 2020.




For 2020, the two largest pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs)—Express Scripts and the Caremark business of CVS Health—have again increased the number of drugs they have excluded from their standard formularies. The 2020 formulary exclusion lists are available below for your downloading pleasure.

Below, I highlight my key takeaways from the 2020 lists:
  • The number of exclusions
  • Management of specialty drugs
  • Indication-based formularies
  • The slow adoption of biosimilars
  • The PBMs’ patient-unfriendly exclusions in the hepatitis C category
Formulary exclusions have emerged as a powerful tool for PBMs to gain additional negotiating leverage against manufacturers. The prospect of exclusion leads manufacturers to offer deeper rebates to avoid being cut from the formulary. Exclusions are therefore a key factor behind falling brand-name net drug prices.

Read on for a look at this year’s exclusions along with some closing thoughts on what exclusions mean for patients.
Read more »
        




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To Prevent the Next Pandemic, End Unequal Access to Natural Resources

Safeguarding public health requires rethinking our relationship to the environment and the inequities that drive its destruction

-- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com




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Soils Store Huge Amounts of Carbon, Warming May Unleash It

Higher temperatures and wetter weather may spur soil microbes to release more carbon into the atmosphere

-- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com




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World's stock markets soar on coronavirus treatment hopes

Investors shrug off US growth gloom after promising data from remdesivir drug trial

Shares have soared on the world’s stock markets after investors shrugged off a deep slump in the US economy and pinned their hopes on a possible breakthrough in treatment for Covid-19.

Despite news that the longest expansion in US history came to an abrupt end in the first three months of 2020, financial markets were buoyed by an update from the American biopharma company Gilead Sciences on its experimental drug remdesivir.

Continue reading...




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Promising drug against Covid-19 unlikely to be available in UK soon

Trial of remdesivir shows fewer deaths and shorter hospital stays

The first drug against Covid-19 to show promise in trials, reducing the time seriously ill people take to recover in hospital, is unlikely to be available widely in the UK soon, it has emerged.

Forty-six people in the UK have received remdesivir as part of the European arm of an international trial. Researchers would like to have given the drug to more patients but did not have the supplies.

Related: Coronavirus: what do scientists know about Covid-19 so far?

Continue reading...




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South Korean researchers start testing pancreatitis drug in COVID-19 patients

The South Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety have approved a local trial to evaluate nafamostat’s effectiveness in COVID-19 patients.




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South Korea says Ebola drug remdesivir may not be suitable for all coronavirus patients

South Korea says that remdesivir, traditionally used in treating Ebola, may not be effective enough in treating COVID-19 patients.




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Rick Simpson Oil (RSO): Benefits, Effects and Research

Click to view a price quote on TLRY.




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Loss of smell associated with milder clinical course in COVID-19

Following an earlier study that validated the loss of smell and taste as indicators of SARS-CoV-2 infection, researchers at UC San Diego Health report in newly published findings that olfactory impairment suggests the resulting COVID-19 disease is more likely to be mild to moderate, a potential early indicator that could help health care providers determine which patients may require hospitalization.




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Akebia soars on positive Ph III trial results for vadadustat

Shares of US biotech Akebia Therapeutics were up more than 35% at $11.72 by early afternoon today, after…



  • Akebia Therapeutics/Biotechnology/Drug Trial/Nephrology and Hepatology/Research/USA/vadadustat

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Otezla’s impact shown in milder psoriasis

Amgen’s Otezla (apremilast), a drug divested by Celgene ahead of its acquisition by Bristol-Myers Squibb,…



  • Amgen/Biotechnology/Dermatologicals/Drug Trial/Inflammatory diseases/Otezla/Research/USA

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Teva soars as 1st-qtr beats expectations

Israel-based Teva Pharmaceutical Industries today reported results for the quarter ended March 31, 2020,…



  • Ajovy/Analgesia/Austedo/Copaxone/Financial/Generics/Israel/Musculoskeletal/Rare diseases/Teva Pharmaceutical Industries/Treanda

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jCyte out-licenses rare vision disorder treatment for $252 million

US biotech firm jCyte Inc has entered into a licensing agreement with Japanese ophthalmology specialist…



  • Biotechnology/Deals/Japan/jCell/jCyte Inc/Licensing/Ophthalmics/Rare diseases/Santen/USA/Vision disorder

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With the world waiting, Roche socks $459M into COVID-19 antibody test production

Roche scored a major win with the FDA's backing for its COVID-19 antibody tests last week in a field marked by products of questionable quality. Now, to cover its booming production goals, Roche plans to infuse nearly half-a-billion dollars into its German manufacturing facility. 




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Amgen ramps up Otezla expansion effort with positive data in mild psoriasis

Amgen is planning to file for FDA approval of Otezla in mild to moderate plaque psoriasis based on new data showing patients on the drug experienced significant improvements in their symptoms. The label expansion will be key to Amgen's ability to recoup the $13.4 billion it paid to acquire the drug from Celgene last year.




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Bristol Myers Squibb's blood thinner Eliquis soars on COVID-19 demand, but Opdivo could suffer: execs

Bristol Myers Squibb CEO Giovanni Caforio credited COVID-19-related stocking for high sales of some products in the first quarter, including Eliquis, a blood thinner that's being snapped up to reduce clotting risk in patients with the virus. But the pandemic has limited access to oncology clinics and other non-COVID-19 services, raising challenges that could impact sales later this year.




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Federal agency finds 'reasonable grounds to believe' Rick Bright's whistleblower claims: NYT

Only days after former BARDA chief Rick Bright filed a whistleblower complaint alleging retaliation by the Trump administration, the U.S. Office of the Special Counsel has recommended his temporary reinstatement, the New York Times reports.