Health Care Sector

Home-Use Medical Devices

Minute Molecular Diagnostics announces FDA Emergency Use Authorization for rapid DASH SARS-CoV-2/S Test; product provides COVID-19 test results in about 15 minutes
Business Wire (03/16)

Diagnostic Tests/Monitoring Devices

Georgia-based 5Strands Affordable Testing appoints founding member Austin Collins as CEO, CMO as company looks to expand internationally; Collins recently hired pet nutritionist Tazz Latifi as director of consumer and retail education and sales
5Strands Affordable Testing (03/17)

UPM reviews its Covid prevention measures at its offices, facilities; company runs testing point at its head office in Helsinki, carried out 40,000 tests at Paso de los Toros, Uruguay, project, vaccinated 1,400 workers, family members in Germany, Austria
UPM (03/15)

Respiratory/Lung Health

FDA approves Mylan Pharmaceuticals’ symbicort inhalation aerosol generic containing budesonide, formoterol in two strengths, 160/4.5 mcg/actuation, 80/4.5 mcg/actuation; product treats asthma, COPD, including chronic bronchitis, emphysema
M2 Pharma (03/17)

Medical Facilities/Units

Sienna Senior Living to acquire 50% ownership in a 186-suite retirement residence in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan; facility will include 27 assisted living suites
GlobeNewswire (03/15)

Real-world study in France analyzes characteristics of fully vaccinated patients hospitalized with Delta-variant COVID-19, comprising 17% of subjects; fully vaccinated persons show lower rate of severe pneumonia, but similar rates of ICU admission, death
Vaccine Daily (03/15)

Hospital/Medical Use

Ra Medical Systems files 510(k) application with FDA for DABRA catheter with braided overjacket, six-month shelf life, for treating infrainguinal lower extremity vascular disease; device made at 32,000 square-foot plant in Carlsbad, California
Ra Medical Systems, Inc. (03/16)

Hospitals

CDC reports hospitalizations of children aged 0 to 4 years with Omicron variant of COVID-19 five times greater than during Delta variant outbreak at 14.5 per 100,000 children; 63% of those hospitalized had no underlying medical conditions
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (03/16)

Eli Lilly reports Jardiance Phase 3 trial data showing drug's clinical benefits to patients with new, existing acute heart failure; heart failure accounts for more than 1 million hospitalizations in US, with 30% of patients readmitted within 90 days
Eli Lilly & Co. (03/16)

Health Care & Wellness

Research finds vitamin D3 may help protect against viruses, bacteria, while vitamin D2 has questionable impact on human health; study suggests importance of vitamin D3 supplements, fortified food, especially during winter when sunlight is limited: study
CDC & FDA Daily (03/17)

Augusta University's Medical College of Georgia highlights research on loss of smell or taste in individuals who have had COVID-19, supported by NIH grant; preliminary data suggests taste bud cells are affected by the virus
Targeted News Service (Press Releases) (03/16)

Over-the-Counter (OTC) Drugs

Americans taking more than twice the amount of melatonin they took a decade earlier, with growing subset having daily melatonin intake that exceeds 5mg for sleep; older adults with nightly use also have higher risk of dementia, early mortality: research
Philadelphia Tribune (03/16)

Prescription Drugs

Beroe expects global warehousing market size to rise 7% year-over-year to value of US$285B in 2022 and US$326.3B by 2024 on demand for e-commerce, online groceries, pharmaceuticals; other factors include need for last-mile deliveries, geopolitical issues
PR Newswire (03/17)

FDA approves BLA 125472 for Genentech’s actemra tocilizumab 162mg/0.9ml subcutaneous injectable and intravenous biologic; product is available by prescription only
US Official News (03/16)

Hospital/Clinical Drugs

FDA approves NDA 215457 for Kaleo’s naloxone hydrochloride 10mg injectable; drug is available by prescription only
US Official News (03/16)

Capsules/Pills/Tablets

Amneal's Q4 net loss attributable to Amneal widens to US$6.4M from US$3.0M from a year ago, with net revenue up 5% to US$536.9M, driven by new generics, specialty products Rytary and Unithroid; company to deepen R&D pipeline in injectables, biosimilars
Amneal Pharmaceuticals LLC (03/15)

Biopharmaceuticals/Biologics

Thermo Fisher Scientific to invest US$97M to expand clinical research operations in Richmond, Virginia; facilities will support rising demand across biopharmaceutical industry for high-quality laboratory services supporting drug development
Business Wire (03/16)

Catalent Biologics announces completion of US$30M project at its facility in Limoges, France, to transform into a European center of excellence for biopharmaceutical development
Catalent Inc. (03/16)

Vaccination/Immunization

Pfizer and BioNTech submit application to FDA for Emergency Use Authorization of an additional COVID-19 vaccine booster for adults aged 65 and older; application is based on real-world data from Israel when Omicron variant was circulating
Pfizer Inc. (03/16)

Pharmaceuticals/Nutraceuticals

Pfizer will continue shipments of its medicines to Russia, highlighting principle of supporting patient welfare; company will meanwhile donate all profits from its Russian subsidiary in support of humanitarian aid to Ukraine
Pfizer Inc. (03/16)

Amneal receives FDA approval for filgrastim-ayow biosimilar to treat neutropenia, with product launch planned for Q3 this year; IQVIA reports 2021 US biosimilar sales of US$275M, with Amneal launching two more biosimilars later this year
Amneal Pharmaceuticals LLC (03/16)

Health Care & Medical Packaging

Italy-based glass pharmaceutical packaging firm Stevanato Group acquires new manufacturing plant in Zhangjiagang, China, for drug containment, drug delivery and diagnostic development; company expects to begin renovation this spring
Marketline - Deals (03/17)

Advanced packaging and medication dispensing solutions provider Jones Healthcare Group joins Sustainable Medicines Partnership; Jones to use its expertise, technologies and patient focus to make meaningful impacts in sustainable packaging and digitization
Contify Life Science News (03/17)

Medical Labels

Military treatment facility pharmacies replacing printed monographs or MedGuides with QR codes on prescription packaging, reducing paper use, keeping patient information private, sharing robust information in variety of formats to meet patient needs
Targeted News Service (03/17)

European self-adhesive labelstock demand increases 7% to almost 8.5 billion m2 in 2021, after increase of 4.3% in 2020; demand driven by need for labels in food, personal care, medical, pharmaceutical, but industry hard hit by material shortages in 2022
Féderation Internationale des Fabricants et Transformateurs d'Adhésifs et Thermocollants sur Papiers et Autres Supports (FINAT) (03/15)

Blister Pack

Sonoco Alloyd wins Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries’ 2022 Design for Recycling award for its EnviroSense PaperBlister; the plastic-free, monomaterial package offers a recyclable alternative to traditional retail plastic-to-card blister packaging
Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) (03/15)

Caps & Closures

Reckitt recalls more than 3 million bottles of Airborne Gummies due to injury hazard; when opened for the first time, pressure build up in the bottle can cause the cap and underlying seal to pop off with force, posing an injury hazard
PR Newswire (03/16)

Spain-based Virospack presents dropper with metal shell finish for cosmetic formulas with CBD; with a child-proof safety closure system incorporated in its cap, the dropper requires that users press down and turn, making it more difficult to open
Packaging Strategies (03/16)

Latest: Mar, 17 2022