Patients gained an average of 5.6% in lean body mass during the Allurion Program
Separate studies of patients on GLP-1 therapy report an average lean mass loss of 11%
Thursday, June 20, 2024
Gilead’s Twice-Yearly Lenacapavir 100% Efficacy and Superiority to Daily Truvada® for HIV Prevention
– First Phase 3 HIV Prevention Trial Ever to Show Zero Infections –
– Independent Data Monitoring Committee Recommended That Gilead Stop the Blinded Phase of the PURPOSE 1 Trial at Interim Analysis and Offer Open-Label Lenacapavir to All Participants –
US hospitals scrap $320 million deal after FTC court win
Healthcare company Novant Health said on Tuesday that it is abandoning a $320 million deal to acquire two North Carolina hospitals from Community Health Systems, after a U.S. appeals court temporarily blocked the transaction.
Siding with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, the Richmond, Virginia-based 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 on Tuesday to suspend the deal while the FTC challenged a lower court's decision that let the acquisition move forward.
Winston-Salem, North Carolina-based Novant said soon afterward that it was scrapping its plan to purchase the two Charlotte-area hospitals.
"We are steadfast in our belief that these facilities and their patients would have greatly benefited from joining Novant Health, but with the FTC’s continued roadblocks we do not see a way to finalize this transaction," the company said in a statement.
The FTC and lawyers and spokespeople for Franklin, Tennessee-based Community Health Systems did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The FTC sued to block the transaction in January after filing an administrative action challenging the deal, claiming it would lead to higher prices and reduced innovative care.
Siding with the hospital companies, U.S. District Judge Kenneth Bell in Charlotte said in a June 5 decision that the public interest was not “best served” by stopping Novant’s proposed transaction.
The merger “carries at least as much likelihood of competitive benefits as it does competitive harm,” the judge wrote.
The FTC appealed Bell’s order to the 4th Circuit and askedthe court to halt the transaction in the meantime.
FTC Chair Lina Khan has said the healthcare markets are a priority in the Biden administration’s antitrust enforcement agenda.
A hearing in the agency's administrative case against the hospital deal was set for July 26.
The case is Federal Trade Commission v. Novant Health Inc and Community Health Systems Inc, 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 24-1526.
For FTC: Benjamin Aiken of FTC
For Novant: Heidi Hubbard and Sarah Harris of Williams & Connolly
For Community Health Systems: Michael Perry and Jamie France of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher
https://www.yahoo.com/news/us-hospitals-scrap-320-million-213250522.html
US, China to hold high-level talks on anti-narcotics cooperation
The United States and China were set to hold high-level talks on anti-narcotics cooperation on Thursday, following a breakthrough in bilateral work this week that saw them jointly go after a major drug-linked money laundering operation.
The U.S. and China restarted talks on counter-narcotics and law enforcement cooperation at the start of the year and China's public security department lauded the case as a successful example of anti-drug cooperation between the two superpowers.
The U.S. Justice Department alleged this week that Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel conspired with groups based in California and tied to Chinese underground banking to launder drug-trafficking proceeds of more than $50 million.
The Justice Department said it closely coordinated with law enforcement in Mexico and China. Chinese state media said China arrested the suspect in the case, adding it involved criminal activities including the illegal trading of foreign exchange.
The United States, where fentanyl abuse has been a major cause of death, has pushed for deeper law enforcement cooperation, including tackling illicit finance and further controls on the chemicals that can be used to make fentanyl.
Rahul Gupta, director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, was expected to meet high level Chinese officials to discuss the cooperation on Thursday, Chinese state media said.
Ties between the two countries have been tense in recent years over a range of issues including the origins of COVID-19, trade tariffs, Taiwan and human rights, hampering Washington's hopes of persuading China to re-join its efforts to stop the flow of fentanyl into the United States.
In November 2019, in an unusual disclosure of Sino-U.S. cooperation in cracking down on fentanyl crimes, Chinese and U.S. law enforcement jointly announced that they had worked together to break up a smuggling ring.
But such cooperation fizzled out when COVID-19 arrived, and geopolitical headwinds pushed bilateral ties to their lowest in decades - until the November summit between Presidents Joe Biden and Xi Jinping led to a thaw and the resumption of anti-narcotics talks.
In an interview with state broadcaster CGTN, deputy secretary general of China National Narcotics Control Commission Yu Haibin reiterated China's position that the U.S. was to blame for creating the fentanyl problem due to "its own misuse of prescription drugs".
But he added that "China is willing to offer full support in terms of material control, intelligence sharing, law enforcement and combating transnational crimes."
He said that currently the two countries "are conducting joint investigations in several cases – which will have a significant deterrent effect on criminals involved in drug-related activities in both China and the United States."
https://www.yahoo.com/news/us-china-hold-high-level-052324063.html
RFK Jr. misses deadline to join Biden-Trump debate next week
Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is unlikely to participate in 2024's first U.S. presidential debate after missing a deadline to meet criteria set by hosting news organization CNN.
CNN, host of the June 27 debate, previously said only President Joe Biden and Republican rival Donald Trump had met its conditions to take part ahead of a 12 a.m. ET (0400 GMT) Thursday deadline.
The conditions included appearing on enough state ballots to potentially win the presidency and also garnering at least 15% voter support in four separate national polls.
Kennedy had received at least 15% in only three accepted polls to date and, by CNN's tally, had qualified for the ballot in just six states. That would not be enough to win the presidency.
Neither CNN, a division of Warner Bros Discovery, nor Kennedy's campaign were immediately available for comment.
Kennedy had argued the TV network's standards were being applied unfairly and intended to keep him off the stage with candidates who would prefer a one-on-one race.
The Kennedy campaign asked that the Federal Election Commission take action by Thursday and keep CNN, Biden and Trump from holding the June 27 debate unless it makes changes. The FEC declined to comment.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/rfk-jr-misses-deadline-join-050419161.html
Vanda Board: Takeover Proposals Not in Best Interests of Company, Shareholders
Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Vanda) (Nasdaq: VNDA) today announced that the Company's Board of Directors (the "Board"), following careful review and consultation with its independent financial and legal advisors, has determined that the unsolicited proposal from Cycle Group Holdings Ltd ("Cycle Group") to acquire Vanda for $8.00 per share in cash and the revised unsolicited proposal from Future Pak, LLC ("FP") to acquire Vanda for $8.50-$9.00 per share in cash plus certain Contingent Value Rights ("CVRs") both substantially undervalue Vanda and are not in the best interests of the Company and its shareholders. Accordingly, the Board has rejected the proposals.
The Vanda Board again evaluated all aspects of Vanda's business against the unsolicited proposals and determined that the proposals are opportunistic attempts to purchase the Company's shares at a discount to Vanda's intrinsic value. The Board's prior analysis of the company's clinical development pipeline, expanding commercial presence and significant cash balance remains unchanged. The Board also reached the same conclusion as it reached previously regarding the speculative nature of the CVRs given the uncertainty surrounding the achievement of the commercial milestones under FP's management.
The Board and management team remain confident that Vanda's robust revenue, strong cash position and efficient operations position the Company well for significant long-term growth and value creation far in excess of the consideration offered by Cycle Group and FP.
There is no action for shareholders to take at this time.
Russia Targets Ukrainian Power System Overnight in New Barrage
- DTEK thermal power plant was damaged, three workers wounded
- This was seventh Russian attack against DTEK in three months
Russia destroyed and damaged Ukrainian energy facilities overnight as President Vladimir Putin’s forces continue attacks to disrupt the country’s power system.
Russia targeted the central Dnipropetrovsk and Vinnytsia regions, as well as the Kyiv region and part of the Donetsk region in the east, the Energy Ministry said in a post on Telegram on Thursday morning. The ministry didn’t specify what infrastructure was hit.
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