Florida judge strikes down health care overhaul
A federal judge ruled Monday that the Obama administration's health care overhaul is unconstitutional, siding with 26 states, including Indiana, that sued to block it.
Health Care & Insurance
Articles
Execs from WellPoint, peers meet to hone health-law lobby
Top executives from WellPoint Inc. and UnitedHealth Group Inc. are meeting almost monthly with their counterparts from Aetna Inc., Cigna Corp. and Humana Inc. in an informal lobbying alliance aimed at blunting parts of the health-care law, say sources with knowledge of the sessions.
Loopholes give smoking ban bill a better chance
A proposed statewide smoking ban now has so many exemptions that health advocates say it nearly loses its meaning.
King Systems’ two top execs exit company
An executive at the Noblesville firm’s parent company said the departures of CEO Don Dumoulin and Chief Financial Officer Yun Kim were the result of a “mutual agreement.” A search is under way for replacements to lead one of the area’s largest medical device manufacturers.
Mini Thin marketer slapped with suit
A Carmel man whose Mini Thin dietary supplement was sold through convenience stores nationwide before the government banned its active ingredient now faces allegations of bankruptcy fraud.
Indiana Health Information Exchange hires new CEO
Harold Apple takes over for J. Marc Overhage, who will remain with the organization as its chief strategic officer and national policy adviser. IHIE is one of four operational exchanges in Indiana that allows for the sharing of medical records electronically.
Lilly’s fourth-quarter profit surges, topping analysts’ predictions
The Indianapolis-based drugmaker earned $1.2 billion in the quarter, compared with $915 million in the same period a year ago. Profit per share beat Wall Street forecasts by a penny.
WellPoint profit better than analyst estimates
Excluding special charges, WellPoint’s profit fell 2 percent to $524.7 million in the fourth quarter from $536 million in the fourth quarter of 2009. But earnings per share improved thanks to stock buybacks.
Lilly product gets boost; Wall Street yawns
Eli Lilly and Co. probably will get approval for its newly acquired imaging agent used to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease, but so far analysts are unimpressed.
Q&A
Chris Sears is a health care and employee-benefits attorney at Ice Miller LLP in Indianapolis. He spoke about how employers are sizing up health insurance reforms that hit in 2014, which would set up government-subsidized insurance as a new option for workers but also would penalize most employers if they stop sponsoring employee health benefits.
Head of Lilly’s oncology unit resigning
John H. Johnson has been hired as CEO by East Brunswick, N.J.-based biotechnology company Savient Pharmaceuticals Inc.
State lawmakers to take on unemployment insurance
Businesses with a history of laying off employees would pay more in unemployment insurance costs, and workers in industries where layoffs occur regularly would receive lower benefits under a bill Indiana lawmakers are preparing to take up.
Vanderbilt rejected by high court on Cialis patents
Supreme Court justices on Monday left intact a ruling throwing out a lawsuit pressed by the Nashville, Tenn., university against Eli Lilly’s Icos subsidiary.
Zionsville retirement village plans $32 million expansion
Hoosier Village Retirement Center in Zionsville announced plans Monday morning for a $32 million project that will expand its campus and allow the center to add 50 full-time workers.
Lilly seeks to block imports of cancer drug copy
The local drugmaker told the International Trade Commission on Thursday that the generic version of Gemzar violates its patent on the process for making the active ingredient.
Lilly imaging drug fails to win FDA panel’s backing
Eli Lilly and Co.’s Amyvid isn’t ready to be approved to detect Alzheimer’s-related deposits in the brain, according to FDA advisors. The medicine could still be approved if Lilly establishes a training program and a way to ensure that the results of brain scans are read consistently, they said.
FDA panel sees promise in Lilly imaging drug
A federal panel of medical experts said Thursday a first-of-a-kind imaging chemical designed to help screen for Alzheimer's disease could be useful pending additional study and training for physicians.
California judge bars Conseco Life from boosting rates
A federal judge in Los Angeles ruled Wednesday that Carmel-based Conseco Life Insurance Co. may not follow through with a plan to raise policy rates for more than 50,000 mostly elderly policyholders.
Uptick in M&A activity suggests a turnaround
Fourth quarter helps to bolster 2010 deal-making.
Indiana companies prepping for burst of acquisitions
Conditions are ripe for a barrage of mergers and acquisitions to take place this year.