Committee OKs bill that boosts age to buy cigarettes, e-liquids to 21
Senate Bill 425, authored by Sen. Randy Head, R-Logansport, would also prevent anyone under 18 from entering designated smoking areas in clubs and cigar stores.
Health Care
Articles
Rokita lands job with Indianapolis health benefits company
Todd Rokita, who represented Indiana’s 4th district from 2010-2018 and served as secretary of state from 2002-2010, has taken a job as general counsel and vice president of external affairs for Apex Benefits.
Lilly shares dip due to drug failure, lowered forecast
The Indianapolis-based pharmaceutical giant on Wednesday tempered expectations for its earnings in 2019 after a promising cancer drug failed to pan out and the firm prepared for big acquisition.
Trump targets drug middlemen with ‘devastating’ rebate overhaul
The Trump administration Thursday unveiled a plan to channel now-hidden prescription drug rebates directly to patients, saying it would bypass middlemen and lower prices for consumers.
Community’s new east-side digs feature big ER, modern amenities
When the $175 million hospital opens in stages over the next two weeks, patients and visitors will see a major upgrade in facilities.
Harvard study involving Anthem unit finds older insulins are both safe, cheaper
Increasingly, top researchers are questioning whether drugs such as Lantus from Sanofi, Levemir and Novolog from Novo Nordisk A/S, and Humalog from Eli Lilly and Co. are really needed for many patients.
Senators threaten to force drug execs to testify about prices
Sen. Ron Wyden, the ranking Democrat on the committee, singled out Humalog, an insulin made by Indianapolis-based Eli Lilly and Co, as a drug with unwarranted price hikes.
Lilly cancer drug shouldn’t be started in new patients, FDA says
Lartruvo shouldn’t be started in new patients, and those patients already taking it should ask their doctors if they should continue, U.S. regulators said, following a key study that failed to show the medicine prolonged lives.
Health care systems increasingly allowing patients to rate doctors
Indiana University Health and Community Health Network have joined the national trend of posting online reviews, in a quest to win prospective patients and boost transparency.
Marian University interested in taking over state mental hospital site
The private university has started conversations with the state for assuming control of the site that holds Larue D. Carter Memorial Hospital, which will close later this year.
UPDATE: Indiana doctor’s offspring pushing state fertility fraud law
A Senate committee went along Wednesday with the request from Republican Sen. Mike Young of Indianapolis to remove from a bill the section creating a felony charge of fertility fraud for doctors using their own sperm or eggs without the patient’s consent.
Poll: Support for ‘Medicare-for-all’ fluctuates wildly with details
“Medicare-for-all” makes a good first impression, but support plunges when people are asked if they’d pay higher taxes or put up with treatment delays to get it.
Promising Lilly cancer drug fails in disappointing trial, shares fall 3 percent
Analysts had predicted that Lartruvo could eventually ring up as much as $600 million in annual sales. Eli Lilly and Co. now says it will suspend promotion of the drug.
Another senior living facility planned for Whitestown
The Whitestown Plan Commission has approved plans for a seven-building senior living center northeast of Main Street and Central Boulevard. The vacant land once was earmarked for a similar facility by another developer.
Fast-growing Activate Healthcare acquired by Denver firm
The Indianapolis-based provider of health clinics for businesses has grown to 250 employees in 10 years. But it recently started looking for another owner.
Senators ask FDA to update rules on CBD, hemp products
Congress legalized the production and sale of industrial hemp and hemp derivatives, including CBD. But FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb has restated his agency’s stance that CBD is a drug ingredient and therefore illegal to add to food or health products without his agency’s approval.
Walmart to leave CVS pharmacy network
The dispute between the world’s largest retail chain and the prominent pharmacy-benefits manager could roil the business of filling prescriptions.
Local hospitals beginning temporary restrictions for visitors
Indianapolis hospitals are among those in the state imposing restrictions on visitors to try to curb the spread of flu.
Lilly to disclose more information about drug pricing
Eli Lilly and Co. won’t put the price of its prescription drugs in television ads, as the Trump administration has called for pharmaceutical companies to do, but will begin promoting a website where prices are available.
U.S. cancer death rate hits 25th year of decline
Lower smoking rates are translating into fewer deaths. Advances in early detection and treatment also are having a positive impact, experts say.