Health Care

U.S. House Leader Hoyer Says Chamber Will Pass Health Measure This Month U.S. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer predicted his chamber will approve the Senate health-care overhaul this month along with a package of changes, and said public support is gaining for the legislation.

Pelosi Signals Aim to Pass Health-Care Bill Before Obama Leaves for Asia U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi signaled that she will seek passage next week of legislation overhauling the health-care system after President Barack Obama delayed the start of his trip to Asia until March 21.

Amylin's Ohio Plant Had Inappropriate Quality Control, U.S. FDA Finds Amylin Pharmaceuticals Inc.’s plant that makes a proposed new version of the diabetes drug Byetta had inadequate quality control and training for employees, U.S. regulators said.

Sanofi, Bristol-Myers Strengthen Warning on Plavix to Highlight Genetics Sanofi-Aventis SA and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. upgraded a warning for the blood thinner Plavix, saying that a genetic variant in some people keeps their bodies from unleashing the full power of the drug.

Overweight Preteens More Likely to Eat School-Provided Lunches, Study Says Students who regularly eat lunch provided by their schools are more likely to be overweight and have higher levels of cholesterol than those who eat meals brought from home, a Michigan study found.

Unlocking Cancer Drug Mechanism May Avoid Birth Defect Risks, Study Says Scientists have uncovered how a drug used in blood cancer medicines leads to short or missing limbs in babies, moving closer to developing treatments without the risk of these birth defects.

Birth-Control Pills Reduce Cancer, Lengthen Women's Lives in 40-Year Study Birth-control pills may lead to longer lives for women, according to a 40-year study that showed users were less likely to die of heart disease, cancer or a range of other medical ailments.

Fat Surgery Urged for Obese Kids May Boost Allergan Sales, Trim Liability David Ludwig, director of the obesity program at Children’s Hospital Boston, was against weight-loss surgery for kids, he says, because it ignored the real problem, a “toxic environment” jammed with junk food.

Ratiopharm Beats 2009 Earnings Goal, Says Takeover Feedback Is `Positive' Ratiopharm GmbH, the German drugmaker being sold by the Merckle family, beat its own forecast with 307 million euros ($423 million) in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization last year.

Roche's Avastin Fails to Extend Lives of Prostate Cancer Patients in Study Roche Holding AG said its Avastin cancer medicine failed to extend the life of men with late-stage prostate cancer in a study, limiting the Swiss drugmaker’s efforts to expand the use of its biggest medicine.