Health News Roundup: J&J to restructure orthopedic business after medical device sales miss; Rite Aid files for bankruptcy faced with high debt, opioid lawsuits and more

The U.S. health regulator's approval extends Keytruda's use in combination with chemotherapy as a treatment given before surgery to shrink the size of the tumor in patients. EU regulator backs use of Merck's viral infection drug Merck & Co said on Tuesday the European Union medicines regulator recommended a marketing authorisation for the company's drug Prevymis to treat a type of infection in adult kidney transplant recipients at high risk.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

J&J to restructure orthopedic business after medical device sales miss

Johnson & Johnson on Tuesday said it has embarked on a two-year restructuring program for its orthopedics business after third-quarter medical devices sales fell short of Wall Street expectations, reflecting the company's narrowed focus since spinning off its consumer health unit. J&J said it plans to exit certain markets and stop selling some orthopedic products as part of the restructuring program.

Rite Aid files for bankruptcy faced with high debt, opioid lawsuits

Debt-laden U.S. drugstore chain Rite Aid filed for bankruptcy protection late on Sunday and said it would close underperforming stores, sell its pharmacy benefit company Elixir and resolve lawsuits over its sale of addictive opioid medications. Rite Aid, one of the largest U.S. pharmacy retailers, stumbled under its high debt, revenue declines, increased competition, and opioid litigation, according to its court filings.

Pfizer's COVID outlook cuts hit other vaccine maker shares

Pfizer set off a fresh round of concern about the size of the U.S. COVID-19 vaccine and treatment market in the long term, driving down shares on Monday of its German partner BioNTech and smaller rival Moderna. Vaccine makers are depending on the U.S. market as many countries have more limited yearly campaigns for giving updated shots. For BioNTech, Moderna, and Novavax, COVID vaccines remain their only approved products.

Merck's Keytruda gets FDA nod for expanded use in lung cancer

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Monday approved the expanded use of Merck & Co's blockbuster immunotherapy Keytruda in early-stage patients with non-small cell lung cancer who can get their tumors removed surgically. The U.S. health regulator's approval extends Keytruda's use in combination with chemotherapy as a treatment given before surgery to shrink the size of the tumor in patients.

EU regulator backs use of Merck's viral infection drug

Merck & Co said on Tuesday the European Union medicines regulator recommended a marketing authorisation for the company's drug Prevymis to treat a type of infection in adult kidney transplant recipients at high risk. The drugmaker says Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) also recommended the approval for extending dosing of the drug to 200 days from 100 days, following a type of transplant in adult patients.

Norway reports bird flu outbreak in backyard poultry

Norway has reported an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza, commonly called bird flu, among poultry in the northern part of the country, the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) said on Tuesday. The bird flu outbreak was found in a backyard with 19 domestic birds, the Paris-based body said, quoting information from Norway's health authorities.

US FDA approves Ardelyx's kidney disease-related drug

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Ardelyx's drug to treat high phosphate levels in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD), the company said on Tuesday, more than two years after it was initially rejected. The drug, branded as Xphozah, was approved to treat hyperphosphatemia, a condition resulting in an abnormally elevated level of phosphorus in the blood.

Four-day work week boosts Spanish workers' health, pilot programme shows

Four-day work weeks improved Spanish workers' health such as by lowering stress while reducing fuel emissions and benefiting children, a pilot programme showed on Tuesday. The coastal city of Valencia - Spain's third-largest with more than 800,000 inhabitants - scheduled local holidays to fall on four consecutive Mondays between April 10 and May 7 this year. The project affected 360,000 workers.

Novo Nordisk in $1.3 billion deal to buy hypertension drug

Novo Nordisk has agreed to buy ocedurenone, a drug for uncontrolled hypertension with potential application in cardiovascular and kidney disease, from KBP Biosciences for up to $1.3 billion, the Danish drugmaker said on Monday. "This deal is closely aligned with our strategic focus on expanding from our core in diabetes into other serious chronic diseases, including through novel drug modalities," Novo said in a statement.

Bankrupt Rite Aid resolves drug supply dispute with McKesson

Pharmacy chain Rite Aid has settled a critical dispute with drug supplier McKesson Corp to ensure that customers' prescriptions will continue to be filled during Rite Aid's bankruptcy, attorneys said on Tuesday. Rite Aid, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Sunday night in New Jersey, sued McKesson the following morning, seeking to stop it from terminating a drug supply agreement that accounts for 98% of the pharmacy chain's prescription drug sales.