Reuters Health News Summary

The lawsuit by Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody and the Catholic Medical Association (CMA), filed in federal court in Tampa, takes aim at a new rule published by the U.S. Department of Health and Services (HHS) on Monday that would ban discrimination in healthcare on the basis of gender identity. Pfizer reports patient death in Duchenne gene therapy study A young patient died due to cardiac arrest after receiving Pfizer's experimental gene therapy being tested in a mid-stage trial for a muscle-wasting disorder called Duchenne muscular dystrophy(DMD), the drugmaker told Reuters on Tuesday.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

US FDA panel to discuss Eli Lilly Alzheimer's drug on June 10

Eli Lilly said on Tuesday a panel of independent U.S. FDA advisers will discuss its experimental Alzheimer's disease drug, donanemab, on June 10. Donanemab has faced two separate regulatory delays in the United States, while a similar therapy by Eisai and partner Biogen, called Leqembi, received the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's approval last year.

Florida sues Biden administration over new transgender healthcare rule

Florida's top prosecutor and a Catholic medical group on Tuesday sued the Biden administration in an effort to block a rule that they say will force doctors to provide gender transition care against their judgment or face heavy penalties. The lawsuit by Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody and the Catholic Medical Association (CMA), filed in federal court in Tampa, takes aim at a new rule published by the U.S. Department of Health and Services (HHS) on Monday that would ban discrimination in healthcare on the basis of gender identity.

Pfizer reports patient death in Duchenne gene therapy study

A young patient died due to cardiac arrest after receiving Pfizer's experimental gene therapy being tested in a mid-stage trial for a muscle-wasting disorder called Duchenne muscular dystrophy(DMD), the drugmaker told Reuters on Tuesday. "A fatal serious adverse event was reported as cardiac arrest for a participant in the Phase 2 DAYLIGHT study," a company spokesperson told Reuters in an emailed response.

AstraZeneca says it will withdraw COVID-19 vaccine globally as demand dips

AstraZeneca said on Tuesday it had initiated the worldwide withdrawal of its COVID-19 vaccine due to a "surplus of available updated vaccines" since the pandemic. The company also said it would proceed to withdraw the vaccine Vaxzevria's marketing authorizations within Europe.

Regeneron's experimental gene therapy improves hearing in one patient

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals said on Wednesday its investigational gene therapy improved hearing to normal levels in a child within 24 weeks in an early to mid-stage study.

Whooping cough epidemic sweeps Europe, health agency says

European countries have reported a surge in whooping cough cases in 2023 and the first quarter of 2024, with 10 times as many identified as in each of the previous two years. In total, nearly 60,000 cases were reported by European Union and European Economic Area countries over the period, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said on Wednesday, with 11 deaths in infants and eight among older adults.

Teva, Medincell's schizophrenia drug succeeds in late-stage study

Israel-based Teva Pharmaceuticals and French partner Medincell said on Wednesday their experimental schizophrenia drug had met its main goal of reducing the severity of symptoms in a late-stage study. U.S.-listed shares of Teva were up 3.3% at $14.41 in premarket trading.

Thailand to recriminalise cannabis as PM vows to get tough on drugs

Thailand will re-list cannabis as a narcotic by year-end, its prime minister said on Tuesday, in a stunning U-turn just two years after becoming one of the first countries in Asia to decriminalise its recreational use. The moves comes despite rapid growth of a domestic retail sector for marijuana, with tens of thousands of shops and businesses springing up in Thailand in the past two years in an industry projected to be worth up to $1.2 billion by 2025.

Idaho seeks to revive 'abortion trafficking' law in US appeals court

A lawyer for the state of Idaho on Tuesday urged a federal appeals court to revive a 2023 state law making it a crime to help a minor cross state lines for an abortion without her parent's consent, which a lower court judge had blocked in November. "The law is narrow, and one would think, unobjectionable," Idaho Deputy Solicitor General Joshua Turner told the three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Seattle.

Bankrupt Steward Health puts its hospitals up for sale, discloses $9 billion in debt

Bankrupt Steward Health Care has put all of its 31 U.S. hospitals up for sale, hoping to finalize transactions by the end of the summer to address its $9 billion in total liabilities, its attorneys said at a Tuesday court hearing in Houston. Steward, which filed for bankruptcy protection on Monday, hopes to keep all of its hospitals open over the long term, Steward attorney Ray Schrock told U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Chris Lopez, who is overseeing the Chapter 11 proceedings.

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