[ScienceMag] The U.S. government released new final rules today that will tighten up oversight of financial conflicts of interest in biomedical research. The rules are similar to draft regulations released in May of last year, but a requirement aimed at informing the public about conflicts has been watered down.
The 159-page rule (including preamble) tightens a [...]

This past week both Merck and Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, Ltd. faced legal complications concerning select drug products. Merck received a subpoena from U.S. regulators regarding marketing techniques of three drugs: Temodar, PegIntron, and Intron A in addition to dealing with problems from the Enviornmental Protection Agency. Similarly, TEVA was sued by GlaxoSmithKline and Pfizer for [...]

[NYT] WASHINGTON — The Obama administration issued new standards on Monday that require health insurance plans to cover all government-approved contraceptives for women, without co-payments or other charges.
The standards, which also guarantee free coverage of other preventive services for women, follow recommendations from the National Academy of Sciences and grew out of the new health [...]

(Reuters) – Drug companies that had medicines tested by contractor Cetero Research might have to reevaluate results, U.S. regulators warned after the firm was found faking documents and manipulating samples.
The Food and Drug Administration said on Tuesday two 2010 inspections, an internal company investigation and a third-party audit uncovered “significant instances of misconduct and violations” [...]

[Tampabay]-State Rep. Richard Corcoran recalled a day last year when a doctor recommended an MRI test for his wife’s back pain.
When they asked how much it would cost, “nobody knew,” Corcoran said. “No one would tell me.”
They called around, and found that the price of an MRI varied from $350 to $1,200.
That experience was a [...]

[FierceHealthcare]- With a compensation that totals nearly $21 million in 2010, CEO Wayne Smith of Community Health Systems, Inc. (NYSE: CYH) in Tennessee, ranks number six on the list of overpaid CEOs, according to Business Insider.
Examining companies whose share prices fell but their CEOs made more than $11 million in 2010, Smith’s above-average paycheck follows [...]

[NYT] When poor people are given medical insurance, they not only find regular doctors and see doctors more often but they also feel better, are less depressed and are better able to maintain financial stability, according to a new, large-scale study that provides the first rigorously controlled assessment of the impact of Medicaid.
While the findings may [...]

[Post-Gazette] The boards that lead Highmark Inc. and West Penn Allegheny Health System have unanimously approved a “capital partnership” in which the area’s dominant health insurer will invest up to $475 million into the region’s second largest health system, including an up-front $50 million payment that will rescue Bloomfield’s West Penn Hospital from what would [...]

[The Washington Post]- As the U.S. government steps up investigations of companies suspected of paying bribes overseas, law enforcement officials are leaving much of the detective work to the very corporations under suspicion.
The probes are so costly and wide-ranging that the Justice Department and Securities and Exchange Commission often let the companies investigate themselves and then share the [...]

[FirstWord]- A Novartis spokesman confirmed Tuesday that the company dismissed a number of senior executives for misconduct. The person declined to detail the number of staff involved, and did not give reasons for the disciplinary action. “We do not comment on the specifics of disciplinary actions related to current or former employees,” the spokesman said.
In [...]