Reuters Health News Summary

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Drug firms avert landmark opioid trial as talks on $48-billion settlement set to resume

Four large drug companies could resume talks on Tuesday to try to reach a $48 billion settlement of all opioid litigation against them, after agreeing with two Ohio counties to a $260 million deal to avert the first federal trial over their role in the U.S. opioid epidemic. Drug distributors AmerisourceBergen Corp, Cardinal Health Inc and McKesson Corp and drugmaker Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd agreed to the deal that removed the immediate threat of a trial that was to begin on Monday in Cleveland.

Canadian election clears path for universal drug plan

Canada's Liberal government is more likely to pass a universal prescription drug plan after losing its majority in Monday's election, setting the stage for what would be the biggest shakeup of the country's public healthcare system since it was created in the 1960s. The Liberals won the most seats in the election but fell short of a majority, which means Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will need the support of rivals like the left-leaning New Democratic Party (NDP) to govern. Both the Liberals and NDP have promised a new national drug plan.

Massachusetts vaping sales ban can stand but needs fixes: judge

A Massachusetts judge on Monday declined to immediately halt a ban on the sale of vaping products adopted after an outbreak of e-cigarette-related lung injuries, but he said the state must redo the ban and get public comment this time. The ruling by Suffolk County Superior Court Judge Douglas Wilkins in Boston was a partial victory for Republican Governor Charlie Baker, who through an executive order last month adopted the toughest sales ban of any state in response to the outbreak.

Biogen resurrects Alzheimer's drug; shares jump 27%

Biogen Inc revived plans on Tuesday to seek U.S. approval for Alzheimer's treatment aducanumab, surprising investors and saying data from more patients in two discontinued studies showed the drug reduced the decline of patients suffering from the disease. The drugmaker's shares soared 27% in response to the decision, recouping almost all of the $18 billion lost from the company's market value when it said in March it was abandoning the two studies.

Climate change hampers progress on fighting epidemics: Global Fund

Climate change is making it harder to eradicate deadly epidemics, with rising temperatures helping mosquitoes spread malaria in higher places in Africa, the head of a global health fund said on Tuesday. Other potential deadly consequences of climate change include more intense cyclones which leave an increased risk of infections in their wake, said Peter Sands, Executive Director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

Kenya launches first breast milk bank to help newborns

The five mothers sat in a bright blue room in Kenya's largest maternity hospital waiting to pump breast milk - but not for their own newborns. At Kenya's first breast milk bank, the women were waiting to help infants whose mothers couldn't feed them by donating some of their own milk.

Trump administration says Obamacare plan premiums to fall

Monthly premiums for an average 2020 Obamacare health insurance plan will fall about 4 percent from this year, according to a report released Tuesday by the Trump administration, which has tried to dismantle the program. The Trump administration has cut back on funding for the health insurance program, which was created by President Barack Obama as part of the Affordable Care Act and is often called Obamacare, and has sought to overturn it in Congress and legal courts. Obamacare provides needs-based subsidies to help low-income people buy health insurance.

More than 100 elephants die in Botswana in suspected anthrax outbreak

More than 100 elephants have died in Botswana in the past two months partly because of a suspected anthrax outbreak, the government said on Tuesday. "Preliminary investigations suggest the elephants are dying from anthrax whilst some died from drought effects," a Department of Wildlife and National Parks statement said.

Novartis data suggest payers getting breaks on gene therapy Zolgensma

Novartis sales data on Tuesday suggested the Swiss drugmaker is reaping less than the $2.1 million U.S. list price for its gene therapy Zolgensma, as insurers may be getting breaks on the world's most-expensive one-time treatment. The spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) treatment, approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in May, has reaped $175 million in revenue this year, including $160 million in the third quarter.

Johnson & Johnson CEO testified Baby Powder was safe 13 days before FDA bombshell

Facing off against a plaintiff’s lawyer for the first time about Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder, the company’s Chief Executive Alex Gorsky earlier this month insisted that the company’s iconic brand was safe. “We unequivocally believe that our talc and our baby powder does not contain asbestos,” Gorsky testified in an Oct. 3 deposition in a case involving a retired Indiana college professor who alleges his cancer was caused by the Baby Powder he used for decades. The deposition has not been previously reported.