Health News Roundup: NIH selects Jeanne Marrazzo to lead infectious diseases institute; India finds 'violations' at cough syrup maker linked to Cameroon deaths and more

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

NIH selects Jeanne Marrazzo to lead infectious diseases institute

The U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) said on Wednesday that Jeanne Marrazzo had been selected to head its infectious diseases institute, months after its long-time director Anthony Fauci stepped down from the position. Fauci is the top U.S. infectious disease official who became the face of America's response to the COVID-19 pandemic under Presidents Donald Trump and Joe Biden.

India finds 'violations' at cough syrup maker linked to Cameroon deaths

India has found violations related to manufacturing and laboratory practices at drugmaker Riemann Labs, whose cough syrup was linked to the deaths of children in Cameroon, a government health official told Reuters on Wednesday. Authorities have stepped up scrutiny of drugmakers after some cough syrups made in India were linked to deaths of dozens of children overseas.

India finds string of deficiencies among drugmakers after risk tests

India has found multiple deficiencies among drugmakers following wide-ranging inspections across the industry, including a lack of raw materials testing, the health ministry said on Wednesday. Indian authorities have stepped up scrutiny of drugmakers in recent months after some cough syrups made in the country were linked to the deaths of at least 95 children overseas.

Drugmakers brace for list of first 10 drugs for US price negotiations

Drugmakers are bracing for the U.S. government's announcement of the 10 prescription medicines that will be subject to the first-ever price negotiations by the Medicare health program that covers 66 million people, according to three top manufacturers. The U.S. is expected to publish the list online in about a month, kicking off a process that has already faced multiple legal challenges.

Teva CEO says not too late to launch Humira biosimilar in 2024

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries will still pursue launching a biosimilar of AbbVie's blockbuster arthritis drug Humira next year despite a crowded marketplace, Chief Executive Richard Francis said on Wednesday. Francis said Teva's Iceland production site still needs to pass an inspection before it gets U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval, likely in the first half of 2024.

McKesson lifts annual profit forecast after strong quarterly results

Drug distributer McKesson on Wednesday raised its full-year profit forecast after strong demand for specialty medicines and weight-loss drugs boosted first-quarter results above estimates, sending its shares up more than 3% after hours.

Weight-loss drugs have seen an overwhelming surge in demand in the United States, where more than 40% of Americans are grappling with obesity, according to government data.

J&J talc cancer plaintiffs want 6-month ban on further bankruptcy filings

Lawyers for thousands of people who claim Johnson & Johnson's talc-based powders caused them to develop cancer on Wednesday urged a U.S. judge to temporarily block the company from seeking bankruptcy protection for a third time for its talc subsidiary. J&J's attempt at resolving thousands of cancer lawsuits in bankruptcy court stumbled for a second time last week, when a judge ruled that the talc subsidiary, LTL Management, was not in the kind of immediate financial distress necessary to trigger bankruptcy protection.

GSK sues Pfizer in US for patent infringement over RSV vaccine

British biopharmaceutical giant GSK sued Pfizer in a U.S. court on Wednesday, alleging that Pfizer's respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine Abrysvo violates GSK's patent rights in its rival RSV shot Arexvy. In the lawsuit brought in federal court in Delaware, GSK said New York-based Pfizer's vaccine infringes four of its patents related to the antigen its shots use to fight the respiratory disease.

Taiwan women freeze their eggs as 'insurance' in hopes of law change

Seated with her legs stretched out on her living room floor, Vivian Tung scrunched her bare stomach to find a spot where she could inject Rekovelle, a hormonal medicine used to stimulate egg production. The 33-year-old Taiwanese brand marketing director had to inject herself daily over the two-week process it took to freeze her eggs.

Haiti hospital cares for kids amid gang violence, hunger and scarce aid

Marie Michelle Joseph's 9-month-old daughter is weak and has a persistent fever. After being turned away from Haiti's only general hospital, her daughter Myleisha was finally accepted at Fontaine Hospital, a UNICEF-sponsored facility in the capital Port au Prince - in an area the rest of her family considers too unsafe to visit.

(With inputs from agencies.)