Health News Roundup: Lilly to build $2.5 billion Germany plant as obesity drug demand soars; Cambodia reports bird flu outbreak near Vietnamese border and more

GLP-1 medications approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration could contribute between 50 and 100 basis points to the trend, Mercer's Chief Health Actuary, Sunit Patel, told Reuters in an interview. Lilly to build $2.5 billion Germany plant as obesity drug demand soars Eli Lilly will build its first plant in Germany in the western town of Alzey for 2.3 billion euros ($2.5 billion), the U.S. drugmaker said on Friday, as the sector scrambles to meet soaring demand for new diabetes and obesity therapies.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Cambodia reports bird flu outbreak near Vietnamese border

Cambodia reported an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N1 bird flu among backyard poultry near the Vietnamese border in what would be the first outbreak in the country in nearly three years, the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) said on Friday. The virus killed 198 out of 334 backyard poultry birds on farms in the Svay Rieng province in the southeastern part of the country, the WOAH said in a report citing Cambodian authorities.

Boom in weight-loss drugs to drive up US employers' medical costs in 2024 - Mercer

Booming demand for newer weight-loss and diabetes drugs is expected to accelerate the rise in medical expenses for employers in the United States next year, staff health benefits consultant Mercer said on Friday. GLP-1 medications approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration could contribute between 50 and 100 basis points to the trend, Mercer's Chief Health Actuary, Sunit Patel, told Reuters in an interview.

Lilly to build $2.5 billion Germany plant as obesity drug demand soars

Eli Lilly will build its first plant in Germany in the western town of Alzey for 2.3 billion euros ($2.5 billion), the U.S. drugmaker said on Friday, as the sector scrambles to meet soaring demand for new diabetes and obesity therapies. The investment, which was reported by Reuters on Wednesday and Thursday, will help boost production of diabetes and obesity drugs including Mounjaro and Trulicity and the injection pens to administer them, the Indianapolis-based company said.

FDA identifies recall of B. Braun Medical pump system as most serious

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Friday said it had identified the recall of B. Braun Medical Inc's medicine-delivering pump system as most serious. The Pennsylvania-based company had recalled some models of its Infusomat Space Volumetric infusion pump system in September due to faulty occlusion alarms, which may cause the pump to stop the delivery of medications pre-emptively or cause interruption.

WHO voices concern over spread of disease in Gaza

The World Health Organization said on Friday it was very worried about the spread of disease in Gaza as weeks of Israeli bombardments have led to the population crowding into shelters with scarce food and clean water. "We are extremely concerned about the spread of disease when the winter season arrives," said Richard Peeperkorn, WHO Representative in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

Eli Lilly extends tender offer to buy Point Biopharma after low participation

Eli Lilly on Friday extended the deadline for Point Biopharma Global shareholders by about two weeks to Dec. 1 to sell their stock, due to low participation. In October, Lilly agreed to acquire Point Biopharma in an all-cash deal valued at $1.4 billion to gain access to its experimental therapies that enable precise targeting of cancer.

Retail investors crowd into Eli Lilly after weight-loss drug approval

Retail flows into Eli Lilly spiked to a more than two-year high in November, as small investors rushed to buy the stock after the U.S. pharma major received a highly anticipated approval for its weight-loss drug Zepbound. Daily net purchases surged to $14.4 million on Nov. 8, when Zepbound was cleared in the U.S. and the U.K., hitting their highest levels since January 2021, as per data from Vanda Research. Lilly and Novo Nordisk - seen as leaders in a potential $100 billion obesity treatment market - have helped rekindle retail investor interest in the healthcare sector.

UK authorises gene therapy for blood disorders in world first

Britain has authorised a gene therapy that aims to cure sickle-cell disease and another type of inherited blood disorder for patients aged 12 and over, the country's medical regulator said on Thursday, becoming the first in the world to do so. Casgevy is the first medicine to be licensed that uses the gene-editing tool CRISPR, which won its inventors the Nobel Prize in 2020, Britain's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said.

Josh Harris backed-gym chain OneLife Fitness explores sale -sources

OneLife Fitness, a U.S. operator of health and fitness clubs that is partly owned by private equity investor Josh Harris, is exploring a sale that could value it at around $700 million, including debt, three people familiar with the matter said. The McLean, Virginia-based company, which is majority-owned by the family office that invests Harris' wealth and private equity firm Delos Capital, is working with investment banks Jefferies Financial Group Inc and North Point Advisors on a sale process that is in its early stages, the sources said.

Exclusive-Manufacturer Lonza says it will not fill obesity drug syringes

Lonza's chairman has ruled out plans to use its capacity to fill syringes and provide final production steps for new obesity drugs even as rivals scramble for a share of the booming weight-loss market. That marks a climb down from remarks at an investor event a month ago, when Albert Baehny said that Lonza would participate in the obesity therapy market thanks to its growing fill and finish capacity.