Reuters Health News Roundup: AstraZeneca to invest 650 million pounds in UK to boost 'pandemic preparedness'; Britain plans new tax on vaping from 2026 and more

Valisure has also filed a petition with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, calling on the regulator to recall the products, conduct an investigation and revise industry guidance, the New Haven, Connecticut-based lab said on Wednesday. US to accelerate some payments to hospitals after UnitedHealth hack The U.S. government said on Tuesday it will accelerate Medicare and Medicaid payments to some hospitals hurt by a hack at insurer UnitedHealth's technology unit Change Healthcare.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Cancer-causing chemical found in Clinique, Clearasil acne treatments, U.S. lab reports

High levels of cancer-causing chemical benzene were detected in some acne treatments from brands including Estee Lauder's Clinique, Target's Up & Up and Reckitt Benckiser-owned Clearasil, said independent U.S. laboratory Valisure. Valisure has also filed a petition with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, calling on the regulator to recall the products, conduct an investigation and revise industry guidance, the New Haven, Connecticut-based lab said on Wednesday.

US to accelerate some payments to hospitals after UnitedHealth hack

The U.S. government said on Tuesday it will accelerate Medicare and Medicaid payments to some hospitals hurt by a hack at insurer UnitedHealth's technology unit Change Healthcare. The cyberattack on Change, disclosed on Feb.21, was perpetrated by hackers who identified themselves as the "Blackcat" ransomware group and has had a knock-on effect on players across the U.S. healthcare system. Disruptions triggered by the attack have impacted electronic pharmacy refills and insurance transactions.

Patients or payroll? US healthcare hack creates hard choices

Nearly two weeks after the ransomware attack on UnitedHealth's Change Healthcare unit that has disrupted claims processing across the U.S., doctors are beginning to face a no win choice - stop treating patients or stop paying staff. The attack, which was disclosed on Feb. 21, shut down the system that many doctors depend on to verify insurance coverage, file claims and get paid, sparking a campaign by hospitals and doctors for the U.S. government to provide financial relief as it did during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Novo kidney trial finds Ozempic cuts cardiac deaths in diabetics

Novo Nordisk's widely used diabetes drug Ozempic delayed progression of chronic kidney disease in diabetes patients, a large late-stage study found, cutting the risk of death from that and major cardiac events by 24%. The trial results are the latest indication that drugs from the GLP-1 class, which suppress appetite by mimicking gut hormones, have medical benefits for conditions beyond type 2 diabetes and weight-loss, their initial purposes.

Elizabeth Carr, America's first IVF baby, hopes to educate at State of the Union

Elizabeth Carr, who 42 years ago became the first U.S. baby born through in vitro fertilization, hopes that her presence at President Joe Biden's State of the Union address on Thursday will encourage lawmakers to learn more about the procedure. Alabama's state Supreme Court kicked off a furor last month when it ruled that frozen embryos should be considered children, prompting at least three providers to halt the procedure and sending Republican candidates scrambling to distance themselves from the decision by a panel of elected Republican judges.

Britain plans new tax on vaping from 2026

British finance minister Jeremy Hunt said he plans an extra tax on vaping products from October 2026 to make the habit more expensive and deter non-smokers from taking it up. Hunt said the government would introduce a one-off increase in tobacco duty at the same time to maintain the financial incentive to choose vaping over smoking.

Grifols shares drop to 12-year low after new Gotham City Research report

Shares in Spanish drugmaker Grifols fell to a 12-year low on Wednesday, following the publication of a new report by Gotham City Research questioning the financial accounts of the Barcelona-based company. Since early January, the short-sheller has released three reports repeatedly accusing Grifols of overstating earnings and understating debt in its financial accounts. The pharmaceutical company's market value since then has shed billions of euros.

Ozempic reduces severity of liver disease in people with HIV, study shows

A weekly injection of semaglutide was safe and reduced the amount of fat in the liver by 31% in people with HIV and a type of liver disease, data from a mid-stage study funded by the National Institutes of Health showed. Data from the study was first released on Monday at the Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI) in Denver, Colorado.

AstraZeneca to invest 650 million pounds in UK to boost 'pandemic preparedness'

AstraZeneca plans to invest 650 million pounds ($826.80 million) in Britain to boost research, development and manufacturing of vaccines, the government announced on Wednesday as part of Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt's spring budget. AstraZeneca's planned investment includes 450 million pounds to research, develop and manufacture vaccines at its manufacturing site in Speke, Liverpool, and another 200 million pounds to expand its existing presence in Cambridge, where its global headquarters are located.

Biden to call for expanding Medicare drug negotiation program

President Joe Biden will call on Congress to expand the number of drugs subject to annual Medicare price negotiations in his State of the Union address on Thursday, the White House said. The negotiation program, passed as part of 2022's Inflation Reduction Act, empowers Medicare to use its vast size to bargain with pharmaceutical companies to lower prices of expensive drugs for Medicare participants, who are age 65 and older.