Reuters Health News Summary

Following is a summary of current health news briefs. U.S. senator asks J&J for documents on talc, baby powder safety

U.S. Democratic Senator Patty Murray sent a letter to Johnson & Johnson on Tuesday seeking information related to allegations in a Reuters Special Report that the healthcare company knew about the presence of asbestos in its talc-based baby powder. The letter addressed to J&J Chief Executive Alex Gorsky asks for documents and information related to testing of its talc products for the presence of carcinogens and "how it presented that information to regulators and consumers." U.S. citizen leaks data on 14,200 people in Singapore with HIV

An HIV-positive American who had been deported from Singapore after serving a jail term has leaked online the personal data of 14,200 Singaporeans and foreigners diagnosed in the city-state with the virus. The disclosure by Singapore's health ministry late Monday, coming after last year's news of a major cyber attack on its national health database, could further dent the highly wired state's push to place itself as a data and health care hub. New blood thinners better than warfarin for atrial fibrillation

Patients with atrial fibrillation, a common heart rhythm disorder, should take newer blood thinners to prevent stroke instead of the old standby drug warfarin, U.S. doctors recommend. Atrial fibrillation patients have up to seven times the stroke risk of people without the disorder. Apple Watch, using Aetna client data, wants to help you be healthy

CVS Health Corp's health insurer Aetna on Tuesday said it is working with Apple Inc on a new health app for Apple Watches that uses an individual's medical history to set personalized health goals. Called "Attain," the Apple Watch app will reward Aetna customers for meeting activity goals and fulfilling recommended tasks, such as getting vaccinations or refilling medications, with a subsidy toward the cost of an Apple Watch or gift cards for U.S. retailers. Workplace foods a source of unhealthy calories

Foods eaten in U.S. workplaces - whether purchased in cafeterias, or available to employees for free - are usually unhealthy, researchers say. A survey of what working adults ate over the course of a week found that one in four people got food at work one or more times, and that it was generally high in empty calories, salt, fat and sugar. DSM sets up vitamin E joint venture with China's Nenter

DSM NV, the Dutch nutrition company, said on Tuesday it would set up a joint venture with Chinese biochemicals company Nenter & Co. to manufacture vitamin E, paying Nenter 135 million euros ($154.45 million) to acquire its facilities in China. DSM, which currently produces vitamin E in Switzerland, said the joint venture would strengthen and diversify its supply chain for the vitamin, an essential ingredient in animal feed products. 'Greed' fueled Insys founder's opioid bribe scheme: prosecutor

A lawyer for Insys Therapeutics Inc's one-time billionaire founder on Monday denied that he had any role in the U.S. opioid crisis as a federal prosecutor told jurors he ran a scheme to bribe doctors to prescribe an addictive fentanyl spray. John Kapoor, the drugmaker's former chairman, and four colleagues are the first painkiller manufacturer executives to face trial over conduct authorities say contributed to an opioid abuse crisis that has killed tens of thousands of people a year. Takeda dengue vaccine meets main goal of trial; detailed results to come

Takeda Pharmaceutical Co said on Tuesday that its experimental dengue vaccine appears to be safe and effective at preventing all four types of the mosquito-borne disease, meeting the main goal of the Japanese drugmaker's late-stage clinical trial. The company said no significant safety concerns have emerged to date with vaccine called TAK-003. U.S. lawmaker Yarmuth says Democrats to begin Medicare for All hearings

Democrats in control of the U.S. House of Representatives will begin holding hearings on expanding Medicare this spring and will aim to pass a bill by the end of next year, a senior Democratic lawmaker said on Tuesday. John Yarmuth, chairman of the House Budget Committee, said in an interview with Reuters that the most feasible option might be passing legislation that offers Medicare, which currently starts at 65 years of age, to all those above 50 or 55. Poland orders slaughterhouse controls after TV shows sick cows

Poland's Chief Veterinarian has ordered controls in slaughterhouses after television footage showed a company killing sick cows and selling the meat for human consumption. Poland produces about 560,000 tonnes of beef a year, with 85 percent exported to countries including Britain, Spain, Italy and Germany.