Health News Roundup: Magic mushrooms in Denver; obesity rising faster in rural areas

Denver votes to become first U.S. city to decriminalize 'magic mushrooms'

Denver will become the first city in the United States to decriminalize magic mushrooms, based on final unofficial results on Wednesday of a ballot initiative about the hallucinogenic drug. The initiative called for Colorado's capital to end the imposition of criminal penalties for individuals at least 21 years of age for using or possessing psilocybin, widely known as magic mushrooms.

Novartis buys dry eye drug from Takeda for up to $5.3 billion

Novartis is buying dry-eye drug Xiidra from Takeda Pharmaceutical Co for up to $5.3 billion as the Swiss drugmaker refreshes its ophthalmic medicines portfolio with a potential blockbuster. The deal announced early on Thursday, calls for $3.4 billion upfront and milestone payments up to $1.9 billion, Novartis said.

Bristol-Myers' Opdivo fails late-stage brain cancer trial

Bristol-Myers Squibb Co said on Thursday its immunotherapy Opdivo failed to meet the main goal of a late-stage trial testing it in patients with an aggressive form of tumour that affects the brain or the spine. Opdivo, used in combination with radiation therapy, failed to extend survival in patients with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) when compared with the chemotherapy temozolomide and radiation therapy.

Global obesity rising faster in rural areas than cities, study finds

Global rates of obesity among people who live in the countryside are rising faster than those among city dwellers, in part due to greater access in urban areas to healthier foods and places to exercise, researchers said on Wednesday. In a study of 33 years of trends in body mass index (BMI) across 200 countries and territories, the scientists found that people worldwide are getting heavier - with average weight rising by 5 to 6 kg (11 to 13 pounds) over the period of the study - and that most of the rise is due to gains in BMI in rural areas.

Health funding gap means 1,700 in Gaza may face amputations: U.N.

A lack of health funding in Gaza means 1,700 people shot by Israeli security forces may have to have amputations in the next two years, Jamie McGoldrick, the U.N. Humanitarian Coordinator for occupied Palestinian territory, told reporters on Wednesday. McGoldrick said 29,000 Palestinians had been wounded in protests in the past year, and 7,000 of them had gunshot wounds, mostly in the lower legs.

UnitedHealthcare aims to cut maternity care costs with a new program

UnitedHealthcare Group said on Thursday it had launched a new program to cut maternity costs under which partner hospitals would be paid a fixed rate for care during and after pregnancy, rather than for every service rendered. Rising healthcare costs in the United States have become a topic of heated national debate and maternity care has been earmarked as a big driver of high-cost claims for large employers and health insurers.

Indivior signs deal to sell schizophrenia drug in Canada

British drugmaker Indivior Plc on Thursday signed a licensing agreement with HLS Therapeutics Inc for the sale of its schizophrenia drug Perseris in Canada. Perseris, launched in the United States in February, is approved by the FDA for the treatment of schizophrenia in adults. The drug delivers its active ingredient, risperidone, in an extended-release delivery system with no loading doses or oral supplementation recommended.

Disease to cut China pig meat output by at least 10 per cent: FAO

An African Swine Fever outbreak is expected to cut China's pig meat output by at least 10 per cent in 2019 and present opportunities for producers elsewhere, the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization said on Thursday. The shrinking of the world's largest hog herd will have a noticeable impact on meat and feed markets worldwide, with more than one million pigs culled in China so far in an effort to halt the contagion, the FAO said in a food outlook report.

Podimetrics completes $13.4 million in funding for disease-detecting foot mat

Podimetrics, the maker of a smart foot mat that detects warning signs of diabetic foot ulcers, said on Thursday it raised $13.4 million in a funding round led by a group of investors, including venture capital firm Scientific Health Development. The company said the proceeds will be used to reach out to more people through the Veterans Affairs (VA) department, which provides health care services to military veterans. Its device is already used in 14 VA medical centres across the United States.

Walmart raises U.S. tobacco purchase age to 21 starting in July

Walmart Inc said on Wednesday it will raise the minimum age to purchase tobacco products to 21 across its U.S. stores starting July 1, responding to growing regulatory and political pressure to curb a surge in teenage use of e-cigarettes. It also pushed the world's largest retailer to say it discontinue the sale of fruit-and dessert-flavoured electronic nicotine delivery systems.