A promising bipartisan bill that increases vital access and reimbursement for obesity screening and counseling services has been introduced in Congress, thanks in part to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

Today, members of the Heart Rhythm Society (HRS) are visiting 35 congressional offices on Capitol Hill to raise visibility and support for two proposals: the “Medicare Program Integrity Improvement and Education Act” and the “Teaching Children to Save Lives Act.” HRS is advocating for the support of these two bills because both intend to deliver outcomes aligned with the Society’s mission to improve the care of patients by advancing research, education and optimal health care policies and standards. 

ATLANTA—Opportunities exist within many cardiovascular programs to trim out costs and add value. But where? Suzette Jaskie, president and CEO of MedAxiom Consulting, offered five “slam dunk” approaches June 13 at the Cardiovascular Service Line Symposium in Atlanta.

Vascular surgeon Jeffrey H. Lawson, MD, PhD, implanted a bioengineered vein graft June 5 in a patient with end-stage kidney disease in a two-hour procedure at Duke University Hospital in Durham. The operation launches the U.S. trial of the human cell-based product that Lawson helped develop. If the bioengineered veins prove beneficial for hemodialysis patients, then they may try to develop a graft for heart bypass surgeries.

The New York Times set the stage for the upcoming FDA meeting that revisits GlaxoSmithKline’s diabetes drug, rosiglitazone (Avandia). The FDA said it is trying to “resolve uncertainty” about the drug, which has been limited based on concerns about heightened cardiovascular risk.   

According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, FDA officials are in a tussle over angiotensin-receptor blockers (ARBs). Based on evidence of an increased risk in cancer, one reviewer argues for a stronger warning but his bosses aren’t convinced. They describe such action as a diversion from assessing new drug applications.

Newport Beach-based nonprofit Coalition Duchenne has awarded a $150,000 grant to a Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute team investigating whether an experimental cardiac stem cell treatment could be used to treat Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients who have developed heart disease.

POZEN Inc. (NASDAQ: POZN), a pharmaceutical company committed to transforming medicine that transforms lives, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted for review, the New Drug Application (NDA) for PA32540/PA8140.