Reuters Health News Summary

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Vaccine maker Bavarian Nordic in takeover talks, shares rally

Danish biotech Bavarian Nordic said on Thursday it is in discussions with a consortium of Nordic Capital and Permira regarding a potential takeover offer from the two private equity groups, sending its share price up 24%. "As these discussions are continuing, there can be no certainty as to whether any offer for Bavarian Nordic A/S by Nordic Capital and Permira will be made, or the timing or the terms of such offer," the vaccine maker said in a statement.

HCA lifts 2025 profit forecast, flags insurance policy uncertainty

HCA Healthcare lifted its 2025 profit forecast but said it cannot determine how looming changes to insurance plans under Medicaid and Obamacare will impact 2026 earnings, sending the hospital operator's shares down 2% on Friday. Some COVID-era subsidies under Obamacare are set to lapse in 2026. That would impact patient coverage, lead to a spike in insurance premiums and cause a drop in enrollment numbers, leaving hospital operators such as HCA to foot a heftier bill for compensated care.

Centene posts loss but promises profitability gains in 2026, shares rise

Centene expects to deliver improved profitability in its three government-backed healthcare insurance businesses in 2026, it said on Friday, sending its shares up 5% and reversing previous premarket losses. The comments followed the health insurer's surprise quarterly loss and a forecast for annual profit below Wall Street estimates.

Cycling-Tour de France shortens stage 19 after cattle disease outbreak forces route change

Friday's Stage 19 of the Tour de France has been shortened after an outbreak of contagious nodular dermatitis in cattle near the Col des Saisies forced authorities to cull livestock and restrict access to the area, race organisers said on Thursday. The 129.9-km stage from Albertville to La Plagne was due to include the ascent of the Col des Saisies, but the climb has now been scrapped to avoid the affected zone, ASO said in a statement.

Sarepta fails to win EU backing for muscle disorder gene therapy

Sarepta Therapeutics failed to win the European drug regulator's backing for its muscle disorder gene therapy on Friday, as the company faces intense regulatory scrutiny after two recent patient deaths tied to the treatment. Shares of the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based company slumped 11%. They have lost 88.8% so far this year.

Novartis to pay Matchpoint up to $1 billion to develop anti-inflammatory therapies

Swiss drugmaker Novartis will pay up to $1 billion to U.S. biotech Matchpoint Therapeutics to develop oral drugs for several inflammatory diseases. Matchpoint said on Thursday it will use its technology to develop drugs that block the activity of a specific protein, helping to lower the production of inflammation-causing signals.

US-funded contraceptives for poor nations to be burned in France, sources say

U.S.-funded contraceptives worth nearly $10 million are being sent to France from Belgium to be incinerated, after Washington rejected offers from the United Nations and family planning organisations to buy or ship the supplies to poor nations, two sources told Reuters. A spokesperson for the U.S. State Department confirmed to Reuters on Wednesday that a decision had been taken to destroy the stock.

UnitedHealth complies with DOJ criminal, civil requests, filing shows

UnitedHealth on Thursday publicly confirmed it was under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice and said it was complying with both criminal and civil requests from the federal agency. The disclosure was made in a regulatory filing, marking a shift in tone for the healthcare conglomerate, which earlier this year amid media reports of a civil as well as criminal investigation, said it was unaware of any new probes and denied wrongdoing.

US FDA extends review of Bayer's menopause relief drug

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has extended its review of Bayer's experimental menopause relief drug, the German company said on Friday. The non-hormonal treatment, elinzanetant, is being reviewed for relieving moderate to severe vasomotor symptoms, also known as hot flashes, associated with menopause.

EU regulator backs Moderna's updated COVID vaccine

The European Union's drug regulator has recommended approval of Moderna's updated formulation of COVID-19 shot Spikevax, the vaccine maker said on Friday. The updated shot targets the LP.8.1 variant, part of the JN.1 lineage, to prevent COVID-19 in individuals six months of age and older, Moderna said.

Trump administration asks US Supreme Court to allow NIH diversity-related cuts

Donald Trump's administration asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday to allow the government to proceed with sweeping cuts to National Institutes of Health grants as part of the Republican president's crackdown on diversity initiatives. The Justice Department asked the justices to lift Boston-based U.S. District Judge William Young's June ruling that halted the plan as a violation of federal law and required the government to reinstate access to the grant funds. The judge acted in a legal challenge by researchers and 16 U.S. states, led by Democratic-governed Massachusetts.

Exclusive-China's Sciwind is in talks to license weight-loss drug in US, CEO says

China's Sciwind Biosciences is in talks with a U.S. company interested in licensing its experimental weight-loss drug for American patients, the drugmaker's chief executive told Reuters. Overweight patients treated with Sciwind's ecnoglutide drug lost an average of 10% to 15% of their body weight, roughly in line with results from Novo Nordisk's top-selling obesity treatment Wegovy, according to a late-stage study published in medical journal The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology in June.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)