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[ad_1] General view of the site of the derailment of a train carrying hazardous waste, in East Palestine, Ohio, March 2, 2023. Alan Freed | Reuters Soon after the  derailment of a Norfolk Southern  train in East Palestine, Ohio, a team of researchers began roving the small town in a Nissan van. It was February, less than three weeks after the disaster, and the van was outfitted with an instrument called a mass spectrometer, which can measure hundreds to thousands of compounds in the air every second. The team was searching for harmful levels of air pollution. At the time, a primary concern was a flammable substance called vinyl chloride, because Norfolk Southern intentionally burned off the chemical in an attempt to avoid the chance of an explosion. Some environmental health experts thought the chemical may have contributed to the  rashes, vomiting, bloody noses and bronchitis  some residents reported. But a  new study  from the team behind the research van — a group of scientist

[ad_1] In this photo illustration, boxes of the diabetes drug Ozempic rest on a pharmacy counter in Los Angeles, April 17, 2023. Mario Tama | Getty Images The European Union's drug regulator on Tuesday said it has broadened an investigation into the risk of suicidal thoughts and self-injury among patients taking Novo Nordisk 's Ozempic, Wegovy and Saxenda drugs to include other weight loss and diabetes medications.  The European Medicines Agency didn't specify which additional drugs are now included in the investigation. But it could potentially include Eli Lilly 's diabetes drug Mounjaro, which is approved in the EU . Other companies such as Pfizer and Amgen are developing similar products.  The EMA said it is now evaluating about 150 reports of possible cases of self-injury and suicidal thoughts in patients taking weight loss and diabetes drugs. It's still unclear if the medicines caused the events or whether they are linked to patients' underlying

[ad_1] A selection of injector pens for the Wegovy weight loss drug are shown in this photo illustration in Chicago, Illinois, March 31, 2023. Jim Vondruska | Reuters Only around one-third of patients prescribed weight loss drugs such as Novo Nordisk 's blockbuster injection Wegovy continued to take it a year later — but total health-care costs for the entire group soared, according to an analysis shared with CNBC on Tuesday. The annual health-care cost for patients before they started a weight loss medication was $12,371 on average, said the analysis from Prime Therapeutics , one of the largest pharmacy benefit managers in the U.S.  That cost of care jumped by nearly 60% to $19,657 on average after patients started treatment, the analysis said. And a group of patients in the analysis who didn't take a weight loss drug saw their health-care costs decrease by 4% on average during the same time period.  The analysis reviewed U.S. pharmacy and medical claims data for more

[ad_1] Every weekday the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer holds a "Morning Meeting" livestream at 10:20 a.m. ET. Here's a recap of Monday's key moments. Earnings and inflation Watch J & J Strong outlook for Meta 1. Earnings and inflation U.S. stocks edged higher Monday, with the Dow jumping over 150 points, rallying after a tough week for the major Wall Street gauges. We're looking ahead to second-quarter earnings Friday, kicking off with financials like Club holding Wells Fargo (WFC). Consumer price index (CPI) data will be released Wednesday, which will give the market a better read on the inflation situation. Overall, there's a lot of uncertainty for the U.S. economy as inflation stays high and the Federal Reserve mulls over further monetary tightening in order to cool a resilient labor market. 2. Watch J & J We're watching for closing arguments in a talc lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) brought by a 24-year-old in California

[ad_1] Nikos Pekiaridis | Nurphoto | Getty Images Stock Chart Icon Stock chart icon Novavax shares jump on news of a settlement payment from the Canadian government. It's unclear how many doses of Novavax's jab – its only commercially available product after 35 years – went unused. Under the amended agreement, Novavax will also provide Canada with fewer doses of its vaccine on a revised delivery schedule.  However, Canada can terminate the contract if Novavax fails to receive regulatory approval for vaccine production at the Canadian government's biomanufacturing facility by Dec. 31, 2024, according to the agreement. The announcement is another sign of hope for investors after the cash-strapped company raised doubts about its ability to stay in business earlier this year.  CNBC Health & Science Read CNBC's latest health coverage: In May, Novavax adopted a more positive outlook and announced a sweeping cost-cutting plan alongside its first-quarter earnings repor

[ad_1] Jay Reinstein, who suffers from Alzheimer's, receives an injection so he can have a PET scan at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, DC on June 20, 2023. Michael Robinson Chávez | The Washington Post | Getty Images Sales of the Alzheimer's drug Leqembi may be slow initially due to logistical requirements but could pick up in 2024, analysts said after the groundbreaking treatment won approval in the U.S.  Wall Street is chewing over the Food and Drug Administration 's Thursday approval of Leqembi – a milestone in the treatment of the disease , even though the drug isn't a cure.  Leqembi, from drugmakers Eisai and Biogen , is the first medicine proven to slow the progression of Alzheimer's in people at the early stages of the memory-robbing disease.  Medicare on Thursday announced it is now covering the antibody treatment for patients enrolled in the insurance program for seniors, broadening access for those who can't afford the d

[ad_1] The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday fully approved the Alzheimer's treatment Leqembi, a pivotal decision that will expand access to the expensive drug for older Americans. Medicare announced shortly after the FDA approval that it is now covering the antibody treatment for patients enrolled in the insurance program for seniors, though several conditions apply. Leqembi is the first Alzheimer's antibody treatment to receive full FDA approval. It is also the first such drug that to receive broad coverage through Medicare. Leqembi is not a cure. The treatment slowed cognitive decline from early Alzheimer's disease by 27% over 18 months during Eisai's clinical trial. The antibody, administered twice monthly through intravenous infusion, targets a protein called amyloid that is associated with Alzheimer's disease. Medicare coverage is a crucial step to help older Americans with early Alzheimer's disease pay for the treatment. With a median income

[ad_1] Investors hoping to capture more upside from artificial intelligence could turn to a sector that's underperformed this year, and maybe not immediately associated with AI: Health care. A handful of large tech names surged in the first half thanks to a mania for all things tied to artificial intelligence. Apple, for example, last week closed with a $3 trillion market capitalization for the first time. Nvidia is up by nearly 200% in 2023. Going forward, some of those gains might spill over to health care, which has underperformed this year. The sector is the third weakest out of 11 in the S & P 500, down about 3% year to date. "A lot of people talk about AI-powered performance and how that's going to impact the tech sector. And I think that's well understood," said Jamie Cox, managing partner for Harris Financial Group. "But what a lot of people fail to appreciate is that artificial intelligence and quantum computing are actually going to have th

[ad_1] Bill Ackman Scott Mlyn | CNBC Bill Ackman said in 2021 that delaying Covid vaccinations for older Americans "seems like genocide." Today, the influential hedge fund chief and investor is amplifying the debunked anti-vaccine views of Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Ackman is not denying his change. In fact, he said Kennedy is asking "important questions" about vaccines, raising issues he is interested in learning more about. Several of Ackman's recent tweets about Covid vaccines have stunned and confounded many of his colleagues on Wall Street, according to several people who have known and been allied with him for years. And it's led both his allies and foes to ask the same question: Why is he doing this? Ackman answered that question in an interview with CNBC on Wednesday. "I listened to RFK on several podcasts and a town hall and thought he raised important issues about vaccines and other issues that were worth lea

[ad_1] Jenny Craig is being revived for e-commerce in the coming months by the maker of a rival weight-loss meal provider that bought the defunct company's brand assets out of bankruptcy. Wellful Inc., a direct-to-consumer wellness business that also owns Nutrisystem, said it had acquired rights to Jenny Craig's intellectual property for an undisclosed amount. Court documents dated June 2 show the IP priced at up to $10 million. "People that have known the Jenny brand — the core aspects around the great food, the coaching, the overall program and the success they previously had — they can expect again," Wellful CEO Brandon Adcock said in an interview. Jenny Craig's website  has teased a reboot in recent weeks, saying it "will be coming to your home this fall." Adcock said all former Jenny Craig customers have been notified by email and in the brand's Facebook groups about the relaunch. "Our goal is just treat them as best we can to win back

[ad_1] Federal authorities charged a former Pfizer employee and his close friend Thursday with illegally trading shares based on non-public trial results on the pharmaceutical company's Covid antiviral pill Paxlovid . The Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission both announced respective insider trading charges against Amit Dagar , a former senior statistical programming lead at Pfizer, and his friend Atul Bhiwapurkar. Dagar, who helped manage and analyze Paxlovid clinical trial data, and Bhiwapurkar "participated in an insider trading scheme to reap illicit profits from options trading based on inside information" about the then-unreleased Paxlovid results in November 2021, according to the DOJ. The two individuals sold their Pfizer call options at "significant profits" totaling more than $350,000, the DOJ said in a release . "The charges in this case relate to the personal conduct of a former Pfizer employee in violation of