Health Imaging & IT - April 2008 - (Page 9)

news updaTe In the Courts Business Buzz  Lawsuits continue to mount over gadolinium use The law firm of Parker Waichman Alonso has filed suit on behalf of a man who was diagnosed with nephrogenic systemic fibrosis (NSF) after receiving two injections of Omniscan, a gadolinium contrast agent manufactured by GE Healthcare, its subsidiaries and Novation. The plaintiff, a resident of Philadelphia and a patient with pre-existing kidney disease, received two injections of the gadolinium contrast agent in September and December 2005. The lawsuit alleges that the chemical make-up of Omniscan makes it more likely that gadolinium will become free within the bodies of recipients, thereby making it more likely that patients with kidney disease will develop NSF. The lawsuit also alleges that Omniscan is defective, and that the defendants failed to adequately test Omniscan. google, microsoft eye health iT Even as U.S health IT adoption lags, several big companies like Microsoft, Google and AOL have their eye on healthcare IT as a lucrative market to enter. These companies see EHRs as huge moneymakers and are now trying to entice consumers to upload and store health information online, which many healthcare IT advocates hope will help spur further digitization.  iBm partners with siemens, eight other companies for soa IBM is collaborating with nine business partners to help healthcare providers, clinics and hospitals improve productivity through the use of serviceoriented architecture (SOA). The partners are working to develop healthcare applications using the IBM SOA Foundation. n.y. ag issues suBpoenas to eight health insurers New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo’s office has issued subpoenas to eight health insurance company CEOs, including UnitedHealth Group’s Stephen Hemsley, in an expansion of Cuomo’s investigation into reimbursement practices of health insurers. Cuomo had originally planned to sue UnitedHealth Group and its subsidiary Ingenix, calling the insurer part of an industry-wide effort to defraud consumers by manipulating reimbursement rates. UnitedHealth has refused to confirm or deny the subpoenas.  amic to produce isotopes in u.s. Advanced Medical Isotope Corp. (AMIC) has installed a compact linear accelerator designed specifically for the production of medical isotopes used in PET imaging, as well as other diagnostic and therapeutic medical isotopes, at its Kennewick, Wash.based production facility. meRgeRs & acQuisiTions EU greenlights Philips $5.1B Respironics purchase The European Union (EU) approved the $5.1 billion acquisition of Respironics by Royal Philips Electronics, following an investigation into the possible anti-competitive nature of the purchase. The approval was issued on the last day of a 25-day, deal-review period.  nuview, usc partner for cardiac peT tracer development NuView Radiopharmaceuticals has formed a license agreement with the University of Southern California (USC) that provides NuView with the development and commercialization rights to a tagged derivative of the molecule adenosine, for potential use as a diagnostic cardiac PET tracer in clinical trials. Elekta completes $5M purchase of CMS Elekta has completed its previously announced acquisition of CMS for $75 million in cash. CMS develops and sells radiation therapy planning solutions, supporting more than 1,500 sites in clinical operation. The acquisition will add to Elekta’s strategy in radiation therapy planning and management of images and information, the Stockholm, Sweden-based company said. CML completes $150M acquisition of American Radiology Services CML HealthCare Income Fund has closed its previously announced acquisition of Baltimore, Md.-based American Radiology Services (ARS) through the acquisition of its holding company ARS Holding, for total consideration of approximately $150.4 million. ARS is a provider of diagnostic medical imaging services with 15 fixed-site multimodality and two single-modality outpatient centers in Maryland and Delaware. STAY CONNECTED: for daily news, log onto Healthimaging.com Healthimaging.com april 2008 | Health Imaging & IT 9 http://Healthimaging.com http://Healthimaging.com

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Health Imaging & IT - April 2008 Contents On the Web The Enterprise News Update Cracking Down: CT Radiation Dose 3D Rendering: Options Galore Thinking Thin-Client Modality Review Ergonomics & Design Special Section: Storage Strategies Imaging Tools Technology Outlook People & Technology Technology Review IT Trends Reader's Resource Stat Sheet

Health Imaging & IT - April 2008

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