VENTURE CAPITAL POST

Hospitals and insurers are expected to give their clearest view yet on whether people are having more surgeries and other medical procedures during the next few weeks when they report earnings, according to investors who are closely watching U.S. medical services use.

Vernalis plc (LSE: VER) today announces it has opened its US office in Berwyn, Pennsylvania and has strengthened its US Executive team with the appointment of Dr Pascal Borderies, as SVP Medical Affairs. A physician by training, Pascal joins Vernalis from Actavis' subsidiary

Vernalis plc today announces that it has licensed worldwide rights in vipadenant (V2006), a small molecule A2A receptor antagonist, to RedoxTherapies Inc (Redox). Vipadenant has the potential to disrupt an immunosuppressive mechanism of tumor protection, generating improved efficacy for immunotherapies of certain cancers when used in combination.

Herbalife Ltd, the marketer of weight-management products, energy drinks and nutrition supplements that has come under investigation by the Federal Trade Commission as well as other agencies, has hired a former FTC official as its chief compliance officer.

A growing middle class and consumers' evolving attitudes toward health and travel have fueled a global spa and wellness industry worth an estimated $3.4 trillion in 2013, according to a report released on Tuesday.

UnitedHealth Group Inc (UNH.N) said on Tuesday it agreed to buy MedSynergies, which manages physician practices, adding about 9,300 doctors to the hospital and health system services that its Optum technology-based business currently serves.

France will tax drugmakers whose costly hepatitis C drugs threaten to throw off course its healthcare budget, the government has said, heaping pressure on pharmaceutical companies like Gilead Sciences to cut their prices.

U.S. medical device maker Medtronic Inc is likely to try to renegotiate the structure and terms of its $42.9 billion deal to buy Ireland's Covidien Plc in response to new U.S. tax rules, according to people familiar with the situation.

Your medical information is worth 10 times more than your credit card number on the black market. Last month, the FBI warned healthcare providers to guard against cyber attacks after one of the largest U.S. hospital operators, Community Health Systems Inc, said Chinese hackers had broken into its computer network and stolen the personal information of 4.5 million patients.

The Trendlines Group Ltd. ("Trendlines" or the "Company") has filed a final prospectus with the securities regulatory authorities in Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Nova Scotia in connection with the initial public offering (the "Offering") of its ordinary shares. A copy of the final prospectus is available on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com.

Cerner Corp and Athenahealth Inc, two leading U.S. electronic health record providers, said on Thursday they are working with Apple Inc to develop applications that leverage Apple's mobile health service HealthKit.

Apple Inc said a bug in its HealthKit health and fitness application platform prevented its release along with the launch of its iOS 8 operating system for iPhones and iPads.

Some of the top 20 investors at Salix Pharmaceuticals Ltd (SLXP.O) are threatening to vote down a proposed deal to buy a unit of Cosmo Pharmaceuticals SpA (COPN.S), and are pressing Salix to consider selling itself instead, people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

Two prominent U.S. hospitals are preparing to launch trials with diabetics and chronic disease patients using Apple Inc's (AAPL.O) HealthKit, offering a glimpse of how the iPhone maker's ambitious take on healthcare will work in practice.

Vernalis plc and Tris Pharma, Inc. ("Tris") are pleased to announce that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") has confirmed that the New Drug Application ("NDA") for Tuzistra™ XR ("CCP-01") has been accepted for full review. This triggers a milestone payment from Vernalis to Tris.