@FiercePharma: Cut drug prices? Deloitte counts the ways. Story | Follow @FiercePharma
> French drug maker Sanofi-Aventis, which has identified consumer healthcare as a key area of growth in India, is scouting for brand and business acquisitions in the local market. Report
> The U.K. government's planned introduction of a value-based pricing system could increase costs and bureaucracy for the industry, Eli Lilly told government officials. Article
> Richmond, VA, drugmaker Insmed said it has merged with Transave, a New Jersey-based bio-pharmaceutical company. Item
> Prescriptions for hormone replacement therapy have fallen more than 50 percent in the U.S. since 2001, but doctors are still inexplicably giving women high-dose pills linked to strokes and cancer, researchers reported. Report
> Experts warned on Friday that treating dengue, a potentially fatal disease caused by a mosquito-borne virus, will become more difficult in the future as more people around the world become overweight and obese. Story
> Sequenom is down more than 4.5 percent in early morning trading, to a recent $6.50, as company said it was pricing 14 million shares of its stock at $6 a share. Article
> Takeda has moved further into the vaccines business with the finalisation of a deal with Baxter International for the use of the U.S. firm's cell culture technology for the manufacture of a pandemic flu vaccine. Article
> A move by hedge fund Ramius to nominate three members to SurModics' board signals a likely proxy battle to control the struggling medical equipment maker, and the eventual sale of its pharma business or even the whole company. Report
Biotech News
@FierceBiotech: Merck to buy SmartCells in $500M deal. News | Follow @FierceBiotech
@JohnCFierce: After glancing over the OREX notes, I didn't see anything that hasn't been discussed before. Clear safety issues=big deal for developers. Follow @JohnCFierce
> Panel back's AZ's ($AZN) thyroid cancer drug vandetanib. Story
> Orexigen ($OREX) readies for expert panel review of Contrave. Article
> Microbix announces new flu vax subsidiary. Item
And Finally... The Japanese government Friday confirmed the country's first outbreak of a high-risk bird flu in three years, though it stressed that there was no evidence the disease had spread beyond chickens. News