Healthcare Business Recap: Possible Dividend Boosts, Hospira Slides

Shares of Ventrus Biosciences (NASDAQ:VTUS) pop, subsequent to the announcement that Phase III trials of its Diltiazem treatment for the relief of pain associated with anal fissures showed significant improvements over placebos.

Hospira (NYSE:HSP) slides following word of a voluntary recall during the weekend of one lot of its Hydromorphone Injection, because of two reported complaints of a single Carpuject containing more than the 1 mL labeled fill volume. Overdoses of such medications can be lethal.

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Novartis’ (NYSE:NVS) multiple sclerosis drug Gilenya is rumored to be linked to patient deaths, but the FDA says that it can’t formally conclude such a validity. However, the cardiovascular effects of the treatment following the first dose, remain a concern to the agency.

Healthcare firms such as Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB), CareFusion (NYSE:CFN), Celgene (NASDAQ:CELG), Lab Corp. (NYSE:LH), and Life Tech (NASDAQ:LIFE) are among those who might give in to peer pressure and begin paying dividends to investors who crave “immediate, stable income amid today’s low interest rate environment”, according to Moody’s.

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