Author: IQ TIMES MEDIA

By Patrick Wingrove(Reuters) -Roche on Thursday launched direct-to-consumer U.S. sales of its influenza antiviral pill Xofluza at a discounted cash price of $50, following similar moves by rivals as they scramble to address pressure from the Trump administration to lower prescription drug prices paid by Americans.The Xofluza cash price, offered by Roche’s U.S. biotech unit Genentech at 70% below list price, will be available to insured and uninsured patients from Alto Pharmacy and Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company. Same-day delivery will be available via Alto Pharmacy. Major U.S. pharmacy chains like CVS will not be involved, Roche confirmed.The administration…

Ahead of the open enrollment period for Medicare Advantage plans that began Wednesday, the Trump administration created a directory to help millions of seniors look up which doctors and medical providers accept which insurance.But the portal frequently produces erroneous and conflicting information, The Washington Post found, setting off a scramble inside the federal government to fix it. Left unaddressed, the problems could confuse older adults as they sift through dozens of options, or force them to foot the bill for regular medical appointments, according to Medicare experts and patient advocates.Subscribe to The Post Most newsletter for the most important and…

The United States Chamber of Commerce sued the Trump administration on Thursday over the new $100,000 fee for H-1B visas.The lawsuit said the fee, which President Donald Trump put in place with an executive order last month, was “unlawful” and that it would harm American businesses.”The United States is unique in its ability to attract the brightest talent from across the globe. For more than 70 years, what is now known as the H-1B visa program has enabled the United States to harness this magnetic draw,” the lawsuit said, adding that as a result of the new fee businesses would…

NEW YORK (AP) — Two Californians diagnosed with mpox may be the first U.S. cases resulting from the local spread of a different version of the virus, health officials said.The Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services this week confirmed the first case through testing at a state lab. Los Angeles County health officials on Thursday reported a second, similar case.The risk to the public is low, officials say.These are not the U.S. first cases of what is known as clade I mpox. But all six previous cases were among international travelers who were believed to have been infected…

The demand for protein has soared as 61% of consumers in the U.S. increased their protein intake last year, according to new research from Minnesota-based food corporation Cargill. And social media influencers and brands alike are taking note.”We’re seeing that influencers, fitness professionals – they’re all encouraging more protein after lifting,” said Yasi Ansari, a clinical dietician at UCLA.The protein boomProtein is now a $114 billion industry and growing, according to Mintel, a global market intelligence company. The number of high protein shakes and drinks on the market rose by 122% from 2020 to 2024, Innova Market Insights reported, noting…

London — Thousands of people in the United Kingdom have filed a joint legal claim estimated to be worth more than £1 billion ($1.34 billion) against Johnson & Johnson, accusing the U.S. pharmaceutical giant of selling baby powder that it knew was contaminated with carcinogenic asbestos.The claim involves more than 3,000 people who developed various forms of cancer and other diseases and is based on internal Johnson & Johnson memos and scientific reports.The company has long fought thousands of similar cases in the United States, and despite winning some appeals, in June last year it agreed to pay $700 million…

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Gov. Gavin Newsom said Thursday that California will begin selling affordable insulin under its own label on Jan. 1, nearly three years after he first announced a partnership to sell state-branded generic drugs at lower prices.But California won’t be the only state making lower-cost insulin available. The nonprofit Civica said it will also distribute its economical diabetes medication to pharmacies nationwide. California began partnering with Civica in 2023 for its “CalRx” brand of insulin and put $50 million toward its development, the company said.Starting in the new year, insulin pens will be available at a recommended…

Travel search engine Kayak will now allow users to research trips ahead of booking using AI. The company this week launched an “AI Mode” feature that lets users ask travel-related questions as well as compare and book flights, hotels, and cars, through an AI chatbot integrated on the company’s website. The feature is currently available across both desktop and mobile web, and takes advantage of Kayak’s integration with ChatGPT to deliver contextual results. The rollout follows the company’s April launch of Kayak.ai, built as a testing ground for working with AI technology. That site also combined Kayak’s data and tools…

For one week this summer, Taylor and her roommate wore GoPro cameras strapped to their foreheads as they painted, sculpted, and did household chores. They were training an AI vision model, carefully syncing their footage so the system could get multiple angles on the same behavior. It was difficult work in many ways, but they were well paid for it — and it allowed Taylor to spend most of her day making art.  “We woke up, did our regular routine, and then strapped the cameras on our head and synced the times together,” she told me. “Then we would make…

Energy startup Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS) said Thursday it’s working with Google’s DeepMind division to fine tune — and even improve — the operation of its forthcoming Sparc reactor using AI. The companies’ plan will simulate the plasma that will burn inside CFS’s reactor using specialized DeepMind software known as Torax. They also plan on pairing Torax with AI models to help CFS figure out how best to achieve fusion power. Fusion power promises to deliver massive amounts of electricity with zero emissions from a near limitless source of fuel: water. AI-related companies have been bullish on fusion startups as…