Supply Chain

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services have launched a parallel review pilot program that allows medical devices to be reviewed for approval by the FDA and CMS at the same time.

In light of the record drug shortages currently plaguing U.S. healthcare, Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) is calling for a Federal Trade Commission investigation into gray market drug resellers' exorbitant price mark-ups as possible price gouging.

Real-time location system firm AeroScout announced Wednesday that it has acquired Sentient Health, which provides software and services for optimizing inventory management of consumable medical supplies.

Novation, a healthcare supply contracting company, has announced that its Failure-To-Supply Recovery Service saved the members it serves more than $6.5 million in 2010.

Owens & Minor, a national distributor of medical and surgical supplies to the acute-care market, lead the 2010 list of the "Top 25" Healthcare Supply Chain operations issued by research and advisory firm Gartner, Inc.

Overall U.S. healthcare prices increased slightly from October to November, rising 0.2 percent, according to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Healthcare Trust of America, Inc., a Scottsdale, Ariz.-based self-managed, non-traded real estate investment trust, has closed on a $275 million unsecured revolving credit facility.

The Premier healthcare alliance reports that its new failure-to-supply program has helped more than 1,400 members save more than $3.5 million in the past year.

Abbott Laboratories, B. Braun Medical and Boehringer Ingelheim Roxane have agreed to pay $421 million to settle False Claims Act allegations, the Justice Department announced Tuesday.

Healthcare organizations are moving closer to the adoption of global supply chain standards, according to an independent survey of healthcare providers, group purchasing organizations, device manufacturers, wholesalers and distributors.