The U.S. Senate Finance Committee voted 15-12 to approve the nomination of Alex Azar to be the next Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Jan. 17. Only one Democrat, Tom Carper of Delaware, assented to Azar’s nomination, joining the panel’s Republicans. The committee vote sets up

  Researchers at MIT have developed a living bioink for 3D printing that consists of genetically-modified bacteria and a synthetic hydrogel. The material can be printed in a variety of shapes, including as patches or “tattoos” for the skin, and can sense different chemicals, along with changes in pH and

  Endovascular navigation startup Centerline Biomedical has successfully completed a fifth preclinical study at Cleveland Clinic facilities to see how its surgical navigation system, the Intra-Operative Positioning System (IOPS), will perform in the marketplace. The study demonstrated its ability to track IOPS instruments precisely and efficiently with enhanced three-dimensional (3D) visualization and

  Cook Group, through its subsidiary Cook Properties, has agreed to purchase the former GE site near Cook’s world headquarters in Bloomington, Ind. Cook Group is expanding its medical device business into the vacant GE property on Curry Pike. This purchase allows Cook the flexibility to address some immediate space

Becton, Dickinson (BD) has completed the acquisition of C.R. Bard, creating a new healthcare company with approximately $16 billion in annualized revenue. Vincent A Forlenza, chairman and CEO, said the combined company builds on BD’s position in medication management and infection prevention with an expanded offering of solutions across the care