The so-called solidarity contribution had already been voted through by the upper house of parliament last week

International News via Reuters:

The Swiss lower house of parliament on Monday approved plans to make a one-off payment of 50,000 Swiss francs ($64,000) to survivors and bereaved families of a New Year bar fire at a ski resort that killed 41 people and injured 115.

The so-called solidarity contribution, which aims to provide swift financial support to victims of the blaze at the Le Constellation bar in the town of Crans-Montana, had already been voted through by the upper house of parliament last week.

The payment is meant to apply to each individual who lost their life in the fire and everyone who was hospitalised. Most of those who died were teenagers and many of the victims were foreigners, including several from France and Italy.

According to witnesses and prosecutors, the fire appeared to have been started by the use of sparkling candles that ignited foam soundproofing on the bar’s basement ceiling.

Earlier, a document showed that Swiss prosecutors have widened their investigation into the fire, adding the mayor of Crans-Montana and four other current and former local officials to the list of suspects.

($1 = 0.7785 Swiss francs)

Reporting by Olivia Le Poidevin; Editing by Dave Graham

The incident in southern Turkey marks the second intercepted missile from Iran in the last week

International News via Reuters:

Turkey said on Monday that NATO air defences shot down a second Iranian ballistic missile that had entered its airspace and warned that it would move against any such threats, which increasingly pose a test for Ankara and the alliance. 

The incident in southern Turkey marks the second intercepted missile from Iran in the last week. Turkey, NATO’s second-largest army and Iran’s neighbour, had warned Tehran on Saturday against attacking again, but it has not suggested it wants to formally call on bloc members for further protection.

A NATO spokesperson confirmed that the alliance had intercepted a missile heading to Turkey, and that it stood firm in its readiness to defend allies. 

Unlike last week’s incoming missile, which was downed outside Turkey, the latest missile entered Turkish airspace. Its fragments fell in a region sitting between a critical airbase to the west and a radar base to the east, both of which are used by the United States and NATO. 

“We once again emphasise that all necessary measures will be taken decisively and without hesitation against any threat directed at our country’s territory and airspace,” the Turkish Defence Ministry said, adding there had been no casualties in the incident. 

“We also reiterate that it is in everyone’s interest to heed Turkey’s warnings in this regard,” it said.

President Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey had delivered the necessary warnings to Iran after the missile incident.

“Iran continues to take wrong and provocative steps,” Erdogan said after a cabinet meeting in Ankara.

He said that Turkey would continue to take additional measures after deploying six F-16 fighter jets to northern Cyprus earlier on Monday, adding that Turkey’s main goal was to keep the country out of the “blaze” of the Iran war.

RELIANCE ON NATO DEFENCES

Turkey, an emerging leader in the global defence industry, lacks its own fully fledged air defences despite development efforts, and has relied on NATO air defences stationed in the eastern Mediterranean Sea in both incidents in the last week. 

Turkey did not immediately comment on any formal steps within NATO. 

It had previously said it had no intention of invoking the bloc’s Article 4 that would call allies to consult if a member is threatened. That could lead to Article 5, which would call NATO to defend its attacked ally. 

President Tayyip Erdogan’s office said Ankara was strongly reiterating its warning to all parties, namely Iran, to avoid endangering regional stability and civilians.

It was unclear where the missile was headed. 

U.S. air forces are stationed at Turkey’s Incirlik base, and there is a NATO radar base in Malatya province to the northeast that provides vital protection for the alliance. Ankara said the missile debris fell in empty fields in Gaziantep, which sits roughly between the two. 

The U.S. embassy in Turkey ordered non-emergency government employees and families to leave its southern Adana consulate, where service was suspended, and it strongly encouraged Americans to leave southeast Turkey. 

Ankara says that Washington has not used Incirlik in its air assault, alongside Israel, on Iran, which triggered Tehran’s missile and drone attacks. 

Iran did not immediately comment on the incident, but it has said repeatedly that it is not at war with regional countries and is not explicitly targeting Turkey.

Turkey had sought to mediate U.S.-Iran talks before the air war that began 10 days ago. 

Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu; Editing by Daren Butler, Jonathan Spicer, Aidan Lewis

The deal marks a turnaround from February, when Novo sued Hims over a $49 compounded alternative to its Wegovy weight-loss pill

International News via Reuters:

Novo Nordisk has agreed to sell its blockbuster Wegovy and Ozempic drugs through U.S. telehealth company Hims & Hers’ platform, the Danish drugmaker said on Monday, ending a legal dispute that erupted last month. 

The deal marks a turnaround from February, when Novo sued Hims over a $49 compounded alternative to its Wegovy weight-loss pill.

Shares of the telehealth company rose 36% in morning trading.

Novo is grappling with telehealth firms offering cheaper compounded copycat versions of its obesity treatments.

Under the agreement, Hims will offer regulatory-approved Ozempic and Wegovy injectables, as well as the Wegovy pill, to U.S. consumers on its platform at Novo’s self-pay prices.

In return, Hims will no longer advertise compounded GLP-1 drugs, though it will continue offering them when providers deem it clinically necessary.

“Glad to see HIMS will stop advertising unapproved compounded drugs and instead sell FDA-approved products through its new partnership with Novo Nordisk. Importantly, they will keep them affordable (no increase in price) and limit compounded GLP-1s for rare (FDA compliant) cases,” FDA commissioner Marty Makary wrote in a post on social media platform X.

“I’d like to congratulate both parties on this deal following our recent action.”

In February, the health regulator said it would take decisive steps against companies mass-marketing illegal copycat drugs, including Hims.

COMPETITION DRIVES PRICE CUTS

Novo CEO Mike Doustdar said the Wegovy pill had generated more than 600,000 prescriptions since its launch two months ago, with telehealth partnerships accelerating uptake.

The Danish firm faces stiff U.S. competition from Eli Lilly. To boost sales, Novo has cut prices for its weight-loss drugs from about $1,000 per month to $149-$299 on its websites.

Doustdar said lower pricing was a key part of the partnership, telling Reuters that “authentic products are now very similarly priced as the compounded ones”.

The deal follows a warning last week from U.S. regulators to 30 telehealth companies over misleading promotions of compounded drugs from the GLP-1 class that includes Wegovy and Ozempic. The Food and Drug Administration said some firms falsely equated compounded products with approved medications.

Hims CEO Andrew Dudum said the partnership with Novo followed Hims’ decision to shift its U.S. weight-loss business away from compounded GLP-1 drugs and towards branded, FDA-approved treatments, reflecting what he said was rising demand for a wider range of lower-cost options.

“That’s where we see growth in the business,” Dudum told Reuters.

In light of the agreement, Novo Nordisk said it was withdrawing the patent infringement lawsuit “while reserving the right to refile”.

Novo ended a similar agreement last year over concerns about compounded drug marketing and sales.

Reporting by Stine Jacobsen in Copenhagen and Maggie Fick in London, additional reporting by Sriparna Roy in Bengaluru. Editing by Mark Potter and Krishna Chandra Eluri