Nearly 16,500 groups and individuals put in their two cents on a proposed National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) rule clarifying that the U.S. government, under the Bayh-Dole Act, can’t march in on patents derived from federally funded research just because it doesn’t consider the price of the resulting product “reasonable.”

The European Commission opened a public consultation to help it develop the Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority, a new initiative to better prepare Europe for cross-border health threats.

The FDA has granted 510(k) clearance to Orthofix Medical Inc.’s Construx Mini Ti spacer system for anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) procedures. Company documents claim the implant has an optimized porosity and pore size, which creates a 3D porous surface with the potential for bone ingrowth.

CAJICA, Colombia – The tiny Central American country of Costa Rica continues to cement its position as Latin America’s med-tech powerhouse after experiencing double-digit growth in exports in the first two months of the year, according to data released by Procomer, the country's exports promotion agency. “These numbers become more relevant when detailing that medical devices and precision equipment represent, for the third consecutive year, the country's main export, which had double-digit growth of 23%, thus representing 36% of the exports of the country,” the Costa Rican government said.