Trending News Today: ACA Deadlines Sparks Enrollment Surge

With today’s enrollment deadline for health care coverage to kick in on January 1, 2017, more than 4 million people have signed-up for Affordable Care Act health plans, according to the Chicago Tribune. These figures included 1.1 million new customers and 2.9 million renewals through December 10, 2016, CMS said in a recent statement. Furthermore, on December 12 and 13, 2016, more than 700,000 individuals signed up for Obamacare plans, according to the report.

The former president and former chief executive of Heritage Pharmaceuticals Inc have been charged with conspiring to fix prices, according to The Wall Street Journal. Prosecutors allege that former CEO Jeffrey A. Glazer and former President Jason T. Malek conspired with competitors to fix prices and allocate customers for the diabetes treatment, antibiotic doxycycline hyclate and glyburide, the Journal reported. These are the first charges in a continuing Justice Department antitrust probe, the report noted.

The FDA has denied a request by Swedish Match to remove several warnings from their chewable tobacco pouches, called snus, regarding tooth loss and gum disease. According to The New York Times, this is the first decision of its kind handed down by the FDA since gaining authority to review the risks of tobacco products in 2009. The decision was based on scientific evidence that the agency said showed a link to gum disease and tooth loss. Despite rejecting one of the company’s requests, FDA regulators said they are still considering 2 other proposals, which includes a request to remove a warning related to mouth cancer, the Times reported.