US healthcare IT stocks fall

Healthcare IT stocks slid Tuesday after a Leerink Swann analyst said the electronic medical records portion of US president-elect Barack Obama's economic stimulus package will not help the sector right away, reports the Associated Press.

The climate for healthcare IT companies is still very difficult, wrote Bret Jones, saying investors may be disappointed as they wait for the stimulus package to take effect.

Obama has proposed greater funding for electronic medical records as part of a plan to save money for patients and reduce healthcare premiums. That funding is expected to be tied to an impending economic stimulus plan.

General Electric's healthcare business, GE Healthcare, is planning to acquire and provide seed capital to Indian medical device and diagnostic companies, states Reuters.

The $17 billion healthcare company is looking at acquiring companies that either possess low-cost solutions or have unique technology. It also plans to provide seed capital to Indian medical companies and pick up a majority stake in them.

GE would target diagnostic equipment manufacturers in the local market that can complement its product portfolio and help expand its rural network. GE Healthcare is looking at both organic expansion as well as strategic acquisitions.

The neurosurgical wing at Sacred Heart Hospital, Wisconsin, is using a convergence of high-end technologies for quicker and better-quality operations, says TMCnet.

Its Smart Operating Room (OR) consists of Intra-operative Magnetic Resonance Imaging from IMRIS, VectorVision Sky and a Zeiss OPMI Petero C Microscope.

These are controlled intelligently and interactively by BrainSuite software housed in a server outside the OR to assist neurosurgeons with precise information and imagery.