1. CVS Health agreed to acquire Aetna for $69 billion. The deal will improve access and reduce healthcare costs for consumers, said CVS CEO Larry Merlo, who will become chief executive of the combined company. (WSJ)
2. Johnson & Johnson will pay Swiss biotech Idorsia up to $230 million for commercial rights for its experimental hypertension drug aprocitentan. The drug is set to enter a Phase-III trial after promising Phase-II results. (Endpoints News)
3. Within its tax-reform bill, Senate Republicans repealed Obamacare’s individual mandate. Insurance premiums will likely rise as a result, according to policy experts. (Reuters)
4. Akili’s experimental digital medicine AKL-T01, which incorporates the use of a video game, showed improved attention performance among children and adolescents with ADHD, according to results from a clinical trial. Akili plans to file AKL-T01 for FDA approval in early 2018. (Reuters)
5. The Philippines suspended its dengue immunization program, through which more than 730,000 children were administered Sanofi’s Dengvaxia, after reports that it could worsen the disease. (NYT)
