Health plan deductibles found to double in survey

The typical health plan deductible in Massachusetts increased to $1,000 from $500, according to a national survey by Mercer, a human resources consulting firm. Overall, Mercer found health benefit costs for employees rose 6.3 percent, and employers expect a similar increase in 2009. The survey also showed that more companies are eliminating healthcare benefits for their retirees, and more employers are implementing programs to encourage healthy behavior among employees, in the hopes that will keep down overall healthcare spending. A common benefit is a lower premium for employees who don't smoke. (Jeffrey Krasner)

Some of the state's affordable housing complexes will generate electricity through solar power under a new program run by Boston Community Capital, a group that invests in projects to improve low-income communities. The group today plans to unveil a 92-kilowatt rooftop solar installation at the Cambridge Housing Authority's Washington Elms complex. The equipment is expected to generate about 30 percent of the complex's electricity. Governor Deval L. Patrick and Cambridge Mayor E. Denise Simmons are scheduled to attend the event. Solar installations are set to begin operating at four other affordable housing facilities in the state next month. (Erin Ailworth)

Framingham-based audio equipment maker Bose Corp. ended its legal battle to stop US imports of noise-canceling headphones made by New Zealand's Phitek Systems Ltd. The two companies settled a dispute before the US International Trade Commission in Washington over claims that headsets made by Phitek infringed on two Bose patents. The agreement was made "without any admission of infringement or liability," Phitek said on its website. Bose makes QuietComfort brand headphones that diminish outside noise. It was seeking to block imports of competing products. (Bloomberg)

Key switches in research strategy, particularly focusing on diseases where the underlying genetics are well understood, are helping Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis AG get more compounds into human testing, executives told analysts. A related successful approach is to start research by focusing on a narrow group of patients with the same genetic variant or other characteristics related to a disease, then figure out how to fight it in that small group, said Dr. Mark Fishman, president of Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research. (AP)

Federal health advisers backed the benefits of an experimental antibiotic but rebuffed another, citing questions that it would be able to fight dangerous staph infections, which are becoming more common. A panel of specialists assembled by the Food and Drug Administration voted 21 to 5 in favor of the safety and effectiveness of an injectable drug from Theravance, despite concerns it could cause birth defects. Panelists narrowly sided against a similar product from rival Targanta Therapeutics, saying the Cambridge firm's studies were too old to demonstrate the drug's effectiveness against bacteria strains. (AP)

The Justice Department has sent a subpoena to medical device maker Medtronic Inc. as part of an investigation into unapproved, or "off-label," uses of its Infuse spinal graft. Bill Hawkins, chief executive for Minneapolis-based Medtronic, revealed the subpoena during a conference call with analysts, but declined to elaborate on what was requested. "We are complying appropriately with the DOJ's request," Hawkins said. (AP)

The Securities and Exchange Commission delayed a plan to adopt new rules aimed at stemming conflicts of interest in Wall Street's credit rating industry. The commissioners decided to take up the new rules at the same time as other proposals that could bring significant changes for the credit rating industry. A public meeting is planned for Dec. 3 for that purpose, an SEC spokesman said. The three firms that dominate the credit rating industry - Standard & Poor's, Moody's Investors Service, and Fitch Ratings - have been faulted for failing to identify risks in subprime mortgage investments, whose collapse helped set off the global financial crisis. (AP)