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Merkel’s party suffers rout in Berlin in migrant policy backlash

By Michael Nienaber and Madeline Chambers BERLIN (Reuters) – German Chancellor Angela Merkel's CDU party suffered its second electoral blow in two weeks on Sunday, slumping to its lowest level since 1990 in a Berlin state vote that rejected her open-door refugee policy. Voters turned to the anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD), which with 12.9 percent of the vote will enter its 10th regional assembly among the country's 16 states. Merkel's Christian Democrats were routed in the eastern state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern two weeks ago, triggering calls from the CSU for her to toughen up her migrant policy.

Shire on a roll as U.S. approves keenly awaited eye drug

Shire has won U.S. approval for its most important new medicine, a treatment for dry eyes, in a fresh boost for the company which completed its $32 billion acquisition of U.S. rare diseases specialist Baxalta last month. The Dublin-based drugmaker has been a big stock market winner following Britain's decision to leave the European Union, benefiting from the strength of the dollar against sterling and investor demand for defensive sectors like pharmaceuticals. Shire shares — already up a fifth since the UK referendum on June 23 — gained another 4 percent on Tuesday on news the U.S. Food and Drug Administration had approved lifitegrast eye drops for treating signs and symptoms of dry eye disease.

Gove pledges extra money for health service if becomes PM

LONDON (Reuters) – Leading Brexit campaigner Michael Gove pledged an extra 100 million pounds per week for Britain's National Health Service (NHS) by 2020 should he become the next prime minister. The justice secretary in Prime Minister David Cameron's government, Gove was a leading figure in the official Vote Leave campaign ahead of the June 23 referendum that saw Britain vote to quit the European Union, prompting Cameron to resign. He made the NHS pledge in a speech on Friday setting out his stall in the race to succeed Cameron. …

Colorado inmate files first claim of paternity in Prince’s estate

Lawyers for Carlin Q. Williams, 39, filed a petition in Carver County District Court near Minneapolis on Monday objecting to probate of the estate left by Prince, who according to the performer's sister, Tyka Nelson, left behind no will and no surviving offspring. The petition seeks a hearing and a court order for genetic testing of DNA samples obtained from the late music star.

UK cost agency endorses Novartis heart drug for some patients

Novartis's big new drug hope Entresto has been recommended for use in some patients with heart failure by Britain's cost agency NICE, which said on Friday it believed the treatment was a cost-effective option. Entresto has a list price of 1,194 pounds ($1,809) a year in Britain, or less than half the price of $4,560 charged by Novartis in the United States. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) said Entresto was suitable for a subset of heart failure patients whose hearts were particularly poor at pumping blood.

Expert group says embryo genetic modification should be allowed

Research involving genetic modification of human embryos, though controversial, is essential to gain basic understanding of the biology of early embryos and should be permitted, an international group of experts said on Wednesday. The statement was issued by members of the so-called Hinxton Group, a global network of stem cell researchers, bioethicists and policy experts who met in Britain last week. “However, we acknowledge that when all safety, efficacy and governance needs are met, there may be morally acceptable uses of this technology in human reproduction, though further substantial discussion and debate will be required,” the group said in a statement.

British anti-slavery chief enlists Vatican in global pact to end slavery

By Chris Arsenault VATICAN CITY (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Britain’s anti-slavery commissioner received the backing of the Catholic Church on Saturday for a campaign to push for a global pact vowing to eradicate slavery in the next 15 years. Kevin Hyland, who took up the new role last year, is lobbying world leaders to support a commitment to end forced labor and slavery of all forms in a set of global development goals to be adopted at the United Nations in September. While slavery is illegal in every country on earth, an estimated 36 million people are trapped in modern slavery.

British health worker being tested for Ebola after needle injury

A British military healthcare worker was flown back to England from Sierra Leone on Saturday following a needle-stick injury sustained while treating a person with Ebola, the Public Health England (PHE) service said on Saturday. The patient, who has not been named, has been taken for testing to the Royal Free Hospital in London. “They are likely to have been exposed to the Ebola virus but, at this time, have not been diagnosed with Ebola and do not have symptoms,” PHE said in a statement. The Royal Free, Britain's main center for Ebola cases, also successfully treated British aid worker William Pooley who contracted the virus in West Africa last year.

Europe’s tuberculosis hub Britain seeks to wipe out the disease

By Kate Kelland LONDON (Reuters) – Health authorities launched an 11.5 million pounds plan on Monday to tackle Britain's persistent tuberculosis (TB) problem, seeking to wipe the contagious lung disease out altogether. Britain has one of the highest TB rates in western Europe and London is known as the continent's “TB capital”. If current trends continue, England alone will have more TB cases than the whole of the U.S. in two years. “TB should be consigned to the past, and yet it is occurring in England at higher rates than most of Western Europe,” said Paul Cosford, a director at the government's health agency, Public Health England (PHE).

Ebola volunteers should be praised, not stigmatized: UK charities

By Liisa Tuhkanen LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Volunteer medics returning to Britain after fighting the Ebola outbreak in West Africa face unfounded stigma that can be made worse by official safety guidelines, charities said on Tuesday. “These people are putting their lives at risk and instead of being appreciated many of them are facing unfounded stigma on their return,” said Sarah Wilson, communication manager for Ebola response at World Vision. “They should be lauded when they come back home… not discouraged from volunteering. …