HEALTH

The competitive landscape throughout the OTC arena has changed significantly over the past five years, with the Top 10 rankings shifting in the past year thanks to a slew of acquisitions and joint ventures. Bayer’s bolt-on acquisition of Merck’s Consumer Health business in 2014 helped solidify its spot as the second-largest OTC marketer. And GSK Consumer Healthcare claimed the No. 3 spot after forming a joint venture with Novartis Consumer Health.

WASHINGTON —  The nation’s major companies are advancing in record numbers vital policies and practices to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) workers around the world, according to the 2017 Corporate Equality Index released Monday by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, the educational arm of the nation’s largest LGBTQ civil rights organization.

FAIRFIELD, Ohio -- DNA Diagnostics Center on Friday acquired Identigene, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sorenson Genomics.

Details of the transaction were not disclosed.

Identigene, based in Salt Lake City, Utah was established in 2007 as the first in-home DNA paternity test collection kit sold through retail outlets nationwide. Today, the Identigene brand is distributed at more than 20,000 retail store locations throughout the United States, including CVS, Walmart and Rite Aid.

WASHINGTON — The Consumer Healthcare Products Association on Friday named Marc Schloss senior director and head of federal government affairs where he will be responsible for developing and implementing federal lobbying strategies on behalf of CHPA and member companies.

CHICAGO — IRI is continuing its e-commerce momentum through an alliance with Clavis Insight, a provider of digital shelf analysis, insights and analytics for consumer products manufacturers, the data analytics company announced Monday. The alliance means consumer packaged goods marketers will be able to track and assess a brand’s holistic online and offline performance in one place, to identify and capitalize on rapidly emerging e-commerce growth opportunities and maximize omnichannel sales and market share.

CAMP HILL, Pa. -- From Dec. 5 through Dec. 17, Rite Aid customers will be able to save $5 on their flu shot in support of National Influenza Vaccination Week, the company announced Monday.

NEW YORK -- Nanowear, an early stage developer of cloth-based diagnostic monitoring nanosensor technology, on Thursday announced that it has received FDA Class II 510(k) clearance for its first product, SimplECG, a remote cardiac monitoring undergarment.

SimplECG collects continuous multi-channel ECG, heart rate and respiratory rate data from the garment and transfers it to a web-based portal for review by a physician, by way of a mobile application. The initial version of the product is iPhone-based.