Fosaprepitant, an antiemetic, expands the company's large sterile injectable portfolio in oncology.

After four years of construction Fresenius Vamed has completed the new main building at University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein (UKSH) in Lübeck. Following the opening in August of the new main building at the UKSH’s other location, in Kiel, the modernization of Germany’s second-largest university hospital is now largely complete. In addition to the new construction and the comprehensive renovation of the two university hospital locations, the project includes their technical management through 2044. With a total volume of €1.7 billion, the UKSH modernization is currently the biggest public-private partnership project in Europe’s healthcare sector.

VAMED Vitality World has been named the “World’s Best Thermal Spa & Medical Wellness Operator 2019” at the World Spa Awards. Four VAMED Vitality World facilities – Geinberg5 Private Spa Villas, St. Martins Therme & Lodge, Therme Laa Hotel & Spa and la pura women’s health resort – also won in their individual categories. VAMED Vitality World, part of Fresenius Vamed, operates a total of nine spa and health resorts in Austria.

A new presentation of Fresenius Kabi Heparin is now available in the company’s Simplist^® ready-to-administer prefilled syringe, expanding the company's Heparin portfolio.

Fresenius Kabi has completed the expansion of its plant in Aquiraz, Brazil, increasing the facility’s capacity for parenteral nutrition production by around 30 percent. The company expects to hire about 50 new employees to bring the plant’s workforce to about 850. Fresenius Kabi, which has been active in Brazil for more than 40 years, invested some €20 million in the expansion and modernization of the Aquiraz plant.

Fulvestrant Injection is now available in the United States in the company’s ready-to-administer prefilled syringes and is the latest addition to Fresenius Kabi’s broad oncology portfolio. The product is the only room temperature stable Fulvestrant Injection currently available in the U.S.

Fresenius Helios has developed a new system for measuring patient safety, and is introducing it in all 86 Helios hospitals across Germany. The new system will complement the company’s existing quality management system and combine internationally established patient safety indicators with various indicators that Helios has developed through clinical practice. These include measurements on such indicators as false diagnoses, medication errors and patient falls. When Helios begins reporting the results next year, it will be the first German hospital operator to provide patient safety data that can be compared internationally.

Fresenius Kabi has opened a new research and development center for biosimilars in Eysins, in the Swiss canton of Vaud. The facility, in which the company invested about €15 million, will strengthen Fresenius Kabi’s capability to develop new biosimilars, particularly in the areas of autoimmune diseases and oncology. A biosimilar is a drug that is “similar” to another, already approved biologic drug. More than 100 employees representing over 20 nationalities work at the Eysins site, and the company plans to expand the workforce in the near future.

Fresenius will be included in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index Europe (DJSI Europe) for the first time as from 23 September 2019. The selected companies must demonstrate continuous improvement with regard to sustainability and are assessed by analysts from asset manager RobecoSAM.

The price increase for hospital services in Germany has been set at 3.66% for 2020. As it is subject to negotiations at the state level as well as individual hospital discounts, the final price increase on the individual hospital level will, however, be lower.