Hearing Arguments: Three appellate court judges questioned whether Virginia has standing to sue the federal government over the health-care overhaul in a hearing on two of the suits challenging the law, the WSJ reports . The judges, all appointees of Democratic presidents, were chosen at random. Virginia’s challenge to the law is one of several ; appeals courts in other states will hear arguments in June. Keeping Tabs: The FDA has asked Johnson & Johnson, Stryker,  Zimmer and other makers of artificial hips to monitor the effects of the devices after they’ve been implanted in patients, Bloomberg News reports . The agency is concerned about the possibility that metal-on-metal hip replacements dangerously raise the concentration of metal in the blood. Spokespersons for J&J’s DePuy unit and Zimmer said the companies were working to understand the FDA’s request; Stryker said it doesn’t make metal-on-metal implants, BN says. No Jury: A U.S. judge

acquitted a former GlaxoSmithKline attorney accused of obstructing an FDA investigation into the improper marketing of the drug Wellbutrin without sending the case to the jury, the WSJ reports . The judge said the lawyer should never have been prosecuted. The decision shows how tough it can be to prosecute individuals at corporations accused of misconduct, the paper says. Medicaid Changes: The House Republicans’ plan to change Medicaid into a block grant program for states has the potential to affect the elderly given that about 70% of nursing-home residents are beneficiaries of the federal-state insurance program for low-income Americans, the New York Times reports . While 77% of Medicaid enrollees are children and families, 64% of the program’s fiscal 2010 spending was directed at the elderly and the disabled, the paper says. Image: iStockphoto

View original post here: 
A.M. Vitals: Appeals Court Questions Virginia’s Standing in Health-Law Case