Health Care Lower as Traders Hedge on Legislative Risk -- Health Care Roundup

Shares of health-care companies fell as traders bet the sector would remain prone to legislative risk.

States are grappling with the obligation to pay 5% of the cost to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act this year. Under the Republican bill to replace the ACA, the obligations would eventually be far higher.

Roche declined after the Swiss drug company said its new drug Tecentriq failed to improve overall survival in a clinical trial of patients with bladder cancer, compared with chemotherapy. The setback for the immunotherapy treatment was such that analysts at brokerage Bernstein mused: "Does this mark a limit?" for the promising oncological niche of immunotherapy.

Rob Curran, rob.curran@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 10, 2017 17:24 ET (21:24 GMT)