ALSO NOTED: Siemens Healthcare buys Bayer diagnostics; Medicaid plan stirs protests; and much more...

> Siemens bought the diagnostics unit of Bayer in a deal worth €4.2 billion ($5.3 billion). The deal makes Siemens Healthcare one of the biggest players in the emerging immunodiagnostics field. Article

> Canada's plan to allow pharmacists to write prescriptions is triggering fierce debate. Some observers want something similar here. Blog

> PracticePartner said it has completed the certification SureScripts certification process, meaning users of the EMR system can now use the SureScripts e-prescribing network. Article

> Experts are divided about how well the Internet would perform in event of an influenza outbreak, making firms' plans to rely on telecommuting workers shaky. Article

> Critics continue to worry that the new Medicaid rule that requires recipients to prove their citizenship could hurt hundreds of thousands of low-income patients. Article

And Finally… The Times of London (ironically, a Murdoch-owned newspaper) is warning of a stealth approach to privatize the UK's NHS. Article