Time for a break and a chance to catch up.

Two Merck vaccines have been adopted for use in a nationwide immunization program for uninsured or underinsured children. The drugmaker’s Rotateq rotavirus vaccine and Gardasil human papillomavirus vaccines were accepted by all U.S.-based Vaccines for Children projects. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention program provides vaccines to Medicaid-eligible, uninsured, Native American and some underinsured children in all 50 states. Vaccines are also available through city programs in Washington D.C., New York City, Philadelphia, Chicago, and San Antonio, the Associated Press reports.

Genzyme says its Carticel drug Carticel provided sustained improvements in knee function among patients in a trial who had not previously been helped adequately by knee cartilage repair procedures. The biotech says the drug, by meeting goals of the post-marketing trial, had satisfied FDA requirements that the med be further studied following its earlier regulatory approval, Reuters reports.