Foundation Medical Partners has appointed Ted Laufik as a partner and CFO. Laufik joins Foundation’s team to manage investments in the connected health and healthcare IT sectors. Most recently, he served as partner and CFO at venture capital and private equity firm Morgenthaler.

Foundation Medical Partners said Kevin Sharer has joined the firm as a partner. Sharer was most recently chairman and CEO of Amgen, serving as Amgen CEO from 2000 to 2012 and chairman since 2001.

Boston Scientific Corporation is to acquire BridgePoint Medical. Minneapolis, Minnesota-based BridgePoint Medical was established in 2007 to develop and commercialize new technologies to treat challenging coronary artery disease. Investors include New Enterprise Associates, Polaris Venture Partners, Foundation Medical Partners and Michael Berman.

Boston Equity Advisors said Wednesday that they advised on Histogenics buy of ProChon Biotech. Financial terms were not announced. Histogenics, of Waltham, Mass., develops products to regenerate healthy cartilage. Investors includes Boston Millennia Partners, Foundation Medical Partners, Altima Partners, Inflection Point Partners and a private investor. ProChon is an Israeli biotech that develops tissue-regeneration technology.

Cleveland-based Explorys has closed on $11.5 million in Series C financing led by Austin Ventures and Foundation Medical Partners, with follow-on investments from Santé Ventures and Cleveland Clinic. Formed in 2009, the company’s integrated healthcare systems are aimed at improving care, costs, and outcomes by leveraging clinical data at scale.

BridgePoint Medical Inc., a developer of medical technology for coronary disease, has closed on $9.1 million. An unnamed strategic investor led the round, which included participation from existing shareholders including New Enterprise Associates, Polaris Venture Partners and Foundation Medical Partners. The Series C round will help the company bolster sales and marketing of its technology.

(Recent funding news based on Form D filings with the S.E.C.) E-commerce platform provider Rearden Commerce has raised $46.98 million in a new round of financing, according to a filing with the S.E.C. Rearden previously raised roughly $200 million from venture investors including Foundation Capital, Oak Investment Partners, Empire Capital Partners, American Express and Chase [...]

Foundation Medical Partners is in the market raising $150 million to invest in medical device companies, according to a source familiar with the situation. The vehicle, Foundation Medical Partners 3, has closed on $63 million since its launch in 2008, according to a regulatory filing. Five million of that is the GP contribution. The Rowayton, [...]

Here’s Harry Rein from Foundation Medical Partners telling Maria Bartiromo on CNBC today how innovation in the new healthcare reform bills has “hit the cutting room floor.”

“They’re focused on access and reductions in cost…(but) you don’t get to lower costs without innovation. It IS the solution,” Rein said.

Al Waxman of the Psilos Group has a very different view. Healthcare innovation does not always lower costs, he found — sometimes it makes costs go up. Waxman discovered this first-hand in the 1970s, when he invented an ultrasound device that he thought would lower healthcare costs by eliminating unnecessary surgeries. But it didn’t. It raised costs because doctors used the device to do unnecessary procedures to lower their chances of getting sued.

Culled from regulatory filings, here are some recent private equity and venture fundraising updates.

Centerbridge Partners, the secretive buyout firm that joined some of the largest firms in their buyout of BankUnited, has raised $467.1 million for a fund called Centerbridge Special Credit Partners LP. Based in New York City, the firm is run by Jeffrey Aronson and Mark Gallogly. The firm’s first buyout fund, called Centerbridge Partners LP, closed in 2006 with an undisclosed size. The firm’s latest special credit fund has 37 investors and is using Park Hill as a placement agent. The target is not disclosed.

Domain Associates, a venture firm based in Princeton, N. J., has raised $371 million toward an indefinite target for its eighth fund, Domain Partners VIII LP. The firm invests in emerging life sciences companies. http://www.domainvc.com/

Pathway Capital Management, a private equity fund of funds based in Irving, Calif., has raised $290 million from 12 investors for its 2008 fund, which has a $500 million target. The fund, called Pathway Private Equity Fund 2008 LP, commits to funds that have an average size of $300 million. http://www.pathwaycapital.com/