The Nasdaq (NDX), like other blue chip indices in the United States, has had a relatively slow start to 2015 when compared to the last few years. However, that may be about to change. While we often consider the Nasdaq as the tech heavy index, the reality is that the index is also the home to many healthcare stocks; and with several good pieces of recent news, healthcare may just be the sector that drives the index further this week.

Today, we'll talk about a few key players in the healthcare sector and the news that has been pushing them higher. We'll also take a look at the affect of these stocks on the Nasdaq as a whole, and what we can expect to see moving forward. So, let's get right to it!

Healthcare Stocks That Could Push The Nasdaq Up

As mentioned above, the Nasdaq is a healthcare heavy index. With that said, here are 3 healthcare stocks that are likely to push the index further up…

• Gilead Sciences (GILD) – Gilead Sciences is currently the leader when it comes to the treatment of the hepatitis C virus and HIV. Recently, there has been a bit of concern revolving around the company's hepatitis C market share as a large competitor recently entered the market. However, with the release of their last earnings report, Gilead proved that they still have the market in a stronghold. As a result, the stock soared earlier in the month; giving the Nasdaq a decent push.
• Prima Biomed (PBMD) – Prima Biomed recently released data surrounding it's most recent study into the treatment of ovarian cancer. The results of the study were overwhelmingly positive; getting investors excited to see what's in store moving forward. As a result, the stock gained nearly 400% in a single day Wednesday before correcting on Thursday and Friday. However, as the market opens this week, we can expect to see the stock bounce back in a big way. While it is a smaller stock, 400% gains anywhere is likely to send the index up!
• MannKind Corporation (MNKD) – Finally, we have MannKind Corporation. For the past few months, the stock has been falling as the result of poor remarks from analysts. However, that changed quite a bit last week. A week ago Friday, Jefferies released a research note showing that physicians are not only aware of MannKind's leading offering, Afrezza, but they plan to use it more often in the future. As a result, MannKind had an incredibly strong week in the market and is likely to continue doing so.

How Much Of An Affect Do Healthcare Stocks Have On The NASDAQ?

While it's clear to see that the healthcare market is doing well right now, it's also important to ask the question above. The bottom line is that if the healthcare market has little effect on the Nasdaq, than there's no point in trying to see where the Nasdaq is going by looking at the market. However, that's not the case. To see how much of an affect the healthcare sector had on the Nasdaq as a whole, I opened a chart for the Nasdaq, Gilead Sciences, Prima Biomed, and MannKind Corporation, and looked at them all side by side. What I saw was incredibly interesting. It seemed as though these three stocks and the Nasdaq have a very strong positive correlation. So, when these stocks are climbing, it's likely that the Nasdaq is on the rise as well!

What We Can Expect To See Moving Forward

As an investor, the Nasdaq is my favorite index to watch. That's because my favorite industries are tech and biotech. With that said, I'm expecting to see a very strong week from the Nasdaq this week led by two very important factors. First off, the healthcare market is on a roll right now. With a strong bullish sentiment in the market, we can expect to see it continuing to rise throughout the week, and most likely longer. As a result, the Nasdaq will have no choice to follow. Another factor that's likely to drive the Nasdaq up this week is the fact that the Federal Reserve's Friday announcement made it clear that interest rates aren't going up in June. So, with a strong healthcare market and confirmation that interest rates will stay low, at least in the short term, I'm expecting to see an incredibly strong week from the Nasdaq this week.