Shire Tries To Sell Its ADHD Pill In Europe, But Will Anyone Pay Attention?
The pharmaceutical industry may have a hard time gaining attention in Europe for one of its best-selling categories in the US – the pills that are widely prescribed to combat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD. Why? Many Europeans are not convinced that ADHD really exists and do not want to use medication for what is widely viewed as childhood behavior problems, Bloomberg News writes.
“There’s been a great deal of resistance to even believing there is a disease,” Mary Baker, who heads the European Brain Council, a non-profit that represents doctors, patients and drugmakers, tells the news service. ...
Source: Pharmalot - October 2, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: esilverman Source Type: blogs
Did Pfizer Have Jitters Over A Story About A Nerve Gas Antidote?
Three weeks ago, a story ran in The Wall Street Journal that a Pfizer unit was having difficulty making pre-filled syringes that contain antidotes to sarin nerve gas and some US public health officials were concerned about obtaining adequate supplies. The story appeared just as the White House began considering a diplomatic proposal from Russia about the use of nerve gas by the Syrian government.
As the story noted, the drugmaker and the federal government are making it a priority to obtain replacement syringes for the military, but for the past few months, there have been insufficient supplies for ambulances and hospitals...
Source: Pharmalot - October 2, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: esilverman Source Type: blogs
San Francisco Voters To Consider A Ballot For Lowering Drug Prices
Next month, San Francisco voters will have a chance to approve a referendum that will allow residents to decide whether to require city officials to hold talks with drugmakers about pricing for ‘essential medicines.’ And to ensure that qualified voters are aware of the opportunity, a publicity campaign has begun this week featuring a television spot for ‘Prop D.’
The measure, which is known as the Prescription Drug Purchasing Initiative, is designed to increase patient access and was begun last summer by the AIDS Healthcare Foundation in response to the prices for certain AIDS medications, specifically, Stribild, a...
Source: Pharmalot - October 2, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: esilverman Source Type: blogs
DTC Ad Spending Is Rising So Far This Year, But Will It Continue?
For those keeping track of direct-to-consumer advertising of prescriptions – and we know that many do – newly released data indicates a slight uptick in promotional spending in recent months. Through the first half of this year, DTC advertising totaled $1.82 billion, a slight 1.2 percent rise over the same period a year earlier, according to DTC Perspectives, an industry consulting firm that cited Kantar Media data.
Why? “The reasons for stabilization are new brands doing heavy DTC,” writes Bob Ehrlich, a former Warner-Lambert executive who runs DTC Perspectives, in his blog. He cites new spending for two drugs –...
Source: Pharmalot - October 2, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: esilverman Source Type: blogs
Pharmalot... Pharmalittle... Good Morning
Rise and shine, everyone. The middle of the week is here, which is, generally, a busy time. Our morning, in fact, got off to an usually interesting start thanks to National Public Radio and WNYC, a local affiliate, which called us to discuss the Merck reorganization (you can listen here). We do this sort of thing, now and again, in case you were not aware. We are also available for conferences, bar mitzvahs and satires. While you ponder the possibilities, here are some tidbits to start the day. Hope you have a smashing time at work and do stay in touch...
J&J Says Dispute With Boehringer May Cause Doxil Shortage (Bloom...
Source: Pharmalot - October 2, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: esilverman Source Type: blogs
The Latest Merck Reorg Is About 'Using Resources:' Frazier Explains
Earlier today, Merck announced yet another large reorganization designed to jumpstart its operations and boost its stock price. Another 8,500 jobs are going on top of the thousands that were eliminated over the past several years, corporate headquarters are being moved for the second time in the past year and, significantly, R&D operations are going to emphasize four specific areas, in particular. We spoke briefly with Merck ceo Ken Frazier, 58, about the changes. This is an edited version…
Pharmalot: You’ve haven’t been ceo for more than a few years, but you have been with Merck a long time and so have a perspec...
Source: Pharmalot - October 1, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: esilverman Source Type: blogs
The New Theme Song For Mail-Order Pharmacy Customers? 'I Can't Get No Satisfaction'
For all the chatter about the increasing reliance on mail-order pharmacies for delivering prescription drugs, old-fashioned brick-and-mortar retailers are apparently gaining ground with consumers. A new survey finds that customer satisfaction with mail-order pharmacies was essentially flat compared with last year, while satisfaction with a traditional pharmacy rose nearly 3 percent.
Why? Mail-order pharmacies are having trouble competing on cost. Last year, they had a seven-point advantage on a 1,000-point scale, but now find themselves trailing brick-and-mortar pharmacies by 20 points, according to JD Power and Associates...
Source: Pharmalot - October 1, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: esilverman Source Type: blogs
Novartis Diovan Marketing May Have Violated Japanese Law
The other shoe is getting closer to dropping in the Diovan scandal engulfing Novartis in Japan. A government panel has released a much-anticipated report indicating the drugmaker may have violated Japanese law by using faulty data to promote its widely used heart drug, an offense that could lead to fines and jail time. The report may also augur concerns about the veracity of other research conducted at Japanese universities that have relations with drugmakers.
The report from the Japanese health ministry follows disclosures earlier this year by Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine and Jikei University, which ran two of...
Source: Pharmalot - October 1, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: esilverman Source Type: blogs
Another Big Merck Reorg: 8,500 Jobs Cut To Save $2.5 Billion
You knew this was coming. After weeks of telegraphing that another big reorganization was being planned, Merck disclosed plans to eliminate about 8,500 positions – mostly in sales and marketing and R&D - in hopes of saving $2.5 billion by the end of 2015. Other changes include a shift in the R&D focus and scaling back facilities, such as shifting global headquarters - again - this time, to Kenilworth, New Jersey, from nearby Summit.
The move comes just a few months after Merck hired former Amgen (AMGN) R&D chief and Merck alumnus Roger Perlmutter to run its flagging R&D machine, which has experienced seve...
Source: Pharmalot - October 1, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: esilverman Source Type: blogs
FDA Approval Of Roche Cancer Drug Signals A New Paradigm
In a move that may prompt drugmakers to rethink development of cancer treatments, the FDA late yesterday approved the first medicine to treat breast cancer before surgery. Called Perjeta, the Roche biologic was endorsed as part of the accelerated approval program, occurring just three weeks after an FDA panel recommended use and a full month before the agency was expected to make a decision.
The drug is intended for patients with HER2-positive, locally advanced, inflammatory or early stage breast cancer, who are at high risk of having their cancer return, spread to other parts of the body or of dying from the disease. Surg...
Source: Pharmalot - October 1, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: esilverman Source Type: blogs
Pharmalot... Pharmalittle... Good Morning
Good morning, everyone, and how are you today? Once again, we are scrambling to assist the short people on their journeys to the local schoolhouses, an exercise in patience and determination. Perhaps, you can relate. In any event, another busy day is on the way. And there is no time to dilly dally. So please join us as we reach for our treasured cup of stimulation - our flavor today is the ever-seasonal Pumpkin Spice - and fire up our remaining neurons. And as always, we have some tidbits for you. Dig in and get started. And, of course, have a successful day...
Lundbeck And Takeda Win FDA OK For Depression Drug (Bloomberg ...
Source: Pharmalot - October 1, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: esilverman Source Type: blogs
Former Bristol-Myers Chemist Sentenced To Life For Murdering Hubby
Do you remember Tianle Li? She is the former Bristol-Myers Squibb chemist who was convicted two months ago for murdering her estranged husband by giving him a toxic metal known as thallium, which the drugmaker once used for making medical imaging agents. Rather have him obtain a divorce, prosecutors charged that she reached for poison. Now, she has been sentenced to life in prison.
The 43-year-old Li gave thallium to Xiaoye Wang, 39, on a regular basis, starting in late 2010 (back story). Thallium is known as a ‘perfect poison,' because it can be fatal in very tiny doses. Studies in people who ingested large amounts over...
Source: Pharmalot - September 30, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: esilverman Source Type: blogs
A Thaw Between Roche And Novartis? What About A Merger?
Will Roche and Novartis work more closely together and even consider a merger? Now that both drugmakers have new chairmen – replacing a pair who had famously icy relations – there is increasing talk about cooperation and that, in turn, is leading to speculation that a merger could even occur. In fact, a Novartis board member earlier this month suggested such a deal might make sense.
Earlier this month, you may recall, Roche named Lufthansa ceo Christoph Franz, who is also one of its board members, to succeed Franz Humer as chairman, a move that came only a few weeks after Jorg Reinhardt replaced the controversial Dan V...
Source: Pharmalot - September 30, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: esilverman Source Type: blogs
US House Passes Compounding And Supply Chain Safety Bill
A bill hailed as a big step toward improving the safety of the pharmaceutical supply chain passed the US House over the weekend and the US Senate is widely expected to pass the legislation, which is designed to bolster FDA oversight of compounding pharmacies and also institute a nationwide system for tracking shipments of prescription drugs.
“This legislation would address two important issues affecting the quality and security of America’s drug supply,” says Health Subcommittee chairman Joe Pitts, a Pennsylvania Republican, in a statement. “First, the bill would protect traditional pharmacies and clarify laws rela...
Source: Pharmalot - September 30, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: esilverman Source Type: blogs
Bayer Chastised For Nightcaps After A Medical Conference
File this under 'just say no.' A senior Bayer staffer bought nightcaps for three delegates in a hotel bar until the early morning hours following an awards dinner at a medical conference this past July in Amsterdam. Why? Afterwards, they escorted the Bayer staffer back to her hotel and had some drinks while waiting for their taxi to arrive.
Was this an innocuous moment passing the time? Presumably, the delegates - a group that included a pair of Bayer contractors - were being polite and collegial. And since a taxi was not expected to arrive immediately, the group decided to simply pass the time. The time was nearly midnig...
Source: Pharmalot - September 30, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: esilverman Source Type: blogs
