And so, another working week will soon draw to a close. You were waiting for this moment, yes? Well, as you may recall, this is our treasured signal to daydream about weekend plans. Our agenda is exceedingly modest. We hope to tidy up around the campus, catch up on some reading, and spend time with our short person. And you? This remains a lovely time of year and the great outdoors beckons. This may also be an opportunity to spend time with someone special. Or simply do nothing. Well, whatever you do, have a grand time, but be safe. See you soon …
Mylan Pharmaceuticals is helping to orchestrate and finance an effort to add its EpiPen emergency allergy treatment to a federal list of preventive medical services, the New York Times reports. If EpiPen makes the list, the move would eliminate out-of-pocket costs of the product for consumers and, by doing so, the drug maker could maintain EpiPen pricing while blunting much of the criticism over the cost.
Novartis is not ruling out selling its struggling Alcon eye-care business, Reuters tells us. Speaking at a conference, Felix Ehrat, the Novartis general counsel, acknowledged that firmly ruling out a possible sale would not be “clever. Never say never.” Alcon sales have been declining and, earlier this year, the head of the unit was replaced. Analysts believe Alcon will be sold if Novartis is unable to fix its problems.
Drug makers are using hydrogen to breathe new life into old drugs, Bloomberg News informs us. By substituting a heavier form of the gaseous element in drugs, the treatments can break down more slowly, which leaves them in the bloodstream longer. And this means a patient can take medicines less frequently, which, in theory, might reduce the severity of side effects.
Novavax stock dived 84 percent in after-hours trading Thursday after reporting a vaccine for preventing respiratory syncytial virus failed to meet goals in two clinical trials, the Wall Street Journal says. Last year, the company reported the vaccine fended off the virus in a mid-stage trial of 1,600 elderly patients, prompting Novavax executives to suggest the vaccine would be the world’s best-selling vaccine.
The UK government proposed a bill to control the price of brand-name medicines by introducing a single-payment mechanism for both new and old drugs, PMLive tells us.
Teva Pharmaceuticals expects to restart manufacturing at the Hungarian plant in the next few months after it was temporarily closed due to production gaffes, InPharma Technologist says.
The New Mexico attorney general filed a lawsuit accusing Bristol-Myers Squibb and Sanofi of overstating the effectiveness of and concealing the risks of the Plavix blood thinner, Reuters writes.
A European Medicines Agency advisory committee recommended that Pfizer’s Ibrance breast cancer drug should be given marketing approval, the Daily Mail reports.
Bayer has vowed not to lower R&D or manufacturing investment in pharmaceuticals as a result of its planned $56 billion acquisition of Monsanto, InPharma Technologist writes.
Teva Pharmaceuticals and Intel will develop a wearable technology platform to track the progression of disease in patients with Huntington’s, according to Reuters.
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