Maryland is slated to become the 1st state to pass a law banning “price gouging” by generic pharmaceutical manufacturers. The bill was passed by the Maryland general assembly in April and last month the governor said he would allow the bill to become law without his signature. The bill, which becomes effective on Oct. 1, prohibits […]
Pharmaceuticals
Critics allege misleading campaigns, poorly-cited data fueled opioid addiction crisis
The state of Ohio filed a lawsuit against opioid-makers this week, alleging that the companies produced misleading marketing schemes to convince doctors and patients that opioids were not addictive. Ohio isn’t alone – Mississippi and West Virginia have filed similar cases against major players in the pharmaceutical industry. Purdue Pharma, Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ), Endo […]
MannKind inks deal to bring inhaled insulin to Brazil
MannKind Corp. (NSDQ:MNKD) said today that the company inked a supply and distribution deal with Biomm for the commercialization of its inhaled insulin, Afrezza, in Brazil. According to the agreement, Biomm will prepare and file the necessary applications for regulatory approval. MannKind will be responsible for manufacturing and supplying Afrezza and Biomm is slated to […]
Philips, Illumina to launch precision medicine cancer program with Navican
Royal Philips (NYSE:PHG) and Intermountain Healthcare company Navican inked an agreement today to launch a precision health informatics solution aimed at improving outcomes for late stage cancer patients. The program is slated to leverage Navican‘s TheraMap Precision Cancer Care services and Philips’ IntelliSpace Genomics platform, which uses Illumina‘s next-gen genomic sequencing technologies. At Utah-based Intermountain Healthcare’s […]
Vetter, Microdermics ink deal to develop novel microneedle drug delivery system
Prefilled drug delivery system developer Vetter and medical device maker Microdermics said yesterday that the companies are working to develop a novel microneedle drug delivery system. Microdermics has developed a low-cost, commercially scalable, customizable microneedle platform that delivers vaccines and biologics. The company said it expects its intradermal delivery system will enter Phase I clinical trials this […]
Report: Mylan may have overcharged US by $1.3B for EpiPen
Mylan (NSDQ:MYL) shares dipped slightly in mid-afternoon trading today after Sen. Chuck Grassley’s (R-Iowa) office released a Health and Human Services estimate claiming that taxpayers overpaid by as much as $1.27 billion for Mylan’s EpiPen device from 2006 to 2016. The charges stem from Mylan’s decision to classify the emergency allergy auto-injector as a generic, instead of […]
Mylan board faces pressure from pension funds
Investors, including the New York City and State pension funds and the California State Teacher’s Retirement System, are urging shareholders to vote against Mylan (NSDQ:MYL) chairman Robert Coury and 5 other board members at the company’s upcoming annual meeting. Coury was compensated with more than $97 million last year and some investors aren’t happy about it. […]
Mallinckrodt mulls sale of generics biz
Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals (NYSE:MNK) is reportedly considering a sale of its generic drug unit in an effort to focus its portfolio on high-margin branded drugs, according to a report from Reuters. The divestment comes only months after the company sold its nuclear imaging business to IBA Molecular for $690 million. The sale of its generics business could […]
Nanoparticles: An industry buzzword meets reality
Young startups backed by nanoparticle tech face a world hurdles before reaching the clinic. It’s been decades since the first innovations with nanotechnology – and experts are asking, “Where are all the drugs?” It’s been more than 20 years since the FDA approved the first nanoparticle drug, Doxil. At the time, nanoparticles were heralded as a […]
Medtronic launches opioid-induced respiratory depression study
Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) said today that it’s starting a large study on the effect of pulse oximetry and capnography in opioid-induced respiratory depression, using its Capnostream device. The 1,650-patient Prodigy study aims to create a tool to score the risk of OIRD in patients being treated with opioids for pain, using Capnostream’s continuous pulse oximetry and capnography monitoring […]