Insulin giant Novo Nordisk (NYSE:NVO) has reportedly approached Global Blood Therapeutics (NSDQ:GBT) to discuss a possible takeover. The U.S. biotech is reviewing its options with an investment bank, according to Reuters, and there is no guarantee that it will enter formal negotiations with Novo Nordisk. Global Blood Therapeutics is developing GBT440, a once-daily, oral therapy to treat […]
Wall Street Beat
PharmaJet, Serum Institute partner for needle-free MMR vaccine
PharmaJet inked a partnership with vaccine manufacturer Serum Institute of India to commercialize needle-free delivery of the MMR vaccine using the Stratis 0.5mL injection system. PharmaJet’s device is designed to administer medication intramuscularly or subcutaneously, without the use of needles. The Chicago-based company touts the technology as a way to prevent cross-contamination between needles and enhance patient compliance. […]
Pacira prices $300m senior notes offering
Pacira Pharmaceuticals (NSDQ:PCRX) said today that it priced $300 million of convertible 2.375% senior notes due 2022 in a private placement to qualified institutional buyers. The Parsippany, N.J.-based company also gave purchasers a 30-day option to buy an additional $45 million aggregate principal amount of notes. The company expects to bring in about $290 million […]
Virta Health looks to reverse, not treat, Type II diabetes
Virta Health, founded by physicians and scientists from Stanford, MIT and Harvard, launched today with the goal to reverse Type II diabetes using its technology platform to enable personalized remote care. The company provides physician supervision, health coaches, an app and biomarker tracking tools, as well as a personalized nutrition plan for its patients in […]
Intersect ENT seeks FDA nod for Resolve steroid-releasing implant
Intersect ENT (NSDQ:XENT) said today that it submitted a New Drug Application to the FDA for its Resolve steroid-releasing implant to treat chronic sinusitis patients with recurrent sinus obstruction. The Menlo Park, Calif.-based company’s implant can be placed during a routine physician office visit and is designed to be a less invasive treatment option for recurrent […]
Report: Boston Scientific’s U.S. hiring flat despite device tax pause
Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX), a longtime vocal opponent of the medical device tax, has argued that the 2.3% tax would kill jobs in the industry. However, a report from the Boston Business Journal shows that the company’s U.S. headcount has remained constant over the past year. In its recent annual filing, the Marlboro-based firm said it ended the year […]
Trump drug pricing tweet sends pharma stocks down
Shares in Pfizer (NYSE:PFE), Merck (NYSE:MRK) and Amgen (NSDQ:AMGN) fell slightly this morning after President Donald Trump tweeted that he was working on a “new system” to lower drug prices. “I am working on a new system where there will be competition in the Drug Industry,” he wrote. “Pricing for the American people will come way down!” […]
Opioid treatment implant-maker Braeburn secretly funded advocacy group fronted by Gingrich
Opioid treatment implant-maker Braeburn Pharmaceuticals said in a regulatory filing last month that it has made charitable donations to an advocacy group fronted by Newt Gingrich and Patrick Kennedy known as Advocates for Opioid Recovery. The group lobbies for more government funding and insurance coverage for opioid maintenance treatments. Former Republican House speaker Gingrich and former […]
Demand for EpiPen alternatives jumps as states consider access legislation
Prescriptions for EpiPen alternatives such as Kaléo Inc.‘s Auvi-Q device have quadrupled since the beginning of this year, according to data from the Athenahealth Network. The demand for cheaper alternative devices is likely driven by revelations that Mylan (NSDQ:MYL) hiked the price of its EpiPen emergency allergy injector by 500% since it acquired the device in 2007. Generic […]
BTG wins CE Mark for DC Bead Lumi radiopaque drug-eluting bead
BTG (LON:BTG) said today that it won CE Mark clearance in the European Union for its DC Bead Lumi radiopaque drug-eluting bead. The bead is designed to be loaded with doxorubicin or irinotecan to locally treat tumors in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma and malignant colorectal cancer metastasised to the liver. The company’s DC Bead Lumi also […]
