The FDA signaled the beginning of the end for Pfizer’s lucrative Zyrtec franchise by approving a version of the allergy medicine containing a decongestant for sale without a prescription.Pfizer’s loss will be Johnson & Johnson’s gain. When prescription Zyrtec loses patent protection at the end of the year, J&J has the rights to sell the [...]
A belief that good things will happen in our lives appears to be hard-wired in our brains, Robert Lee Hotz writes in his WSJ column today. Being somewhat optimistic is often related to positive behaviors, such as working hard, saving money and taking care of our health. (The images from NYU at right show greater [...]
MerckÂ’s $4.85 billion settlement agreement seems to be settling pretty well with investors. Company shares moved up $2.74, or 5%, a pop to $57.51 in morning trading on the Big Board.The fact that the drug maker’s talking points emphasize that this is no class-action settlement probably helps. Instead, Merck says, the money will establish a [...]
The Health Blog’s own Heather Won Tesoriero (peeking out at left) is in the New Orleans courtroom of federal judge Eldon Fallon for the hearing on the proposed Merck settlement. She tells us via BlackBerry (no phones allowed): “Right now it’s like the Oscars, lots of glory speeches and thank yous.” She says the settlement [...]
Our pals at the WSJ Law Blog are pretty sharp. And this morning they quickly tallied some of the key figures in Merck’s proposed settlement of its product liability from Vioxx, the painkiller that was once among the company’s biggest sellers. Here’s what they came up with:The amount of the expected settlement: $4.85 billionThe number [...]
Merck’s about to hold a conference call to explain the Vioxx settlement in a little more detail. We’ll be listening in and posting highlights as they come along. (Click here for information on a replay.)For those of you just joining us, the drug maker agreed to a $4.85 billion settlement with plaintiffs that would cover [...]
Merck just released a statement confirming the $4.85 billion settlement agreement covering the majority of liability cases against the company over Vioxx. The drug maker takes pains to say this is not a class-action settlement, but instead establishes a fund that will be doled out case by case.The first criterion for plaintiffs to qualify for [...]
Merck is expected to agree to pay about $4.85 billion to settle “a significant portion of the claims against the company” over injuries that were allegedly linked to its Vioxx painkiller, the WSJ reports.The drug maker has insisted for years that it would fight all 27,000 Vioxx cases to the bitter end. But what’s said [...]
It isn’t easy being a kid these days. More and more American youngsters are taking prescription medications for ailments that used to be problems mainly for adults. A small but growing number of children are taking medicines for high blood pressure, cholesterol and especially diabetes, according to an analysis presented at the American Public Health [...]
Widen that warning label, the FDA said to makers of anemia drugs known as erythropoiesis-stimulating agentsOften used in patients with chronic kidney failure or undergoing chemotherapy, the pricey drugs have been dogged by safety questions, as the Health Blog has noted. The main debate concerns whether ESAs–namely, Amgen’s Aranesp and Epogen, and J&J’s Procrit–might be [...]
