Pharma Roundup: Merck CEO Admits Failure, Lilly's New Zyprexa Delay, and More

Merck CEO admits company’s mistakes — “2008 was a disappointing year. In many ways an unacceptable year,” said Merck’s Richard Clark, according to Reuters. What’s interesting is that he laid blame at his own management team’s feet. Clark cited approval problems with Cordaptive, marketing issues with Gardasil, vaccine production problems, and other setbacks as the company’s fault. [Source: Reuters, via Corey Nahman]

FDA delays for Lilly’s Zyprexa — Lilly is waiting anxiously for an FDA decision on the long-acting version of highly successful Zyprexa, but the FDA has delayed its decision yet again. Last February, regulators told Lilly they needed more information before they could make a final ruling. The drug was approved in Europe last month. [Source: PharmaTimes]

Venture funding isn’t dead — As the credit markets tanked, pundits expected that biotech firms, who largely rely on venture capital funding, would quickly lose access to cash. A new startup called Satori, however, has just made it through a first round, and with a proposal to research notoriously difficult Alzheimer’s, no less. [Source: In the Pipeline]

For sale: Actavis — Generics company Actavis is on the market, probably because the firm that funded it was owned in large part by Icelandic billionaire Thor Björgólfsson, who lost a great deal in Iceland’s financial collapse. Actavis could be an attractive purchase for any number of Big Pharma outfits. [Source: WSJ Health Blog]