Pharma Analysis

The Center for Medicine in the Public Interest is a “corporate front group” that sponsored the near-riots at town hall meetings on healthcare and spreads misinformation about healthcare reform, according to a report by ThinkProgress, a liberal blogging group. It even produced an anti-reform video game, “Super Race to the Hospital,” the site alleges. CMPI’s...

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The idea that Botox is a civil rights issue is ludicrous — and yet that is the line being pushed by Allergan (AGN) in its fight against the 5 percent “Botox tax” proposed in the Senate healthcare reform bill. Instead, Allergan and its rival, Medicis (MRX), should embrace this new “Botax.” Having the federal government dependent on them for revenue will give both...

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Johnson & Johnson recently launched Stelara for the treatment of adult patients with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. Although Stelara is entering a crowded treatment room for psoriasis, this first-in-class interleukin (IL) inhibitor could put the “no more tears” back in J&J’s future — if successfully marketed to specialists, in particular dermatologists, as...

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Britain’s National Health Service is losing a fight against the Bonkers Institute for Nearly Genuine Research — a web site that publicizes the underbelly of psychiatric medicine — over brochures for children that tell them how to take antipsychotic medicines such as Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)’s Risperdal (risperidone). The Bonkers Institute added three leaflets —...

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Henri Termeer, the CEO of disaster-prone Genzyme (GENZ), was given $50.8 million in compensation for the last three years, according to the company’s filings with the SEC (see page 24). He earns about $14 million a year for running a company that has about $4 billion in sales. By contrast, AstraZeneca (AZN)’s David Brennan receives $4.7 million in compensation for running a company...

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Merck (MRK) has produced a set of numbers giving a look at the scale of the combined company with Schering-Plough. One surprise: The new company is still just a little bit smaller than the old Pfizer (PFE) was. The new Merck would have had annual sales $46.7 billion, compared to Pfizer’s former annual sales of $48.3 billion (Pfizer’s new merger with Wyeth will give it $71 billion in...

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Thanksgiving plus recession equals car sickness drugs for dogs, according to Pfizer (PFE). The company is urging people to bring their dogs with them as they travel for Thanksgiving dinner. Why? Because Pfizer makes a motion-sickness drug for dogs, Cerenia, so now there’s no excuse for leaving Rover at home. “In addition, this year, many families are experiencing tough economic...

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Genzyme announced that the FDA is delaying final approval of the company’s application to market Lumizyme (alglucosidase alfa) for the treatment of Pompe disease. Not unexpected, given FDA regulators had sent out a memo last Friday warning healthcare providers that enzyme replacement drugs made at the Allston Landing plant might be contaminated with foreign particles, including stainless...

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An article in last week’s New York Times pointed out that drug companies are not particularly interested in preventing cancer. A similar statement was made earlier this year at the American Society of Gene Therapy’s annual meeting, where scientists proclaimed that the pharmaceutical industry doesn’t want to cure diseases and would rather see patients on a lifetime of pricey...

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A former Pfizer (PFE) employee who lost his job and “was convinced he could not provide for his family any further,” has been charged with stabbing his wife, according to police. Pfizer is in the process of laying off 19,500 employees in its merger with Wyeth. And while the assault is not typical, it does show that these job losses involve real human beings and real consequences, and not...

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