Tag Archives: pharma

OTC Birth Control Pill To Go On Sale This Month

USA Today reports: More than 50 years after the oral contraceptive pill went on the market in the United States, the country’s first over-the-counter birth control pill will be available in stores and online nationwide later this month. Known as Opill, the birth control pill will be available without prescription necessary in major retailers and pharmacies nationwide in late March, …

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CVS And Walgreens To Begin Selling Abortion Pills

The New York Times reports: The two largest pharmacy chains in the United States will start dispensing the abortion pill mifepristone this month, a step that could make access easier for some patients. Officials at CVS and Walgreens said in interviews on Friday that they had received certification to dispense mifepristone under guidelines that the Food and Drug Administration issued …

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Court Upholds Pharma Douche’s Ban From Industry

Reuters reports: Martin Shkreli, known for once hiking the price of a life-saving drug more than 4,000%, cannot return to the pharmaceutical industry after a federal appeals court on Tuesday upheld his lifetime ban. A three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan said a lower court judge acted properly in imposing the ban and ordering …

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FDA Approves Eli Lilly Diabetes Drug To Treat Obesity

The New York Times reports: The decision by the Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday to approve the weight loss drug tirzepatide adds a potent new tool to the fast-growing arsenal of obesity drugs. The drug, which will go by the brand name Zepbound, contains the same compound in the sought-after diabetes drug Mounjaro. Many people have used Mounjaro off-label …

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Rite Aid To Close 154 Stores In Bankruptcy Process

The New York Times reports: On Sunday, Rite Aid, once the largest U.S. pharmacy chain, filed for bankruptcy court protection from its creditors and vowed to remake the company as a “modern neighborhood pharmacy.” Now, in one of its first steps, it says it is closing 154 stores in more than 10 states. The branches set to be shuttered were …

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CDC Panel Issues Broad Approval To New Boosters

NPR reports: A panel of advisers to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention backed the broad use of new COVID-19 vaccines, as cases of the respiratory illness rise. The advisers voted 13-1 to recommend the vaccines for people ages 6 months and older. While the benefits appear to be greatest for the oldest and youngest people, the benefits of …

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FDA Advisors: Popular Oral Decongestants Don’t Work

The Associated Press reports: The leading decongestant used by millions of Americans looking for relief from a stuffy nose is likely no better than a dummy pill, according to government experts who reviewed the latest research on the long-questioned drug ingredient. Advisers to the Food and Drug Administration voted unanimously on Tuesday against the effectiveness of the ingredient found in …

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Moderna: New Booster Effective Against Latest Variant

Reuters reports: Moderna on Wednesday said clinical trial data showed its updated COVID-19 vaccine will likely be effective against the highly-mutated BA.2.86 subvariant of the coronavirus that has raised fears of a resurgence of infections. The company said its shot generated an 8.7-fold increase in neutralizing antibodies in humans against BA.2.86, which is being tracked by the World Health Organization …

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WH Names 10 Meds Subject To Medicare Negotiations

Reuters reports: The Biden administration on Tuesday released its list of 10 prescription medicines that will be subject to the first-ever price negotiations by the U.S. Medicare health program that covers 66 million people, with big-selling blood thinner Eliquis from Bristol Myers Squibb. President Joe Biden’s signature Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), signed into law last year, allows the Medicare health …

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FDA Approves Drug That May Slow Down Alzheimer’s

NPR reports: The Food and Drug Administration has fully approved the first drug shown to slow down Alzheimer’s disease. The action means that Leqembi, whose generic name is lecanemab, should be widely covered by the federal Medicare health insurance program, which primarily serves adults age 65 and older. So more people who are in the early stages of the disease …

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Gilead Wins Antitrust Suit Over Generic HIV Meds

Courthouse News reports: Pharmaceutical giant Gilead Sciences triumphed over consumers Friday in a closely watched, yearslong class action that claimed the company deliberately manipulated the market in order to profit off of its highly-priced HIV treatment drugs. Closing arguments in a six-week trial wrapped Wednesday, leaving a federal jury to consider weeks of evidence regarding the pharmaceutical giant’s conduct and …

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Pharma Coalition Calls For Overturning Abortion Pill Ban

Reuters reports: Over 300 biotech and pharmaceutical industry executives, including Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla, signed an open letter on Monday seeking the reversal of a federal judge’s decision to suspend sales of the abortion pill mifepristone. A U.S. judge on Friday suspended the FDA’s two-decade-old approval of the drug. Last week’s ruling by Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk undermines the FDA’s authority, …

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Pharma Claims Nasal ED Spray Works In Five Minutes

The New York Post reports: Viagra could soon be getting some very stiff competition. Researchers in Australia claim to have developed a nasal spray to combat erectile dysfunction — and it could be rolled out to American consumers within two years. The spray-to-play product reportedly works in as little as five minutes, meaning it could be a bedroom game changer …

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Vaccine Makers Ready Bird Flu Shots For Humans

Reuters reports: Some of the world’s leading makers of flu vaccines say they could make hundreds of millions of bird flu shots for humans within months if a new strain of avian influenza ever jumps across the species divide. One current outbreak of avian flu known as H5N1 clade 2.3.4.4b has killed record numbers of birds and infected mammals. Human …

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Eli Lilly Agrees To Reduce And Cap Insulin Prices

The New York Times reports: The drug maker Eli Lilly and Company said on Wednesday that it would significantly reduce the prices of several of its lifesaving insulin products that are used by diabetes patients and whose prices Lilly has repeatedly increased in the past. Lilly also said it would cap at $35 a month what patients pay out of …

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FTC Seeks Contempt Charge For Pharma Douche

CNBC reports: The Federal Trade Commission on Friday asked that notorious “pharma bro” Martin Shkreli be held in contempt of court for forming a new drug company in violation of a judge’s ban on the convicted fraudster from working in the pharmaceuticals industry. Shkreli, who was released from prison last year, in February was banned “for life from directly or indirectly participating in any manner in the …

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Moderna Sues Pfizer For mRNA Patent Infringement

Bloomberg Law reports: Moderna Inc. said it’s suing Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE, claiming the technology in the partners’ Covid-19 shot infringes on its patents, a move that sets the stage for a massive legal clash between the three vaccine titans. Moderna, in a statement Friday, accused Pfizer and BioNTech of violating intellectual property protecting key elements of Moderna’s messenger …

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Pharma Douche Booted From Company He Founded

The New York Post reports: Convicted “Pharma Bro” Martin Shkreli has finally been ousted as boss of the pharmaceutical company he founded, The Post has learned. Activist shareholders booted the group of directors still loyal to Shkreli during the annual general meeting of Turing’s parent company, Vyera, on Thursday. In December, the Federal Trade Commission accused Shkreli in court of …

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DOJ Opens Criminal Probe Into Alzheimer’s Drugmaker

Reuters reports: The U.S. Justice Department has opened a criminal investigation into Cassava Sciences Inc involving whether the biotech company manipulated research results for its experimental Alzheimer’s drug, two people familiar with the inquiry said. The Justice Department personnel conducting the investigation into Austin, Texas-based Cassava specialize in examining whether companies or individuals have misled or defrauded investors, government agencies …

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FDA To Consider First-Ever OTC Birth Control Pill

Axios reports: Pharmaceutical company HRA Pharma submitted an application to the Food and Drug Administration on Monday asking to sell a birth control bill over-the-counter, rather than via prescription. If approved, it would be the first ever birth control pill to be available over-the-counter in the U.S. The application was submitted just weeks after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. …

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