Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
How A Series Of Missteps, Turbulent Business Practices and Big Egos Derailed 'Female Viagra'
The New York Times: The Female Viagra, Undone By A Drug Maker’s Dysfunction
Last August, Sprout Pharmaceuticals had a new pill on its hands that quickly captured the nation’s imagination. The Food and Drug Administration had just approved its drug Addyi to treat low sex drive in women. Late-night comedians joked about “female Viagra.” Wall Street analysts conjectured about blockbuster sales. In clinical trials, women reported a small, but statistically significant, uptick in the number of satisfying sexual experiences per month. Things got even better for Sprout a day after the F.D.A. approval, when Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, a drug company whose deal-making acumen had made it a stock-market darling, bought Sprout for an astonishing $1 billion — twice its value just two months earlier. What could go wrong? Well, just about everything. (Thomas and Morgenson, 4/9)
STAT: Senate Committee Moves To Hold Valeant CEO In Contempt
A Senate committee said late Friday that it would start contempt proceedings against Valeant Pharmaceuticals chief executive Michael Pearson after he didn’t show up for a deposition in an ongoing investigation of drug price hikes. The announcement by the Senate Aging Committee adds to the already substantial troubles the company has been facing ever since it raised the prices of two life-saving heart treatments last year by 525 percent and 212 percent, fueling public anger over skyrocketing drug prices. (Nather, 4/8)
