Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Study: Drugmakers Paying Fewer Fines For Breaking Federal Health Laws
Reuters: Decline In Financial Settlements With U.S. Big Pharma: Report
The amount of money big U.S. pharmaceutical manufacturers have paid to settle charges for violating federal health care laws has declined sharply in recent years, prompting a non-profit watchdog group to call for an increase in enforcement efforts. In a new analysis that chronicles 25 years worth of pharmaceutical industry settlements and court judgments, the group, known as Public Citizen, found that just $2.4 billion in federal financial penalties were recovered from 2014 to 2015 - a figure that is less than one third of the $8.7 billion recovered from 2012 to 2013. (Lynch, 3/31)
STAT: Drug Makers Paid Fewer Fines For Bad Behavior In Recent Years
After a decade in which drug makers regularly paid huge fines for various fraudulent practices, there was a noticeable drop over the past two years, according to a new analysis by Public Citizen, the consumer advocacy group. (Silverman, 3/30)
The Wall Street Journal: FTC Seeks More Information On Pfizer-Allergan Merger
Pfizer Inc. and Allergan PLC on Wednesday said federal regulators are seeking more information on their pending merger deal, a so-called inversion that would create the world’s biggest drugmaker and move one of the top names in corporate America to a foreign country. The request from the Federal Trade Commission was “fully anticipated as part of the regulatory process,” the companies said. They still expect the deal to close in the second of this year. (Steele, 3/30)
The Wall Street Journal: Valeant Asks Its Lenders For Some Slack
Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. said Wednesday it was seeking more room from lenders to stave off a potential default. But stock investors were unnerved, as Valeant inched back from earlier assurances about its ability to hit financial targets required by its lenders. The Canadian drug company, struggling in recent months with questions over its accounting and business practices, said it had begun seeking a deal with lenders to give it more time to file its delayed 10-K annual report. Valeant also said it was seeking “additional cushion” from lenders on some terms of its debt. (Rapoport and McNish, 3/30)
The Wall Street Journal: Drugmaker Led By Ex-CEOs Of Pfizer, Celgene Buys Three Painkillers
Pain treatment maker Centrexion Therapeutics, founded by former chief executives at Pfizer Inc. and Celgen Corp., agreed to acquire three new painkilling candidates from Germany’s Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH in a bid to expand its proprietary pipeline. Financial terms weren’t disclosed in the deal for nonopioid and nonsurgical chronic pain treatments. (Steele, 3/30)
