Without calling out any drug companies by name, the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General revealed this week that 10 potentially misclassified drugs may have resulted in $1.3 billion in lost rebates to Medicaid between 2012 and 2016. The issue of ducking rebates came to the public’s attention earlier this […]
Wall Street Beat
ConforMIS jumps on analyst’s upgrade
ConforMIS (NSDQ:CFMS) shares closed up more than 12% yesterday after a BTIG analyst upgraded his rating on the company, which makes customized knee and hip implants. BTIG’s Ryan Zimmerman raised his rating on CFMS shares from “neutral” to”buy,” setting a price target of $4 per share. Of the 10 analysts covering the stock, six have set “buy” […]
United Therapeutics dishes out $210m to settle charity-kickback claims
United Therapeutics (NSDQ:UTHR) has agreed to pay $210 million to squash claims that it used a charity to illegally cover Medicare patients’ out-of-pocket costs in an attempt to boost sales. Drug companies are not allowed to subsidize co-pays for people enrolled in Medicare, but they can donate to independent non-profits that provide co-pay assistance. Get the […]
FDA rejects Santen’s intravitreal uveitis therapy
Shares in Santen Pharmaceutical (OTC:SNPHY) fell -3% today after the company’s U.S. subsidiary said that the FDA rejected the application for its intravitreal sirolimus therapy The company is developing its DE-109 product to treat people with noninfectious uveitis of the posterior segment, which can cause blindness in adults. Get the full story at our sister site, Drug […]
Illinois AG sues Baxter for polluting lake
Illinois attorney general Lisa Madigan hit Baxter Healthcare (NYSE:BAX) with a lawsuit yesterday, alleging that the company’s R&D facility dumped contaminated wastewater into a tributary that feeds into Long Lake, polluting the waters beyond allowable limits. Madigan filed the complaint in Lake County Circuit Court and urged the court to force Baxter to stop over-polluting the tributary, […]
BioCorp’s smart cap wins CE Mark for insulin pen
Biocorp (PAR:ALCOR) said today that its smart cap, Easylog, won CE Mark clearance for use with insulin delivery devices. The company’s device turns traditional pen injectors into connected devices, capturing treatment information like dose, date and time of injection. Easylog transfers that data to a mobile app for patients to monitor. Get the full story at […]
AdvaMed asks Trump to overturn medical device tax
AdvaMed CEO Scott Whitaker penned a letter to Donald Trump today, urging the president to work with Congress to overturn the medical device tax. Whitaker congratulated Trump on today’s passage of the Republican-backed tax plan, while noting that Congress has failed to suspend the 2.3% levy imposed on U.S. medical device sales by the Affordable Care […]
TherapeuticsMD shares tumble after FDA pushes NDA decision to mid ’18
TherapeuticsMD (NSDQ:TXMD) shares fell -7% yesterday after the company announced that the FDA accepted its resubmitted application for TX-004HR, an investigational, applicator-free estradiol vaginal soft-gel capsule for the treatment of dyspareunia. The company’s shares took a hit presumably because it revealed that its resubmitted application is a Class 2 response – a Class 1 response would […]
PerkinElmer closes $1.3B Euroimmun buy
PerkinElmer (NYSE:PKI) has closed its $1.3 billion deal to buy Euroimmun Medical Laboratory Diagnostics, the scientific instrument-maker reported today. The acquisition, first announced in June, involves Euroimmun’s 2,400 employees and autoimmune testing solutions. The move helps to expand PerkinElmer’s footprint in autoimmune and allergy diagnostic markets. Get the full story at our sister site, Drug Delivery Business News.
Bristol-Myers Squibb taps Taris’ drug-release tech for bladder cancer trial
Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) and Taris Biomedical have inked a deal to combine Taris’ investigational GemRIS drug-releasing tech with the pharma company’s PD-1 immune checkpoint inhibitor, Opdivo, in a Phase Ib muscle invasive bladder cancer trial. As part of the collaboration, Bristol-Myers has also made an equity investment in Lexington, Mass.-based Taris. Get the full story at our sister […]
Study: Novocure’s Optune, drug combo adds months to the lives of GBM patients
Novocure (NSDQ:NVCR) touted today the final analysis of a pivotal Phase III trial that evaluated Optune combined with temozolomide in newly-diagnosed glioblastoma patients. The analysis, published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), showed that Novocure’s Optune-temozolomide combo extended overall survival and progression-free survival by 37% compared to temozolomide alone. Get the full story […]