J&J Avoids Class Action Suit on Recalls
http://www.pharmalot.com/ A group of consumers who claimed they suffered an economic loss by purchasing defective Johnson & Johnson medicines had their lawsuit thrown out of court by a federal judge. The consumers argued that the existence and concealment of a host of quality control problems at different J&J plants led them to pay inflated prices […]
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FDA Whistleblower Has Blown the Whistle Before
http://www.pharmalot.com/ An FDA scientist, who is a key player among the whistleblowers that have filed suit against the agency for monitoring their e-mails, had also filed lawsuits against two hospitals where he worked and sued a dozen medical device makers, The Wall Street Journal writes. And the disclosure is prompting his attorney to accuse the […]
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Should Kids Be Screened for Cholesterol?
source Last November, new guidelines sponsored by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute generated a significant change in screening children for cholesterol. The agency recommended that all children be screened for high cholesterol at least once between the ages of 9 and 11 years, and again between ages 17 and 21 years (read them […]
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In the UK, Pigs Used Most for Research
source For those tracking the use of animals in research, the annual report from UK officials provides some interesting data concerning which creatures are used most often in experiments. In short, pigs are a hot commodity. There was a 37 percent increase last year, followed by increases for cats, birds and fish. Conversely, the use […]
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Ex-Astrazeneca CEO Declines Bonus
After a string of disappointments capped his recently ended tenure as AstraZeneca ceo, David Brennan is not taking a bonus for his final months running the struggling drugmaker. In a statement today, the AstraZeneca Remuneration Committee was informed that “he did not wish to be considered for a bonus†through June 1, when he formally […]
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EMA Makes Clinical Trial Data Available
source After being harshly criticized for refusing to release clinical trial data, the European Medicines Agency plans to hold a conference in November to review different ways that large sets of data could be made available quickly and regularly to outside researchers, Reuters writes. “It’s a sea change in attitude,†EMA senior medical officer Hans-Georg […]
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FDA Kept An Enemies List to Silence Critics
source Earlier this year, a group of current and former FDA employees filed a whistleblower lawsuit in which they claimed that personal e-mails were monitored after they warned Congress the agency was forcing employees to approve medical devices they maintained posed unacceptable risks. Now, though, documents relating to this case indicate the FDA was actually […]
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Roche Ordered to Pay $18 Million to Former Accutane Users
Roche Holding AG (ROG) must pay a total of $18 million in damages to two former users of its Accutane acne drug who blamed the medicine for their bowel disease, a New Jersey jury ruled. Jurors in state court in Atlantic City deliberated about six hours today before that finding officials of Basel, Switzerland-based Roche […]
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MA Docs Allowed Free Lunches
source After years of debate, the Massachusetts legislature yesterday weakened portions of a controversial law that bans drug and device makers from providing gifts to doctors. Lawmakers voted to allow doctors to receive free meals and they also repealed a disclosure rule that requires all financial arrangements between drug and device makers with prescribers to […]
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India Giving Free Drugs to the Poor
Source As Americans debate the US Supreme Court ruling on the Affordable Care Act and how to pay for healthcare, India is taking a different tack, at least when it comes to medicines. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has announced that medicines will be available free to everyone who needs them starting in October, and that […]
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