WEATHER ALERT
People 50 and older should get pneumococcal vaccine, U.S. health officials recommend
Read full article: People 50 and older should get pneumococcal vaccine, U.S. health officials recommendU.S. health officials are recommending that people 50 and older get a shot against bacteria that can cause pneumonia and other dangerous illnesses.
Merck sues federal government, calling plan to negotiate Medicare drug prices ‘extortion’
Read full article: Merck sues federal government, calling plan to negotiate Medicare drug prices ‘extortion’Merck is suing the federal government over a plan to negotiate Medicare drug prices, calling the program a sham equivalent to extortion.
More than 2 dozen drugmakers to make Merck’s COVID-19 pill
Read full article: More than 2 dozen drugmakers to make Merck’s COVID-19 pillA U.N.-backed group says it has signed agreements with more than two dozen generic drug makers to produce versions of Merck’s coronavirus pill to supply 105 developing countries.
COVID-19 pill rollout stymied by shortages as omicron rages
Read full article: COVID-19 pill rollout stymied by shortages as omicron ragesTwo brand-new COVID-19 pills that were supposed to be an important weapon against the pandemic in the U.S. are in short supply and have played little role in the fight against the omicron wave of infections.
Merck says experimental pill cuts worst effects of COVID-19. Here’s what we know
Read full article: Merck says experimental pill cuts worst effects of COVID-19. Here’s what we knowDrugmaker Merck says its experimental COVID-19 pill reduced hospitalizations and deaths by half in people recently infected with the coronavirus.
US cervical cancers fall but other sex-related cancers rise
Read full article: US cervical cancers fall but other sex-related cancers riseA new study shows screening and the HPV vaccine have led to drops in cervical cancers over the last two decades in the U.S. But those gains are offset by a rise in other tumors caused by the virus.
Biden boosts US vaccine stockpile as world waits
Read full article: Biden boosts US vaccine stockpile as world waitsWhite House aides said Biden’s first priority is ensuring that Americans are vaccinated before considering distributing doses elsewhere. AdRussia has sent millions of doses of its Sputnik V vaccine to countries around the world, even as it vaccinates its own population. Israel, which has vaccinated more than half of its population with Pfizer vaccines produced in Europe, has also attempted to use vaccine diplomacy to reward allies. Biden's purchasing strategy has come under criticism from nongovernmental organizations who have encouraged the White House to develop clear plans and thresholds for sharing vaccine with the world. So we’re not going to be ultimately safe until the world is safe,” acknowledged Biden.
The Latest: Ontario seniors won't get AstraZeneca vaccine
Read full article: The Latest: Ontario seniors won't get AstraZeneca vaccineThe administration is invoking the Defense Production Act, a wartime measure that gives the federal government authority to direct private companies to meet the needs of the national defense, to equip two Merck facilities to produce the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. AdBiden said Johnson & Johnson will operate 24/7 to produce the vaccine. Tom Wolf said Tuesday that teachers will receive doses of the newly approved one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine, under a plan his administration will release. AdHe gave few details, but said he and a bipartisan legislative task force agreed that the Johnson & Johnson vaccine should be set aside for teachers and then other workers considered to be essential, but who are not included in the first vaccination phase. States are receiving 2.8 million doses of the newly approved Johnson & Johnson vaccine this week.
Longtime Merck CEO, minority advocate Ken Frazier to retire
Read full article: Longtime Merck CEO, minority advocate Ken Frazier to retire(AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)KENILWORTH – Longtime Merck executive Ken Frazier, whose leadership helped bring the drugmaker one of the most lucrative medicines in history and who is one of the few remaining Black CEOs of a major corporation, is retiring. Frazier, Merck’s CEO since early 2011 and an advocate for minority advancement who took on then-President Trump’s tacit support of white supremacists, will retire on June 30. He is one of the few Black CEOs at the head of a Fortune 500 company. At Merck, Frazier clashed with then-President Donald Trump over his refusal to condemn violence by the white supremacists who marched in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017. Share prices have more than doubled, and revenue has nearly doubled, under Frazier as CEO.
Merck ends development of two potential COVID-19 vaccines
Read full article: Merck ends development of two potential COVID-19 vaccinesMerck is giving up on two potential COVID-19 vaccines following poor results in early-stage studies. The company said its potential vaccines were well tolerated by patients, but they generated an inferior immune system response compared with other vaccines. Merck was developing one of the potential vaccines with France’s Pasteur Institute based on an existing measles vaccine. It said last fall that it had started early-stage research in volunteers on potential vaccines that require only one dose. Five potential vaccines have reached late-stage testing in the United States, the final phase before a drugmaker seeks approval from regulators.
Strong sales of drugs, vaccines, propel Merck in 3Q
Read full article: Strong sales of drugs, vaccines, propel Merck in 3QThe strong result was due to sales slightly higher than a year ago, plus restrained spending. The Kenilworth, New Jersey, company on Tuesday said it’s making progress on three efforts to combat the coronavirus pandemic: two vaccines and an antiviral drug. Meanwhile, Merck is developing two experimental vaccines that only require one dose, unlike the many two-dose vaccines further along in human testing. Merck reported revenue of $12.55 billion, also easily beating analyst projections for $12.26 billion. Veterinary medicine sales jumped 9%, to $1.22 billion.