Biosante And ANI Merge
In an all-stock transaction between the two pharma companies, the merger will bring together BioSante’s cash, anticipated future licensing revenues and other assets, including ANI’s niche branded and generic pharmaceutical products and contract manufacturing operations. Even though BioSante is the surviving company in the merger, the combined company will be renamed ANI Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and will operate under the leadership of Arthur S. Przybyl serving as President and CEO. The merger is anticipated to close first quarter 2013, subject to closing conditions.
Merck’s New Headquarters
Merck plans to close its global headquarters in Whitehouse Station, NJ, and move to its existing property in Summit, NJ, which currently houses research, manufacturing, animal health and consumer care operations and is home to 1,800 people. The relocation is part of the company’s ongoing program to consolidate its global real estate footprint and lower its annual operating expenses. The transition process is expected to begin in 2014 and be completed in mid-2015.
Ogilvy & Mather’s New Offering
A new fully integrated 360-degree offering joins together Ogilvy PR’s healthcare practice with Ogilvy CommonHealth Worldwide’s healthcare expertise to better serve the needs of clients. Kate Cronin, Ogilvy PR’s Global Healthcare Practice Leader and New York office head, will transition to healthcare and lead the integration. Ogilvy CommonHealth Worldwide’s Chairman & CEO Matt Giegerich believes that recent transformations and consolidations in the healthcare industry demanded a new agency and business model.
Oncology Research Collaboration
Sanofi and Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) reached a two-year agreement aimed at furthering translational medicine research to develop new treatments for various types of hematological malignancies and solid tumors. The joint project unites scientists from MGH and Sanofi, leveraging the strengths of academic and industry cross-organizational expertise in both pre-clinical and clinical translational research.
Bausch + Lomb Partners With Cirle
The partnership combines the experience and expertise of leading eye health experts and medical researchers from Cirle with Bausch + Lomb’s global business and commercial capabilities. The two organizations will explore novel, early stage technologies and develop products that fill previously unmet needs for the eye health community and the patients they serve.
TweetPharm’s New Rank Feature
Intouch Solutions’ TweetPharm, a free interactive tool that tracks pharmaceutical companies’ use of Twitter in real time, added a new rank feature that evaluates pharma Twitter handles based on a transparent formula. The rank algorithm formula gathers six variables: number of tweets, followers, number the handle is following, retweets received, number of times they have been listed and retweets given. Intouch’s CEO Frank Capan says that the new rank feature helps show pharma companies that engagement is more important than getting a large volume of followers. TweetPharm can be found at http://tweetpharm.intouchsol.com.
Breckenridge To Market Risperidone
Breckenridge Pharmaceutical, Inc., signed a deal with Ajanta Pharma for the exclusive rights to market and distribute Risperidone tablets, the generic version of Risperdal from Janssen Pharma. In the u.S., Risperidone is an atypical antipsychotic agent indicated for the treatment of schizophrenia, manic or mixed episodes associated with Bipolar disorder, and irritability associated with autistic disorders in children and adolescents. Ajanta Pharma manufactures and supplies the generic tablets.
Express Scripts Joins Pharmacy Network
Express Scripts, the largest pharmacy benefit manager in the u.S., joins CVS Pharmacy and Walgreens on the Qsymia Certified Home Delivery Pharmacy Network as part of the Qsymia Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy program. Qsymia is FDA approved for chronic weight management in adults with at least one weightrelated medical condition such as high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes or high cholesterol.
