Good morning, everyone, and how are you today? We are just fine, thank you. In fact, we are thrilled to report that we have made it to the middle of the week. This is the sort of accomplishment that calls for a cup of stimulation and, as always, we invite you to join us. It may be needed to get to the end of the week, after all. Meanwhile, here are some tidbits. Hope you conquer the world today and do keep us in mind when you run across anything juicy…
The 21st Century Cures Act has garnered an unusually broad range of support and one reason is that lawmakers softened up the usual opponents of looser rules with a big carrot — billions of dollars in new funding for the NIH; Biogen plans to cut about 11 percent of its workforce of 7,550 employees and end some development programs in a restructuring aimed at saving $250 million a year; the Indian Patent Office has denied a patent to Boehringer Ingelheim for key HIV drug, Viramune XR, yet again thwarting attempts by big drug makers to gain an “exclusivity” extension and block affordable generics; and a nurse who admitted taking $83,000 in kickbacks from Insys Therapeutics, which makes the Subsys painkiller, was pressured by sales reps to increase her prescribing so Subsys sales would also increase.