UK Drugs Watchdog Chief Attacks Drug Firm on Prices

Incentive schemes linking drug industry executives' pay to their firms' share price and profits help drive up the price of new drugs, the head of Britain's health cost-effectiveness watchdog was quoted as saying.

FDA unexpectedly rejects Schering anesthesia drug

Schering-Plough Corp (nyse: SGP – news – people ) said Friday U.S. regulators had rejected Bridion, its drug to reverse the effects of anesthesia that had been heralded as a breakthrough product by analysts and was unanimously recommended by a federal advisory panel.

U.S. Lawmakers Probe FDA Approval of Ranbaxy Drugs

Two leading U.S. Democrats said on Tuesday they are investigating whether Food and Drug Administration knowingly allowed the sale of Ranbaxy drugs that may have been backed by fraudulent data. The congressional investigation stems from information released as part of a probe by U.S. law enforcement authorities into whether the Indian drugmaker submitted false data […]

UK Agency Urges Doctors to Cut Antibiotics

British doctors should slash the number of times they prescribe antibiotics for respiratory tract infections because the drugs rarely help, the country's drug cost watchdog said on Wednesday.

EU Agency Backs Schering-Plough Anaesthesia Drug

A new drug from Schering-Plough Corp aimed at helping patients emerge more quickly from anaesthesia has been recommended for approval in Europe, the region's medicines watchdog said on Monday.

Brazil Launches Cheap New Malaria Pill

Brazil launched a new treatment for malaria on Thursday, marking the latest step in a global programme to make cheap two-in-one pills available to millions at risk for the disease. The country's state-run drugmaker Farmanguinhos is working with the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDi), a non-profit group based in Geneva, to bring the medicine […]

FDA ALERT

February 7, 2007Subject: FDA MedWatch: Use of Skin Products Containing Numbing Ingredients (Topical Anesthetic Drugs) for Cosmetic Procedures and Potential Life-Threatening Side EffectsMedWatch – The FDA Safety Information and Adverse Event Reporting ProgramFDA informed consumers and healthcare professionals of the potential hazards of using skin numbing products containing topical anesthetic drugs such as lidocaine, tetracaine, […]