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SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: Merck

Merck stories: 38 news summaries

1 - 20 of 38 Stories | 1 2 Next >>

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 Drugmakers 
 Hike Prices 
 Ahead of Reform 

9% rise, in a year of falling prices, will add $10B to drug spending

Nov 16, 09 7:08 AM CST
(Newser) - Bracing for health care reform, drug companies have been raising prices at the fastest rate in almost 20 years—even as they pledge to support Washington's goal of cutting the nation's drug bill. The pharmaceutical industry is scrambling to get the price base as high as possible before legislation to... More »

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Merck • pharmaceutical companies • drug companies • prescription drugs • health care reform • pharmaceutical industry

Cervical Cancer Vaccine Linked to 32 Deaths

Teen-targeted Gardasil also tied to blood clots, fainting in gov't study

Aug 19, 09 12:16 PM CDT
(Newser) - Gardasil, the cervical cancer vaccine marketed to teen girls, has been linked to 32 deaths and other serious side effects including fainting and blood clots, according to a government report released yesterday. Since 2006, several complications of the vaccine have been reported, ABC News reports, ranging from neurological disorders to... More »

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Merck • HPV • cervical cancer • Gardasil • blood clots • vaccine • side effects • women's issues

MARKETS

 Tech Snaps Nadaq's Streak; 
 Dow Climbs 24 

Amazon, Microsoft fall after weak earnings

Jul 24, 09 3:24 PM CDT
(Newser) - The tech sector exerted downward pressure on stocks today, snapping the Nasdaq’s 12-day winning streak, the Wall Street Journal reports. Microsoft sank 8.9% after reporting a 29% drop in quarterly earnings, while Amazon fell 8.3% after also reporting a disappointing quarter. Alcoa, Pfizer, and Merck helped the... More »

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Microsoft • Merck • Dow Jones • Alcoa • Pfizer • earnings reports • Nasdaq • quarterly reports • S&P 500 • Amazon

 Spending on 
 Health Care 
 Lobbying Up 41% 

Drug, insurance companies oppose public insurance

Jun 12, 09 11:45 AM CDT
(Newser) - As the health care debate heats up in Washington, insurance and drug companies are keeping their lobbyists busy. So far this year, those industries have increased their lobbyist spending by 41% as they fight a proposed public insurance plan, USA Today reports. That's $35 million in the first quarter for... More »

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Congress • insurance companies • Washington DC • Merck • drug companies • lobbying • lobbyists • health care reform • public insurance

MARKETS

 Drugs, Oil Push Dow Up 50 


May 12, 09 3:15 PM CDT
(Newser) - Financials dipped today as firms continued stock sell-offs to finance TARP repayments, but strong performance by drug and energy companies stabilized the market, the Wall Street Journal reports. Merck and Pfizer were up as much as 2% and 6%, respectively; oil got a boost from $60 barrels. The Dow was... More »

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NASDAQ • Merck • New York Stock Exchange • Dow Jones • General Motors • Pfizer • financial markets • S&P 500 • oil prices • Jay-ZTV

MARKET Open

 Earnings Send Stocks South 


Apr 21, 09 8:40 AM CDT
(Newser) - Stocks slid at the open this morning, after a rash of less-than-inspiring earnings reports from major companies. The Dow was down 30 points, as components Coca-Cola, Caterpillar, Dupont, and Merck all posted lousy first quarters. Caterpillar swung to a loss and slashed guidance, sending shares down 5%, while Dupont fell... More »

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stock market • NASDAQ • Merck • Dow Jones • Caterpillar • S&P 500 • Coca-Cola

Push to Use HPV Vaccine on Boys Stirs Debate

Is pricey STD prevention necessary?

Mar 26, 09 8:58 AM CDT
(Newser) - Merck is pushing the FDA to approve its HPV vaccine for men, and that’s raising a whole new set of controversies, the Washington Post reports. When the human papillomavirus vaccine was originally marketed for girls, many questioned whether or not it would encourage young girls to have sex.... More »

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women's health • Merck • HPV • vaccine

MARKETS

 Dow Up 54, Gains 9% for Week 

Merck surges on proposed merger

Mar 13, 09 3:20 PM CDT
(Newser) - Stocks made gains today, extending a winning streak into its fourth day, MarketWatch reports. Merck rose 12.5% on announcement of its merger with Schering-Plough, while General Motors built on recent gains with a 22.9% jump. The Dow closed up 53.92 at 7,223.98. The Nasdaq rose... More »

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Merck • Dow Jones • General Motors • Nasdaq • S&P 500 • Schering-Plough

 Merck to Buy Schering-Plough 
 in Latest Pharma Merger 

Drug giant's purchase comes weeks after Pfizer-Wyeth merger

Mar 9, 09 6:34 AM CDT
(Newser) - Merck announced today that it will merge with fellow drugmaker Schering-Plough in a $41.1 billion cash-and-stock deal to enlarge its pipeline of new drugs in development, reports the Wall Street Journal. The two companies have already collaborated on cholesterol drug Zetia—whose sales plummeted after a study questioned its... More »

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Merck • mergers and acquisitions • merger • drug manufacturer • Schering-Plough

MARKETS

 Dow Rebounds, Rises 142 

Banks still feel pain ahead of next bailout

Feb 3, 09 3:13 PM CST
(Newser) - Stocks bounced back in the wake of yesterday’s sell-off, with news of a rise in December existing-home sales feeding optimism, the Wall Street Journal reports. Merck continued to rise after reporting a quarterly profit, closing up 7.7% and boosting other pharmaceuticals. The Dow closed up 141.53 points... More »

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Merck • Dow Jones • Nasdaq • pharmaceutical industry • existing home sales • S&P 500 • existing-home sales

Drug Companies Hide Data
From Docs

Edited info could mislead those prescribing meds

Nov 26, 08 10:22 AM CST
(Newser) - Pharmaceutical companies aren't as upfront with doctors as they are with the government about their new products, a study finds. Though drug companies must provide the FDA with all of the data from clinical trials, related papers published in medical journals were found to omit info from 20% of the... More »

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FDA • Merck • pharmaceutical companies • Avandia • Vioxx • prescription drugs • prescription • side effects • Vytorin • doctors

MARKETS

 Dow Sinks 514 on Bad Earnings 

Third-quarter reports detail suffering across the board

Oct 22, 08 3:32 PM CDT
(Newser) - Stocks continued yesterday’s decline amid a wave of poor earnings reports across the board, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Dow, down at one point nearly 700 points in the final hour, fell 514.45 to close at 8,519.21. The Nasdaq shed 80.93 points, closing at... More »

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Merck • Boeing • Dow Jones • earnings reports • Nasdaq • third quarter earnings • S&P 500 • AT&T

Scientists Still Question Popular Drugs Zetia, Vytorin

Much-prescribed cholesterol medicines may not reduce risk of heart disease, death

Sep 2, 08 10:26 AM CDT
(Newser) - Some cholesterol medicines have shown no indication they actually work—but that hasn’t stopped doctors from heavily prescribing them, the New York Times reports. Short trials of Zetia and Vytorin, known generically as ezetimibe, showed no evidence they reduced risk of heart attack or cardiovascular disease, while tests raised... More »

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Merck • drug safety • drug companies • cholesterol • cholesterol lowering drug • Vytorin • Zetia • Food and Drug Administration • Schering-Plough

MARKETS

 Pharma, Tech Kill Early Gains 

Pricier oil, Merck troubles outshine Bank of America's 'success'

Jul 21, 08 3:40 PM CDT
(Newser) - The markets failed to hold on to early-session gains today as oil rose above $131 per barrel and the overall economic outlook remained downcast, MarketWatch reports. The Dow lost 29.23 points to close at 11,467.34, the Nasdaq fell 3.25 to 2,279.53, and the S&... More »

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Google • Merck • Bank of America • pharmaceutical companies • Dow Jones • Nasdaq • S&P 500 • Schering-Plough

CDC: Older Americans
Need Shingles Vaccines

Drug cuts risk of getting disease in half

May 16, 08 3:10 AM CDT
(Newser) - The CDC is recommending that all adults age 60 and older get vaccinated against shingles, a common condition that can result in chronic plan, the Washington Post reports. Research has found that the recommended Merck vaccine reduces the occurrence of shingles by some 50% in this age group. Only those... More »

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Merck • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention • chronic pain • vaccine • virus • senior citizens • shingles

 Court Tosses $32M
 Verdict Against Vioxx 

Says evidence insufficient that it contributed to Texan's death

May 14, 08 1:29 PM CDT
(Newser) - A Texas appellate court threw out a $32 million verdict against Merck today, citing a lack of evidence that Vioxx contributed to a man’s fatal heart attack. Lionel Garza was taking the painkiller when he died in 2001 at age 71, but was also a smoker with high blood... More »

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Merck • Vioxx • lawsuit • painkiller • pharmaceutical industry

Congress
to Probe 'Misleading' Drug Ads

Cholesterol, anemia drugs in spotlight

May 8, 08 3:10 AM CDT
(Newser) - A congressional panel will examine three ad campaigns as part of a move to tighten regulations on drug companies' direct-to-consumer marketing, the Wall Street Journal reports. The committee will focus on ads for cholesterol drugs Vytorin and Lipitor, and anemia drug Procrit, which has been promoted as an anti-fatigue drug... More »

MORE ABOUT:
drugs • advertising • Merck • drug companies • Pfizer • Johnson and Johnson • congressional Democrats • Lipitor • Bart Stupak • Vytorin • Schering-Plough

MARKETS

 Investors Cagey, 
 Stocks Mixed 
 as Fed Meets 

Bad economic news takes its toll

Apr 29, 08 3:36 PM CDT
(Newser) - Stocks ended mixed but mostly down today as cautious investors digested bad economic news while the Fed met, presumably to discuss further rate cuts. "In many ways, the economy seems fundamentally weaker now" than during the last official recession in 2001, an economist told the Wall Street Journal. The... More »

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stock market • Merck

Serious Side Effects
Linked to Avandia, Fosamax 

Heart trouble, brittle bones tied to drugs

Apr 29, 08 2:57 AM CDT
(Newser) - Two new studies have linked the popular prescription drugs Fosamax and Avandia to serious side effects, Reuters reports. Fosamax, prescribed for osteoporosis, has been tied to a type of abnormal heartbeat that can cause dizziness and fatigue. Another study links Avandia, used to treat diabetes, to a double or even... More »

MORE ABOUT:
diabetes • Merck • GlaxoSmithKline • Avandia • osteoporosis • Fosamax • Food and Drug Administration • Dr. Jane Cauley

Merck Used Ghostwriters
to Draft Rosy Vioxx Studies

Company downplayed risks in medical articles on drug found to be a killer

Apr 15, 08 7:51 PM CDT
(Newser) - Merck used its own ghostwriters to draft articles minimizing risks of its drug Vioxx, then found medical researchers to lend their names to the research, the Wall Street Journal reports. Merck, which pulled the painkiller from shelves four years ago over heart-attack risks, rejects the claims as "misleading."... More »

MORE ABOUT:
ethics • Merck • pharmaceutical companies • Vioxx • JAMA • medical study

1 - 20 of 38 Stories | 1 2 Next >>


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