Pharma Misbehaving

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November 2008
- Drug Companies Hide Data From Docs
  
  Wired | 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 trials, and were often presented with a favorable twist, Wired reports . More »
- Medicaid Spends Millions on Drugs FDA Never Approved
  
  Associated Press | Nov 23, 08 8:02 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - Taxpayer dollars still pay for unapproved prescription drugs that have sold for decades and are linked to dozens of deaths, the AP reports. In the past 5 years, at least $200 million has been paid for drugs like cold and pain medications that were never approved by the FDA, yet are covered by Medicaid. The problem dates back to 1962, when a bill "grandfathered" drugs already on the market, allowing them to exist without FDA approval. More »
- Supremes Won't Air Dirty Laundry
  
  Broadcasting & Cable | Nov 3, 08 3:59 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - Election Day is likely to inspire swearing in some places and sure to see off-color language in one unlikely locale: the Supreme Court. But the American public will have to wait until next summer to hear tomorrow's oral arguments in a landmark indecency case, FCC vs. Fox, the Justices ruled today. "We are disappointed," a spokesman for C-SPAN, which had pushed for the audiotape release, tells Broadcasting & Cable. More »
October 2008
- FDA May Strengthen Chantix Label
  
  Wall Street Journal | Oct 22, 08 5:25 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - The FDA may beef up its warning for the anti-smoking drug Chantix after an increase in the number of serious incidents linked to the drug, the Wall Street Journal reports. A drug-safety group tallied 1,001 reports of patients suffering seizures, blackouts, and loss of motor control—some while driving—in three months. The figure is more than the combined total of incidents linked to the top 10 prescription drugs. More »
September 2008
- Many Cancer Trials Go Unpublished: Study
  
  BusinessWeek | Sep 27, 08 4:45 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Fewer than 20% of cancer trial results are published in peer-review journals, a new study says. And industry-sponsored trials only achieve publication one time in 20. The reason? Scientists seeking success and media-hungry journals don't want to publish negative results, analysts say—even if they would aid other cancer studies. More »
- Supreme Court to Hear Huge Consumer Rights Case
  
  New York Times | Sep 19, 08 9:30 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - The Supreme Court will soon hear arguments in what could be one of the biggest consumer-rights cases in years, reports the New York Times . The case focuses on whether customers who have been harmed by products that meet federal regulations can sue the manufacturer for damages, and is centered on a Vermont woman whose arm was amputated after an intravenous migraine drug gave her gangrene. More »
August 2008
- Deaths Soar as Methadone Use Rises
  
  New York Times | Aug 17, 08 7:01 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Methadone, formerly used primarily to treat heroin addicts, is now increasingly being prescribed for patients suffering from debilitating pain. Powerful and long-lasting, it's proved effective for millions, but it's also risky, causing more than 4,000 deaths between 1999 and 2005. The New York Times investigates the medical community’s struggle with the drug. More »
July 2008
- Pharma Under Fire Over Pricey Drugs for Kids
  
  Portfolio | Jul 27, 08 7:37 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - In the face of astronomical hikes in the price of drugs used to treat children, a congressional committee is looking into why companies have increased prescription costs as much as 18-fold when related research and marketing expenses are stable, according to lawmakers. One such company charges $69,000 for a three-vial drug treating infantile spasms—while a $15 alternative exists, reports Portfolio . More »
- Parkinson's Drugs Trigger Compulsive Behavior
  
  Chicago Tribune | Jul 14, 08 1:14 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Drugs for Parkinson's disease can be enormously beneficial, relieving patients' tremors and rigid muscles. But some patients are now complaining of an unusual side effect—extreme compulsive behavior. One woman began taking Mirapex to combat symptoms and suddenly found herself with a $200-a-day scratch-off lottery ticket habit, reports the Chicago Tribune . More »
- America: Land of Doggy Doping
  
  New York Times | Jul 10, 08 7:07 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Americans spent $49 billion on their pets last year, with an ever-growing percentage paying for treatment of behavioral issues with tailor-made psychotropics, reports James Vlahos in the New York Times Magazine . Frustrated owners are feeding dogs drugs like Reconcile—beef-flavored Prozac—-for "mental illnesses that eerily resemble human ones," from separation anxiety to compusive disorder. There are even doggy diet pills. More »
June 2008
- 8 Meds Docs Won't Take
  
  Men's Health | Jun 23, 08 7:55 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Some drugs have such serious drawbacks that even doctors won’t take them, Men’s Health reports. The big eight: Advair: Can actually increase the severity of asthma attacks Avandia: Diabetes drug carries risk of heart attack More »
- Big Pharma Sickens Universities
  
  Chronicle of Higher Education | Jun 22, 08 6:07 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Weak legislation allows professors to collect huge under-the-table payments from Big Pharma, and it’s time to fight back, Dan Greenberg writes in the Chronicle of Higher Education . Pharmaceutical companies pay professors to shill drugs and lend their names to industry research, and the only oversight is an honor-system mechanism requiring profs to report outside income to the university—not to a federal agency. More »
- Deal Delays Generic Lipitor Until 2011
  
  New York Times | Jun 18, 08 5:11 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Pfizer has struck a deal with an Indian generic drug maker to delay a cheaper version of Lipitor in the US until November 2011. The agreement limiting generic versions of the cholesterol-lowering drug will translate into billions more in profits for Pfizer, the New York Times reports. Lipitor, the world's best-selling medicine, costs about $3 a day; a generic version will likely be less than $1. More »
May 2008
- Study: Drug Ads Misleading. No, Really.
  
  Time | May 18, 08 12:18 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Drug ads are multiplying on TV, and manufacturers are starting to advertise medical equipment used in invasive procedures, so now might be a good time to wonder what the spots are telling us. Not as much as they should, Time reports. An independent researcher has found drug companies are using distractions, fast-talking, and tricks gleaned from neuroscience to downplay negative side-effects. More »

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Stories

Drug Companies Hide Data From Docs

Medicaid Spends Millions on Drugs FDA Never Approved

Supremes Won't Air Dirty Laundry

FDA May Strengthen Chantix Label

Many Cancer Trials Go Unpublished: Study

Supreme Court to Hear Huge Consumer Rights Case

Deaths Soar as Methadone Use Rises

Pharma Under Fire Over Pricey Drugs for Kids

Parkinson's Drugs Trigger Compulsive Behavior

America: Land of Doggy Doping

8 Meds Docs Won't Take

Big Pharma Sickens Universities

Deal Delays Generic Lipitor Until 2011

Study: Drug Ads Misleading. No, Really.