India’s Intellectual Property Appellate Board is hearing Bayer’s appeal to the government’s compulsory license for patents on the drug Sorafenib (sold under the brand name Nexavar by Bayer). Used to treat kidney and liver cancer, the drug costs 2,800,000 rupees (USD 5,214) per patient per month and the generic costs 8,880 rupees (USD 165) per patient per month. The compulsory license was issued under Section 84 of the Patents Act, on the grounds that the invention was “not available to the public at a reasonably affordable price,” and therefore not reasonably worked in India. Read more
Price cap regulation of tobacco in United Kingdom could yield financial and public health benefits
A new study posted online in Tobacco Control explores the feasibility of applying a system of price-cap regulation in the United Kingdom to address the market failure inherent to the tobacco industry. The authors conclude that applying a system in the UK would raise around £500 million per annum (US$750 million) and that the significant financial and public health benefits the system would generate suggest this is a policy that should be given serious consideration.
Drug companies find willing research partners on campus
In their quest for the next big drug discovery, reports the Springfield, Missouri News-Leader , pharmaceutical companies are increasingly teaming up with some of the nation’s top universities, recruiting campus scientists as partners and offering schools multimillion-dollar deals to work on experimental drugs in development. Dr. Marcia Angell, former editor-in-chief of the New England Journal of Medicine criticized the pharmaceutical industry’s new coziness with major campuses. “What it does,” she said, “is to blur the boundaries between academic medical centers and investor-owned companies”.
Coca Cola launches new obesity ads
The New York Times reports that the Coca-Cola Company has launched a new television ad campaign aimed at getting on the healthy side of the national debate over obesity — a novel step for a company built on sugary soft drinks. Critics charged the company’s goal was to confuse, not educate the public.
Youth drinking cultures, social networking, and alcohol marketing: Implications for public health
In a study of how new social networking technologies influence alcohol marketing to youth published in Critical Public Health, Tim McCreaner at the Massey University School of Public Health in Auckland New Zealand and colleagues conclude that social networking systems contribute to pro-alcohol environments and encourage drinking.
Corporations need penalties that hurt
In the Los Angeles Times, Michael Hiltzik writes, “If you’re concerned about corporate crime, 2012 looked like a pretty successful year for the good guys.” The Thousand Oaks biotech giant Amgen paid $762 million in fines and penalties and pleaded guilty to a federal charge related to illegal marketing of its anemia drug Aranesp. Britain’s GlaxoSmithKline and Illinois-based Abbott Laboratories paid $3 billion and $1.5 billion in government penalties, respectively, in connection with their off-label promotions of blockbuster drugs. Glaxo’s was the biggest drug company settlement in history. To the companies, however, these big numbers are just chump change.
Energy drinks promise edge, but experts say proof Is scant
Energy drinks are the fastest-growing part of the beverage industry, reports the New York Times, with sales in the United States reaching more than $10 billion in 2012 — more than Americans spent on iced tea, or sports beverages like Gatorade. The drinks are now under scrutiny by the Food and Drug Administration after reports of deaths and serious injuries that may be linked to their high caffeine content. However that review ends, one thing is clear, interviews with researchers and a review of scientific studies show: the energy-drink industry is based on a brew of ingredients that, apart from caffeine, have little, if any benefit for consumers.
Toyota in $1.1 billion gas-pedal settlement
Toyota Motor Corporation agreed to pay about $1.1 billion to settle a class-action lawsuit stemming from complaints of unintended acceleration in its vehicles that soured its reputation for quality and undermined its sales globally, reports the Wall Street Journal. Owners of some 16 million Toyota, Lexus and Scion vehicles would be eligible for payments and safety updates that would vary depending on their vehicle and its age.
Toyota to pay record $17.35 million fine for delaying recall
For the fourth time, Toyota has agreed to pay a fine to settle allegations by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that the automaker delayed a safety recall, reports The New York Times. In a news release, the safety agency said Toyota would pay $17.35 million, the maximum allowed by law. Toyota did not admit any wrongdoing and said it was paying the fine to avoid a continued dispute with the safety agency. The automaker said the same thing when agreeing to pay the three previous fines, which totaled $48.8 million.
Gun makers, video game industry and NRA partner to promote fun and guns to children
In recent years, reports The New York Times, the firearms and video game industries have quietly forged a mutually beneficial marketing relationship. The McMillan Group, the maker of a high-powered sniper’s rifle, and Magpul, which sells high-capacity magazines and other accessories for assault-style weapons are listed as partners of the Electronic Arts, a maker of video games. Assault-style rifles made by Bushmaster Firearms have a roster of credits on various video games. Many of the same producers of firearms and related equipment are also financial backers of the N.R.A. For example, Glock, Browning and Remington are listed as corporate sponsors of the NRA.
Corporations and Health Watch 