Pharmaceutical Processing

Interest in the dissociative anesthetic ketamine is surging, given its potential to treat treatment-resistant depression and other mental health disorders. Against that backdrop, the American College of Clinical Pharmacology (ACCP) have released two policy statements advocating for stricter use of the drug. In addition, ACCP is arguing against its use in non-medical settings such as…

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) has reached a settlement agreement with Colorado and Nevada to put opioid-related allegations there to bed.  Colorado will receive $385 million from Johnson & Johnson and the drug distributors McKesson (NYSE:MCK), AmerisourceBergen (NYSE: ABC) and Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH). Nevada will receive nearly $285.2 million as part of the overall settlement, which is earmarked…

With the pandemic continuing to disrupt the pharmaceutical industry, drug makers find themselves torn between the traditional domain of drug making and an emerging domain of new platforms and focuses. This disparity was reflected in the most popular pieces of content from Pharmaceutical Processing World in 2021. 1. GSK, Pfizer and J&J among the most-fined drug…

Colleen McMahon of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York overturned a sweeping settlement against Purdue Pharma over its role in the opioid crisis. Purdue’s Oxycontin (oxycodone) is among the most widely used opioids. In September, Judge Robert Drain of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in White Plains, New York, authorized a…

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) plans to spend almost $7 billion to acquire Arena Pharmaceuticals (NSDQ:ARNA). The purchase would bolster its pipeline of immuno-inflammatory drugs.  ARNA shares surged 80% to $90.08 after the announcement. PFE shares ticked up to $55.20 to 4.57%.  The transaction was valued at $100 per Arena share in cash.  The proposal has won the unanimous…

Fareva and ApiJect Systems today announced a licensing agreement to fill-finish more than 500 million injectable drug doses per year. Under the agreement, Fareva intends to invest more than $56.5 million to install three blow-fill-seal production lines with support from the Government of France through the France Relance industry initiative, as well as the Investments for the…

Fujifilm (TSE:4901) is spending big to double the size of its United Kingdom-based vaccine manufacturing facility. According to a news release, Fujifilm is spending about $532.8 million (£400 million) to expand its Teesside (north-east England) plant making the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine. The expansion includes facilities specializing in antibody treatments and viral gene therapies. Fujifilm said…

Owen Mumford this week announced that it has started building its new production facility in Witney, Oxfordshire in the U.K. Owen Mumford’s new Witney facility will stand as a production site for the company’s recently launched, next-generation auto-injector Aidaptus. The company has decades of experience creating its own drug delivery, blood sampling and rapid diagnostic products…

Although Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) has yet to receive emergency use authorization for its Paxlovid COVID-19 therapy, it plans to manufacture 80 million courses of the drug by the end of 2022. Pfizer had initially planned on making 50 million courses of Paxlovid (PF-07321332/ritonavir) in the same time frame. An interim analysis of the Phase 2/3 EPIC-HR…

Recently, General Electric (NYSE:GE), Zimmer Biomet (NYSE: ZBH) and Toshiba (TYO:6502) announced their plans to slim down by spinning out core businesses. Now, Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) is following a similar approach by making its consumer health business a standalone company. J&J will retain its pharmaceutical and medical device segments. The company said in an…