Nov 7, 2017

Valeant sells low-selling female libido drug

Dan Primack, Bob Herman

Valeant is selling Sprout Pharmaceuticals. Photo: Allen G. Breed / AP

Embattled drug company Valeant Pharmaceuticals has agreed to sell Sprout Pharmaceuticals, the maker of "female Viagra" drug Addyi, back to Sprout's shareholders in exchange for a 6% royalty that starts 18 months from when the deal closes. A lawsuit accusing Valeant of botching the Addyi rollout and pricing also will be dropped.

The bottom line: Valeant's $1 billion deal for Sprout has been a major bust, considering analysts estimate sales of Addyi are less than $10 million this year. The drug itself received federal approval on questionable grounds, given its lack of clinical effectiveness and side effects.

Why it's a big deal: Because Valeant isn't getting a Canadian nickel in upfront payment here. It's actually loaning Sprout $25 million to fund initial operating expenses. Back of the envelope math puts the ROI at around 😱 .

Big picture: "The Sprout acquisition capped several years of frenzied debt-fueled deal-making under Michael Pearson, Valeant's former chief executive, and the group now has about $26 billion of net borrowings. The deal is seen as symbolic of the drug-maker's hubris." – David Crow, FT

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Axios

World coronavirus updates: Italy becomes 2nd country to exceed 100,000 cases

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins, the CDC, and China's Health Ministry. Note: China numbers are for the mainland only and U.S. numbers include repatriated citizens and confirmed plus presumptive cases from the CDC

Spain and Italy extended lockdown deadlines on Monday, as Italy became the second country in the world to surpass 100,000 confirmed coronavirus cases.

The big picture: COVID-19 cases surged past 755,000 and the death toll topped 36,000 by Monday, per Johns Hopkins data. Italy reported more than 11,500 total deaths.

Go deeperArrowUpdated 14 mins ago - Health
Axios

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

  1. Global: Total confirmed cases as of 1 p.m. ET: 745,308 — Total deaths: 35,307 — Total recoveries: 156,875.
  2. U.S.: Leads the world in confirmed cases. Total confirmed cases as of 1 p.m. ET: 143,672 — Total deaths: 2,575 — Total recoveries: 4,865.
  3. Federal government latest: The White House will extend its social distancing guidelines until April 30 — Hospital ship the USNS Comfort arrives in Manhattan.
  4. Business latest: Macy's will furlough the majority of it's workers this week, as the chain's stores remain closed.
  5. World updates: Spain and Italy extend lockdown deadlines while Italy becomes second country to surpass 100,000 confirmed cases.
  6. 🎧 Podcast: Living with the coronavirus
  7. What should I do? Answers about the virus from Axios experts — What to know about social distancing — Q&A: Minimizing your coronavirus risk
  8. Other resources: CDC on how to avoid the virus, what to do if you get it.

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Keep ReadingArrowUpdated 35 mins ago - Politics & Policy
Rebecca Falconer, Orion Rummler, Marisa Fernandez

U.S. coronavirus updates: Majority of governors order residents to stay home

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins; Map: Andrew Witherspoon/Axios

At least 29 state governors have ordered their residents to stay home to promote social distancing and limit community spread from the coronavirus pandemic as the U.S. copes with more than 144,000 positive cases — more than any other country in the world, per Johns Hopkins data.

The big picture: COVID-19 killed over 2,500 people in the U.S. by Monday. That's far fewer than in Italy, where over 10,700 people have died — accounting for a third of the global death toll. The number of people who've recovered from the virus in the U.S. exceeded 4,800.

Go deeperArrowUpdated 41 mins ago - Health