Good morning, everyone, and how are you today? We are doing just fine, thank you, courtesy of clear blue skies and a warming sun enveloping the Pharmalot campus. Moreover, the middle of the week has arrived, which means just a short stretch lies ahead until the weekend respite is here. We should note, however, that we are escaping soon for an extended break, so colleagues will be here the next two days. With this in mind, we wish you a happy and merry holiday of your choice, and hope that you have a smashing time, whatever you do. Of course, we would be remiss without leaving you a few items of interest before we disappear. Cheers, and see you next year, as they say. …
The Institute for Clinical and Economic Review cut its suggested price range for the Pfizer Covid-19 pill, called Paxlovid, by more than 80%, partly to reflect the decreased disease burden as the Omicron variant of the coronavirus tends to cause less severe illness, Reuters writes. The influential nonprofit said its new suggested U.S. price based on the benefits and value to patients was in the range of $563 to $906 per treatment course. That compares with its previous assessment of $3,600 to $5,800 per course. The U.S. government has bought nearly 24 million Paxlovid courses from Pfizer at around $530 a course. The company has not yet indicated pricing for a move to a commercial market.
Federal prosecutors charged former CytoDyn chief executive officer Nader Pourhassan with allegedly scheming to defraud CytoDyn investors and personally profiting by selling company shares, STAT writes. Also charged in the alleged securities fraud conspiracy was Kazem Kazempour, chief executive officer of Amarex, a private company that managed CytoDyn clinical trials and acted as regulatory consultant on behalf of the company. By repeatedly lying about the development and regulatory status of an HIV drug, prosecutors alleged Pourhassan artificially inflated the company’s stock price and sold $15.8 million in CytoDyn stock that netted him nearly $5 million in profits.
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