FDA may loosen sales of Merck's Mevacor |
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Published
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Tue, 23 Oct 2007 20:26
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WASHINGTON (AP) - Drug maker Merck will attempt to convince government health advisers in December that its cholesterol-lowering pill Mevacor is safe enough to be sold without a prescription.The Food and Drug Administration will ask a panel of outside experts on Dec. 13 to weigh new data from Merck that support use of the drug as an over-the-counter treatment. FDA is not required to follow the panel's advice, though it usually does.Specifically, Whitehouse Station, New Jersey-based Merck is asking FDA to approve Mevacor as a once-a-day pill to lower cholesterol and prevent heart attack. FDA rejected a similar request from the company in 2005.Total sales of Mevacor, which competes against generic versions, totaled $20 million last year.Shares of Merck & Co. Inc. rose $1.31, or 2.4 percent, to $55.96 in afternoon trading.Copyright 2007 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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