A big deal or Pandora’s box?
Yesterday per a Tandem press release: “Tandem Diabetes Care, Inc. (NASDAQ: TNDM), a leading insulin delivery and diabetes technology company, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has classified the t:slim X2™ insulin pump as the first in a new device category called Alternate Controller Enabled Infusion Pumps (ACE pumps). Along with this authorization, the FDA is establishing criteria, called special controls, which outline requirements for assuring the...
Our wacky world in a nutshell
Before we get started today a Happy Valentine’s Day to one and all. Valentine’s Day may be a Hallmark holiday but there’s nothing wrong with spreading the love. Ok now onto business as this morning AstraZeneca reported results. The actual numbers don’t matter all that much, but Astra is almost the perfect example of just how wacky our world truly is. Like so many companies in our wacky world Astra did...
Where’s the love?
Tomorrow being Valentine’s Day a uniquely Hallmark holiday we thought it would be a good idea to extend some love to those companies in our wacky world who could use a hug. No company needs a hug more than our friends in Paris who recently became the latest pharma company to appoint a Chief Digital Officer. As we all know when it comes to diabetes life has not been blissful...
A Small Fortune or Matzo Ball Soup
There is a wise sage who says the best way to accumulate a small fortune is to start with a big one. Nowhere is this truer than in our wacky world particularly when it comes to all the toys in the toy chest. Just yesterday we wrote about the earth-shattering news that Bigfoot signed a pen needle deal. We’ve also written about Lilly’s questionable move into the insulin pump market,...
Fading away
One of the advantages of being on the West Coast isn’t just the sunshine and warm temperatures. A major advantage is we now have a great excuse for not listening to those early morning earnings calls. Listen it was bad enough when we were in Chicago and had to be up in the early morning to hear these calls but there is no way we’re getting up in the wee...
Hey how about a product announcement?
It’s common in this wacky world of ours that when a company is out raising money, they will issue press releases for every conceivable event. It’s also quite common that many of these “events” are completely meaningless and are merely designed to get their name out in the public or investment community. More often than not this is also an indication that the company really has nothing at all and...
And they want to do this why?
This morning Lilly reported full year results while BD reported yesterday. When it comes to diabetes both companies are performing very well. Which makes one wonder why both companies want to venture outside their core competency and enter the insulin pump market. BD’s move into this area is more surprising than Lilly’s as BD owns the needle and syringe area and each time they have strayed from this area it...
The business model does matter!
Listen we know it’s not popular to discuss such mundane things like having a business model which ultimately allows a company to make money. Nor is it popular to discuss such mundane items such as having a management team that gets more than whiz bang way cool. The good-looking quarterback may get the glory but think of what Tom Brady would be like if the big ugliess in front of...
A New World?
Before we cover the results released by Novo Nordisk this morning a few words on the President’s proposal to end the rebate game. The proposal would ban rebates paid by drug companies to PBM’s in government plans such as Medicare. Now this is just a proposal however if implemented would turn the landscape upside down. The price discount rebate game is a major pain for drugs companies but it’s until...
What happens after?
Last week we noted that the insulin companies were about to come under attack over the high cost of insulin issue. Well the assault began yesterday with Congressional hearings. Per a report posted on FirstWord Pharma; “Two US House Democrats sent letters to Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk and Sanofi seeking information on why the cost of insulin has skyrocketed in recent years. Frank Pallone, chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee,...