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BLOG: Wither AzaSite, part whatever
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Man, you just can’t make this stuff up. Has there ever been a more helpful medicine with better science and a stronger track record that has suffered the ignominies as has AzaSite? I mean, come on, just when the original company that owns the rights is about to make a push with the FDA, it gets sold for less than 50 cents on the dollar to a company that never made an effort to even produce, let alone market, the drug. AzaSite then up and gets sold to a generic drug maker, which is so impressed by what it has that it decides to just give it away.
Or maybe not. Unlimited samples came and went in less than a month. Now it’s just try to maintain the status quo with no real effort at growth. To grow, Akorn, like every other company that owned AzaSite, would have to actually admit that it is sitting on a meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD) drug and fund research. With only 18 months of patent protection left, that’s highly unlikely.
Listen, I have nothing against Akorn. I had nothing against Merck. Heck, I’m still mourning Inspire. All I want is to be able to take care of my MGD patients with a highly effective, extremely safe medicine. If you are listening, Akorn, please make up your mind. Either give the stuff away as you had suggested in January, or keep selling it with full support. Insurance companies are openly saying they won’t pay for the off-label usage that constitutes 95% of the scripts written by “denying” refills. Ya gotta fight for us.
If that’s too much trouble, and I fully grant that it might be, how about another sale? Perhaps a little auction, eh? We could invite Shire and Allergan; they know a bit about dry eye stuff. Throw in Valeant; it’s always interesting with them around. Sun just bought InSite. What do you think about a deal returning AzaSite rights exclusively to Sun? It would be a nice stable mate to Sun’s previously announced AzaSite Plus and DexaSite. Or maybe Alphaeon? If Alphaeon had AzaSite, at least we’d get a killer party out of the deal.
Dry eye patients with MGD need AzaSite. Dry eye docs need to be able to get it to them. I’m just trying to help here.
Disclosure: White reports he is a consultant for Bausch + Lomb, Allergan, Shire and Eyemaginations; is on the speakers board for Bausch + Lomb, Allergan and Shire; and has a financial interest in TearScience.