EpiPen maker Mylan to restructure and cut its workforce

mercredi 7 décembre 2016

Generic drugmaker Mylan, which has been under fire for its price hikes on the life-saving EpiPen allergy treatment, said on Wednesday that it would restructure and expected to cut less than 10 percent of its global workforce as it integrates acquisitions.

Mylan, whose shares were down more than 4 percent at midday, has been under investigation by the U.S. government, and its chief executive officer was called before Congress to testify on raising the price of a pair of EpiPens to more than $600 from $100 in 2008.

The company said in a regulatory filing that it would implement restructuring programs in certain locations. At Tuesday's market close, its shares had fallen 25 percent since August, when it first came under public scrutiny by former U.S. presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

Mylan, which has about 35,000 employees, said in the filing that it would take cost-cutting measures, including workforce actions, after making a significant number of acquisitions. It bought Sweden's Meda earlier this year and Abbott Laboratories' branded specialty and generics business in non-U.S. developed markets in 2015.

The company said it would disclose details of its restructuring efforts, including their cost, as it finalizes the plans.

Mylan spokeswoman Nina Devlin declined to comment further.

Wells Fargo analyst David Maris said in a research note that he did not believe the company had previously discussed a restructuring but added that it had talked about "optimizing" its platform.

Mylan has been criticized for classifying EpiPen as a generic product, which led to its paying significantly smaller rebates to state Medicaid programs for the poor than it would have if the drug were classified as branded.

In October, Mylan said it would pay $465 million to settle questions of whether it underpaid U.S. government healthcare programs including Medicaid. The U.S. Department of Justice has not confirmed that it has reached a settlement.

Mylan, one of the largest U.S. makers of generic medicines, reported a third-quarter loss last month as it set aside money to pay for the settlement. It said it was still working on completing the deal.

The Canonsburg, Pennsylvania-based company said it expected EpiPen to account for 6 percent of total sales in 2017. It plans to introduce a generic version that will sell for $300 for a two-pack.

Drug price increases were a hot political topic among U.S. presidential candidates during the past two years. President-elect Donald Trump in a Time magazine article published early on Wednesday said: "I'm going to bring down drug prices. I don't like what's happened with drug prices."

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EpiPen maker Mylan to restructure and cut its workforce

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