Amgen suffers setback as patent office refuses to review competitor’s drug

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office handed Amgen a potential setback Jan. 14 when it declined to review two patent expiration dates on a competitor’s drug. In June, Thousand Oaks-based biotech giant Amgen asked the agency to review two formulation patents for Humira, made by Chicago-based competitor AbbVie, arguing that the patents should not have Read More →
Shire acquiring Baxalta for $32 billion

Shire PLC sweetened the pot and Baxalta Inc. investors took the bait in a deal announced early Jan. 11. Dublin-based Shire announced a $30 billion bid for Deefield, Ill.-based Baxalta on Aug. 4. On Jan. 11, the companies announced Shire will acquire Baxalta for $32 billion. Baxalta employs about 2,000 people in Thousand Oaks and Read More →
Sientra implants could be back on the market in weeks

Sientra made three major announcements on Jan. 7: It is not yet resuming production at its factory in Rio de Janeiro, it is looking for a new manufacturer of its implants and the existing inventory could be back on the market within weeks. On Jan. 8, the British Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency also Read More →
Dubroff: Building South Sudan health care from the ground up

Before he embarked on a quest to rebuild the health care system in South Sudan, Ken Waxman of Santa Barbara built a career any physician would be proud of. One of the top trauma surgeons in Southern California, he was the head of emergency surgery at Cottage Hospital and later advised the Ventura County Read More →