Sanofi will sell its Dermik skincare unit to Valeant Pharmaceuticals for $425 million. The deal includes Dermik’s aesthetic and therapeutic business in the US and Canada along with a global aesthetic business with sales of $206 million in 2010, along with Sanofi’s Laval, Canada site, including Dermik’s manufacturing facility. Dermik brands include BenzaClin for acne, Carac for keratoses and Sculptra, a facial injectable for facial wrinkles and folds.
PhRMA took aim at proposed cuts to Medicare Part D under discussion in debt ceiling negotiations, estimating that a $20 billion per year reduction in biopharmaceutical industry revenue would cost the country 260,000 jobs. “The President and some in Congress have proposed including government-mandated rebates in Medicare Part D as part of a debt ceiling agreement,” said PhRMA chief John Castellani in a statement. “Such a provision would have a dramatic negative effect on the economy and patients, and could undermine the success of the Part D program, which has very high beneficiary satisfaction and has cost far less than original government projections.”
