After fending off a Royalty Pharma takeover, Dublin-based Elan Pharmaceuticals is being purchased by Michigan-based Perrigo for $8.6 billion. The move gets consumer drug maker Perrigo — whose portfolio includes store-brand OTC drugs, nutritionals and a narrow list of prescription medications — into biotechs, adding royalties on MS drug Tysabri, which Elan discovered and sold to Biogen Idec earlier this year, and as-yet experimental drugs for Alzheimer’s and diabetes.
Valeant’s corporate integration is in the works, and the latest news is that it plans to slash 10%-15% of its headcount, or, as FiercePharma calculates, 2,700 jobs. Valeant has been on an acquisition binge of sorts, purchasing dermatology firm Medicis in 2012, Obagi in April 2013 and Bausch & Lomb this past May. The company says it has mapped out its integration plan and expects that new efficiencies will save the company $500 million this year and $300 million next year. The reorg includes changing the way Bausch & Lomb is set up and expanding job descriptions and responsibilities for those who stay behind. “We take pride in our frugality…and our willingness to wear different hats at different times,” the company wrote in an SEC filing. Valeant says it will keep the Bausch & Lomb brand in tact.
