1. Eli Lilly said Jardiance, its new diabetes treatment, has started to take market share from the other drugs in its class: Johnson & Johnson’s Invokana and AstraZeneca’s Farxiga. The drugmaker this fall launched a DTC campaign for Jardiance. (Reuters)
2. Merck CEO Kenneth Frazier is “raring to go” when it comes to making small and midsize deals this year. The drugmaker is seeking new ways to fill out the company’s product pipeline. (AP)
3. Sanofi will stop marketing Afrezza, MannKind’s inhaled insulin, citing the low number of prescriptions even though the drugmaker made what it described as a “substantial” investment in sales and marketing, including the launch of the “Surprise, it’s insulin” campaign in mid-2015.
4. Actelion said its new pulmonary arterial hypertension drug will cost between $160,000 and $170,000 in the US. The FDA approved Uptravi in December as a treatment for the fatal disease. (Reuters)
5. Aetna is the latest large insurer to leave America’s Health Insurance Plans, the industry’s lobbying group. UnitedHealth Group announced plans to leave AHIP last year. (WSJ)
