The flu season may fall a bit flat for MedImmune
As discussed in September, one of the more compelling elements of the FluMist launch was its distribution through an outlet as ubiquitous as Wal-Mart. However, there were some hefty obstacles. For one, it's expensive compared to the traditional needle vaccine. And it's only approved for healthy people aged 5 to 49.
According to Wal-Mart, the last-minute withdrawal has to do with questions about whether it is legal for pharmacists in certain states to administer the vaccine.
Although other retail outlets such as Safeway
In truth, makers of the injectable version, Aventis SA
Shares of MedImmune, which said it still expects to reap $120 million to $140 million from FluMist sales this year, dropped 6% to $28.18 on Friday. That's a 33% decrease from its 52-week high. Shares of Wyeth, MedImmune's FluMist partner, slipped about 0.5% to $44.34.
Despite the fanfare surrounding the no-stick vaccine, the October/November campaign against flu may be a bit of a non-event for MedImmune. Sounds like a pretty good time to say, better luck next year.
Alyce Lomax welcomes your feedback at [email protected].