Given recent furor regarding clinical trials of pharmaceuticals, Eli Lilly
Merck, of course, has suffered greatly over the troubles surrounding arthritis drug Vioxx. This even included recent word that the Department of Justice and Securities and Exchange Commission are both conducting investigations into the situation, including shareholder disclosure practices.
It's hardly shocking that pharmaceutical companies would begin to make such moves as this. Vioxx may have been the final catalyst, but there has also been a lot of talk over recent months about antidepressant data as well. (Lilly itself had some unpleasant media attention in the spring over the possibility of a link between its newest antidepressant Cymbalta and teen suicide in clinical trials, while antidepressants in general have experienced similar scrutiny.)
WSJ reported that other pharmaceutical companies such as GlaxoSmithKline
With regulatory agencies taking a closer look at the ways in which pharmaceutical companies disclose clinical trial results, it bodes well for corporations to take steps to fix problems before regulatory intervention is deemed necessary. Meanwhile, this is a step toward generating trust -- after all, shareholders, physicians, and consumers alike are likely looking askew at Big Pharma these days.
Merck was a Motley Fool Income Investor pick prior to the Vioxx troubles. In Merck's Silver Lining , Income Investor'schief analyst, Mathew Emmert, describes what kind of shareholders should consider holding shares of Merck, given the recent developments.
Alyce Lomax does not own shares of any of the companies mentioned.