DR. OFFIT's ROTATEQ: MERCK'S AVIS OF VACCINES!
Aw shucks, Dr. Offit*! Seems the vaccine on which you co-share the patent, RotaTeq, was only Merck's second best selling vaccine last year, bringing in a cool half a billion dollars. Uh oh! Glaxo is bringing out a competitor! (Click HERE to see the AP article.)
That makes you the "Avis" or, perhaps we should say, "the number two" of Merck's vaccine division. Maybe next year the AAP (who claimed on Larry King that they don't make any money on vaccines. Greedy old Merck!) will firmly enforce their vaccine schedule to make sure every single American infant gets her three doses before age one. Then you can become Merck's Hertz!
*Dr. Paul Offit is with Children's Hospital of Philadephia. From Wikipedia: Offit is a co-patent holder for RotaTeq, a rotavirus vaccine manufactured by Merck in 2006. It is the second vaccine against rotavirus to be introduced in the United States (the first, RotaShield, was withdrawn from the market six months after its introduction because of an association with intussusception).
The rotavirus vaccine is necessary to protect public health, according to many experts. In the US, rotavirus is blamed for killing about sixty children a year. Rotavirus is often a deadly disease in developing countries, where it is thought to cause nearly a million deaths annually from severe dehydration.
WOW, I don't often think that I will come across new info, but there it is. Own's patent?? okay....there is no bias there (rolling eyes).
And Craig, glad to see you keep up the good fight off HP, too.
(bluevalentine)
Posted by: Kat | April 26, 2008 at 03:00 PM
Well, I've always called him Number 2. Now, there is yet another reason to :P
Posted by: Craig Willoughby | April 07, 2008 at 04:33 PM
Oh thank you so much for my first rush of endorphins today! Also, we must not forget about Offit's other baby.
http://www.chop.edu/consumer/jsp/microsite/microsite.jsp?id=75918
Posted by: Cindy Stolten | April 07, 2008 at 09:44 AM