Tagged with MS

Norway Many countries have struggled to adapt to the shift to remote working and digital communication brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns. However, these tools were already well-utilised in the vast but sparsely populated country of Norway and digital is increasingly being seen as a key component in…

Global While great strides in gender diversity has been made within healthcare boardrooms and leadership teams globally, as well as more generally across the workplace and many other arenas in many countries, at times we are served a stark reminder that the fight for greater gender equality and women representation is…

China A roundup of the latest from Chinese pharma, including Green Valley’s upcoming US trial for an Alzheimer’s drug inspired by algae; Samsung Biologics expansion in China; Fosun Pharma’s halt to the development of a COVID-19 vaccine; and CAR-T biotech JW Therapeutics raising USD 300m in its IPO on the Hong…

Brazil Six of the top ten companies in the Brazilian pharma market are domestic.* Read on for an introduction to some of the Brazilian giants that are perhaps less well known internationally but play a leading role in what is the world’s sixth largest pharma market, serving a patient population of…

Norway BMS Norway’s Hilde Bech outlines her hopes of bringing “the medicines of the future” to Norwegian patients, why tiny Norway still has global significance for the company, and offers some pearls of wisdom for the next generation of female leaders.   BMS Norway is absolutely going to be one of…

Switzerland Biogen Switzerland’s Dr Katharina Gasser outlines how the company’s 100 percent commitment to neuroscience helps it to stand apart, why Switzerland will continue to play a vital role in Biogen’s global clinical research footprint, and some of the country’s market access and pricing challenges. Dr Gasser also highlights Biogen’s burgeoning…

Vaccines While outbreaks of the devastating Ebola virus have – thankfully – generally been highly localized to West Africa, the highly infectious and lethal disease has generated global trepidation due to its characteristic haemorrhagic fever, a 50 percent chance of death on average, and the absence of any approved treatment. The…

Norway Philipp Maerz, the recently appointed head of Merck’s Nordic and Baltic operations and GM for Norway, outlines the challenges of taking on a new management role in the midst of a global pandemic, the innovation-friendliness of the markets under his remit, and his strategy for the cluster.   Culture eats…

Coronavirus During the fourth International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations (IFPMA) COVID-19 media briefing, one thematic dominated: collaboration. With Eli Lilly chairman and CEO David Ricks, also president of IFPMA; Roche CEO Dr Severin Schwan, also vice-president of IFPMA; Pfizer chairman and CEO Dr Albert Bourla; MSD (Merck & Co.…

Coronavirus Top global pharma executives involved in the development of COVID-19 vaccines have stated their commitment to not rushing the release of any potential vaccine without it passing through the full clinical trial process and proving to be safe and effective. Albert Bourla of Pfizer and Kenneth Frazier of Merck (MSD…

Norway The top 10 pharma companies in Norway ranked by 2019 turnover according to IQVIA data. The Norwegian market is dominated by multinationals, with Finnish Orion Pharma the sole Nordic representative in the top 10 list. See below for the full rankings.   Novartis Swiss firm Novartis had a turnover of…

China Since the Chinese government unrolled an unprecedented volume-based procurement initiative for essential drugs used in the public hospital system in November 2018 in a bid to curb unsustainable healthcare expenditures, domestic and foreign drug manufacturers have been forced into an increasingly cutthroat race to the bottom, at least for the…