Specialty Pharmacy

NEW YORK — Three organizations will receive part of $1.3 million in funding that German drug maker Merck KGaA and the National Multiple Sclerosis Society are distributing for MS research.

EMD Serono, the name the Merck KGaA uses in the United States to avoid confusion with U.S.-based Merck & Co., and the National MS Society said the money will help encourage early-stage drug discovery for the autoimmune disease.

BASEL, Switzerland — A drug marketed by Novartis and Incyte Corp. extends the lives of patients with a life-threatening blood cancer to a greater extent than conventional therapy or placebo, according to results of a late-stage clinical trial.

Novartis announced the results of two phase-3 studies of Jakavi (ruxolitinib) in patients with myelofibrosis, presenting them at the American Society of Hematology's annual meeting and exposition in New Orleans.

ROCKLAND, Mass. — A redesigned version of an injector pen used to treat infertility is available for distribution in the United States, the manufacturer said Monday.

EMD Serono, a subsidiary of German drug maker Merck KGaA, said that Gonal-f RFF Redi-ject, a disposable, pre-filled pen used for the drug Gonal-f RFF (follitropin alfa), had become available. The Food and Drug Administration approved the redesigned pen in October. Merck KGaA operates in the United States under the name EMD in order to avoid confusion with U.S.-based Merck & Co.

NEW YORK — Pharmacy benefit manager Express Scripts hopes to drive down the cost of new drugs to treat hepatitis C by pitting their manufacturers against each other, according to published reports.

Bloomberg News reported that ESI would pit companies like Gilead Sciences against others such as AbbVie when the new treatments become available in 2014 or 2015. The Food and Drug Administration announced last week the approval of Gilead's new drug, Sovaldi (sofosbuvir), which is designed to cut by three quarters the time needed for treatment.

ALLEGAN, Mich. — The Irish High Court has approved Perrigo's pending acquisition of Irish drug maker Elan, the companies said Friday.

PRINCETON, N.J. — A panel of experts at the Food and Drug Administration has recommended approval for an experimental biotech drug under development by Bristol-Myers Squibb and AstraZeneca for a group of rare metabolic disorders.

CHESTERBROOK, Pa. — Drug maker Shire has launched an online information website for patients in the United States with ulcerative colitis, the company said Thursday.

The website, Shire UCentral, includes information for patients and caregivers. UC is a chronic disease that causes inflammation in the lining of the colon and rectum.

NEW YORK — While the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will undoubtedly reshape the U.S. healthcare industry for years to come, it is only one of many factors that will emerge next year, according to a new report released Wednesday.

The report, Top Health Industry Issues for 2014, by PwC's Health Research Institute, was based on a survey of 1,000 consumers and interviews with health industry leaders.