Merck, Schering-Plough Corp metabolic news

Merck and Schering-Plough will pay $5.4 million to a multistate group of attorneys general to resolve an investigation into the companies' alleged concealment of data from the Phase III ENHANCE trial of cholesterol drug Vytorin ezetimibe/simvastatin. As part of the settlement Merck and Schering-Plough agreed to a number of provisions, including obtaining FDA approval for all direct-to-consumer television advertisements; registering clinical trials and posting their results; prohibiting ghost writing of articles; complying with FDA suggestions to modify advertising; and reducing conflicts of interest for DSMBs. The group of attorneys included representatives of 35 states and the District of Columbia. ...