The Local Germany

Pharma giant Bayer in contempt: US

Sat, 13 Sep 2014 12:56:00 +0200

The United States government accused German pharmaceutical giant Bayer of making scientifically unproven statements about the health benefits of a popular probiotic on Friday.

Chinese target Bayer in drug firms probe

Fri, 13 Sep 2013 13:46:00 +0200

Chinese authorities have visited an office of German pharmaceutical giant Bayer, the company said on Friday, making it the latest target in a probe of foreign drug firms over high prices.

Impotence drug too strong - firm flops

Tue, 06 Aug 2013 19:59:00 +0200

A German company which produced an impotency drug has gone bankrupt after the capsules were banned for being twice as powerful as Viagra.

Big pharma 'human guinea pigs' spark anger

Thu, 16 May 2013 14:01:00 +0200

Revelations that Western drug companies colluded with East Germany's communist regime to use more than 50,000 people as "human guinea pigs" in 1980s medical trials has sparked widespread outrage.

Toxic chemical cloud drifts over Frankfurt

Wed, 15 May 2013 13:12:00 +0200

A poisonous cloud containing a potentially cancer-causing chemical was accidentally released over Frankfurt on Tuesday, with residents of two districts warned to stay indoors throughout the afternoon.

Bayer fights for cancer drug patent in India

Tue, 05 Mar 2013 08:18:00 +0100

German pharmaceuticals giant Bayer, maker of Aspirin, vowed Monday to fight a ruling by the patent authorities in India allowing a local company to produce and sell a generic copy of its anti-cancer drug Nexavar.

Lobbyist suspected of spying on Health Ministry

Wed, 12 Dec 2012 13:22:00 +0100

A lobbyist for a powerful pharmacy group is thought to have spied on Germany's Health Ministry for nearly two years in order to collect confidential information, a newspaper revealed on Wednesday.

East Germany sold sick for West pharma testing

Tue, 04 Dec 2012 13:22:00 +0100

Communist East Germany not only put its political prisoners to work making Ikea furniture, it also sold the bodies of its sick citizens to Western pharmaceutical firms for testing their new products, a new television documentary has revealed.

No more Merck cancer drug for Greek hospitals

Sun, 04 Nov 2012 09:55:00 +0100

German pharmaceutical company Merck has stopped selling its cancer drug Erbitux to Greek hospitals, as they are not able to pay. Patients needing the drug will have to buy it themselves from pharmacies.

Thalidomide victim wins millions from drugs firms

Wed, 18 Jul 2012 10:06:00 +0200

A woman born without limbs after her mother took thalidomide while pregnant won on Wednesday a landmark multi-million dollar settlement in her class action against drug firms - including Germany-based Grünenthal.

Drug data firm 'sold raw info' to big pharma

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 13:12:00 +0100

A German company which studies drug prescription habits for the pharma industry is accused of selling raw data to drug companies, in what magazine Der Spiegel said on Monday could be a huge data protection scandal.

Unused swine flu vaccine goes up in smoke

Tue, 29 Nov 2011 11:12:00 +0100

Around €250 million worth of swine flu vaccine was due to go up in smoke on Tuesday – as Germany disposed of 16 million doses that people refused to take during last year’s outbreak of the potentially deadly virus.

Thalidomide victims protest 50 years on

Fri, 25 Nov 2011 18:17:00 +0100

Saturday marks 50 years since the deformity-causing drug thalidomide was banned in Germany. Thousands of victims will protest in Berlin this weekend to call for greater compensation and recognition of their suffering. Jessica Ware reports.

Merck accuses US firm of Facebook page larceny

Thu, 24 Nov 2011 13:04:00 +0100

German pharmaceutical giant Merck KGaA has charged that US rival Merck and Co. somehow got control of its Facebook page and won’t give it back. To make matters worse, the company says the social network won’t help resolve the situation.

Foodwatch says cholesterol-reducing margarine needs pharmacist approval

Fri, 11 Nov 2011 17:14:00 +0100

The German consumer protection group Foodwatch has called for margarine which promises to reduce blood cholesterol levels to be only sold in pharmacies, calling it a “pill to spread on your bread.”

Pfizer cutting hundreds of jobs

Thu, 15 Sep 2011 16:20:00 +0200

The world’s biggest pharmaceutical firm Pfizer is cutting more than 500 jobs in Germany – around one in eight of the work places in the country, according to insiders who have spoken to the Handelsblatt newspaper.

Biotech benefits converting genetic engineering sceptics

Thu, 08 Sep 2011 11:40:00 +0200

Eclipsed in recent years by rivals in the US, UK and Switzerland, Germany’s pharmaceuticals industry is now excelling in an increasingly important sector – medical biotechnology.

Skin cream possibly gave Egyptian queen cancer 3,500 years ago

Fri, 19 Aug 2011 19:49:00 +0200

An Egyptian queen who died 3,500 years ago might have poisoned herself accidentally by using a carcinogenic balm to treat a skin complaint, German university researchers said on Friday.

Report slams doctors for prescribing habits

Wed, 15 Jun 2011 14:17:00 +0200

German doctors are prescribing too many addictive sleeping pills to alcoholics, too many strong tranquilizers to dementia patients and too many contraceptive pills with higher risks than others, according to a damning report released on Wednesday.

Bayer faces US lawsuit over YAZ contraceptive

Wed, 11 May 2011 12:46:00 +0200

The German pharmaceutical company Bayer faces a US lawsuit on behalf of a teenager who died from a blood clot allegedly linked to its YAZ contraceptive.