Every time the FDA turns around, a few more people have died from the diabetes drug Byetta, a product developed and marketed by Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) and Amylin Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: AMLN). It has to make one wonder how the regulators spend their spare time.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the two companies "disclosed the deaths of four patients taking the diabetes drug Byetta that had been previously reported to regulators but not yet made public." The drug has already killed two people previously, at least.
Lilly and Amylin said they were a bit slow coming forward with the news because they wanted to "provide context" and "avoid confusion" in the future. That is double talk for the two companies not wanting to say anything at all. Dead is dead and there is no way of getting around that.
Why the FDA has allowed the drug to stay on the market is anyone's guess.
Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.
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