MERCK & CO.

Seagen’s innovative technology for delivering chemotherapy is blossoming.

Michigan residents who are dealing with a COVID-19 infection can now search for potential treatment options near them.

A pill that will help Covid-19 patients avert life-threatening illness has been something of a holy grail for doctors and drugmakers. The earliest therapeutics shown to help have typically been administered to patients via a transfusion or once they have become sick enough to require hospitalization. Two years after the first Covid cases were reported in China, the pill-based treatment Paxlovid emerged, offering a huge advance. Intended for newly infected patients at risk of developing severe di

A pill that will help Covid-19 patients avert life-threatening illness has been something of a holy grail for doctors and drugmakers. The earliest therapeutics shown to help have typically been administered to patients via a transfusion or once they have become sick enough to require hospitalization. Two years after the first Covid cases were reported in China, the pill-based treatment Paxlovid emerged, offering a huge advance. Intended for newly infected patients at risk of developing severe di

A pill that will help Covid-19 patients avert life-threatening illness has been something of a holy grail for doctors and drugmakers. The earliest therapeutics shown to help have typically been administered to patients via a transfusion or once they have become sick enough to require hospitalization. Two years after the first Covid cases were reported in China, two pill-based treatments have emerged that even skeptical scientists are hailing as potentially huge advances. Intended for newly infec

U.S. regulators have authorized a second pill against COVID-19, an antiviral drug from Merck that may help blunt the wave of infections driven by the omicron variant.

U.S. health advisers have endorsed an antiviral drug from Merck to treat COVID-19.

U.S. health officials say Merck's experimental COVID-19 pill is effective but they raised questions about its safety during pregnancy.

The European Medicines Agency says it has received a request from Merck to authorize its coronavirus antiviral, the first pill shown to treat COVID-19.

Universal masking was sound policy before Covid-fighting tools emerged. Now that there are vaccines, medicines and better science, the costs might be starting to outweigh the benefits.

In the battle against Covid-19, researchers have been able to move faster and go further with vaccines that prevent the disease than therapies to treat the sick. The search for reliable drugs has followed a checkered path with some therapies losing favor after being authorized for emergency use. Nearly two years after the first cases of Covid were reported in China, two pills have emerged that even skeptical scientists are hailing as a potential turning point in the pandemic. The medicines are i

Britain has granted a conditional authorization to Merck’s coronavirus antiviral.

Pharmaceutical company Merck has agreed to allow other drug makers to make its COVID-19 treatment, the first pill that has been shown to be effective against the disease.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration will ask its outside experts to review Merck's pill to treat COVID-19 at a meeting in late November.

If approved, the medication would be the first pill shown to treat COVID-19

Drugmaker Merck has asked U.S. regulators to authorize its promising antiviral pill against COVID-19, setting the stage for a decision within weeks.

Good morning, Chicago. Here are some of the top stories you need to know to start your day.

If cleared, Merck's drug would be the first pill shown to treat COVID-19, a potentially major advance in efforts to fight the pandemic.

Company says molnupiravir cut hospitalizations and deaths by half in people recently infected with the virus and it will soon ask authorities to approve the pill's use.

Company says molnupiravir cut hospitalizations and deaths by half in people recently infected with the virus and it will soon ask authorities to approve the pill's use.

Drugmaker Merck says its experimental COVID-19 pill reduced hospitalizations and deaths by half in people recently infected with the coronavirus.

Highly convenient oral drugs could be a pandemic game changer. With enough investment, the U.S. could make a whole lot of them for the world.

Merck’s second-quarter profit dove 49%, mainly due to a big charge for an acquisition and a higher tax rate, though sales of its vaccines and medicines used in hospitals rebounded from the effects of the pandemic.

Merck is entering a new era, with sweeping changes across its executive suite and the spinoff off its women’s health and other businesses, a bid to enable both resulting companies to grow faster.

PONTIAC, Mich. – Oakland County announced on Wednesday that it has received 7,400 doses of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine. “With the news that Merck is going to be joining with Johnson & Johnson to manufacture this one dose vaccine, this increased supply of vaccine will help accelerate the end to the pandemic,” said Oakland County Executive Dave Coulter. The county health division will schedule the doses once it receives that guidance. READ: Michigan to expand COVID-19 vaccine plan to include residents age 50 and olderAdREAD: COVID vaccine trials underway in older children: What to knowJohnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine doses arrive at Oakland County Health Division Wednesday, March, 3, 2021. (Jaime Fenner, Oakland County)“I am confident in the effectiveness of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine,” Oakland County Health Division Medical Director Dr. Russell Faust said, mentioning that the vaccine is safe and effective.

States will also receive 2.8 million doses of the J&J shot this week. Psaki said the Biden administration was using its powers under the Defense Production Act to help Merck retool to work on the production. The J&J vaccine can be stored for months at refrigerated temperatures, rather than frozen. Now, with a global clamor for more vaccine doses, those heavyweights are helping manufacture doses for less-experienced rivals whose vaccines won the first emergency authorizations from regulators. Merck has since said it was in talks to help other drug companies with vaccine production, but wouldn’t say Tuesday whether other deals are imminent.

“Today (Tuesday), we are announcing that restaurants and bars can operate at 50% capacity. New bill would allow Michigan bars to stay open until 4 a.m. Bars in big cities like New York, Chicago and Miami can stay open until 4 a.m. and a new bill would put Michigan bars and restaurants in line with that. Michigan Rep. Ryan Berman said extending closing hours for many bars and restaurants will help restaurants make up for lost time after the pandemic. Merck to help manufacture Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccinePresident Joe Biden announced that pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. will help manufacture Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine.

DETROIT – President Joe Biden announced that pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. will help manufacture Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine. The arrangement comes after officials found out that Johnson & Johnson had fallen behind on production. Johnson & Johnson has pledged 16 million additional doses by the end of the month. READ: Michigan loosens COVID restrictions on restaurants -- here are all the detailsMichigan is also playing a role in the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. READ: Grand Rapids-based Grand River Aseptic to help manufacture J&J vaccineAdQuestions about coronavirus?

“We’re now on track to have enough vaccine supply for every adult in America by the end of May,” Biden said. The company has promised to deliver 100 million doses by the end of June. The J&J vaccine can be stored for months at refrigerated temperatures, rather than frozen, and doesn’t require patients to return for a second dose three or four weeks later. Merck has since said it was in talks to help other drug companies with vaccine production, but wouldn’t say Tuesday whether other deals are imminent. Ad__This story corrects that Biden said he wanted to get vaccine shots to teachers by the end of March, not May.

Illinois residents who are 65 or older can start making appointments for the United Center mass vaccination site Thursday morning, officials announced. AdvertisementOfficials also said Illinois is expected to receive more than 100,000 doses of the recently approved Johnson & Johnson vaccine this week. Officials said there were 61,061 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine administered in Illinois on Monday. The city of Chicago, which gets its own supply of vaccines, is receiving 22,300 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, according to the CDC. Unlike previously available vaccines which require two doses, the Johnson & Johnson model requires only a single inoculation.

The administration is invoking the Defense Production Act, a wartime measure that gives the federal government authority to direct private companies to meet the needs of the national defense, to equip two Merck facilities to produce the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. AdBiden said Johnson & Johnson will operate 24/7 to produce the vaccine. Tom Wolf said Tuesday that teachers will receive doses of the newly approved one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine, under a plan his administration will release. AdHe gave few details, but said he and a bipartisan legislative task force agreed that the Johnson & Johnson vaccine should be set aside for teachers and then other workers considered to be essential, but who are not included in the first vaccination phase. States are receiving 2.8 million doses of the newly approved Johnson & Johnson vaccine this week.

Merck posted a tweet that said the CEO felt he had to "take a stand against intolerance and extremism." A focus on researchWhen Frazier's asked what he's proudest of over his time as Merck's CEO, he points to the science. "When I took over, the Street was saying you shouldn't invest in research," Frazier recalled by phone on Thursday. Frazier, hired by legendary Merck CEO Roy Vagelos, bucked that trend. "I want to do public service, but public service doesn't mean elected office," Frazier said.

(AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)KENILWORTH – Longtime Merck executive Ken Frazier, whose leadership helped bring the drugmaker one of the most lucrative medicines in history and who is one of the few remaining Black CEOs of a major corporation, is retiring. Frazier, Merck’s CEO since early 2011 and an advocate for minority advancement who took on then-President Trump’s tacit support of white supremacists, will retire on June 30. He is one of the few Black CEOs at the head of a Fortune 500 company. At Merck, Frazier clashed with then-President Donald Trump over his refusal to condemn violence by the white supremacists who marched in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017. Share prices have more than doubled, and revenue has nearly doubled, under Frazier as CEO.

Ken Frazier, Chairman and CEO, Merck & Co., speaks during a meeting of the Economic Club of New York, October 3, 2018. Merck's outspoken chairman and CEO, Ken Frazier, is retiring after almost 30 years at the drugmaker, the company announced Thursday. Before joining Merck, Frazier helped free a Black death-row inmate who was falsely accused of murder. Merck reported fourth-quarter revenue and earnings on Thursday that fell short of Wall Street expectations. The company reported an adjusted EPS of $1.32 per share versus $1.38 expected.

The drugmaker will stop developing two potential COVID-19 vaccines after seeing poor results in early-stage studies. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)Merck is giving up on two potential COVID-19 vaccines following poor results in early-stage studies. The company said its potential vaccines were well tolerated by patients, but they generated an inferior immune system response compared with other vaccines. Merck was developing one of the potential vaccines with France’s Pasteur Institute based on an existing measles vaccine. Five potential vaccines have reached late-stage testing in the United States, the final phase before a drugmaker seeks approval from regulators.

KENILWORTH, N.J. – Merck & Co. is reporting third-quarter earnings of $2.94 billion on some very strong sales. That easily topped Wall Street expectations for earnings of $1.44 per share, according to a survey of analysts by Zacks Investment Research. Merck expects full-year earnings in the range of $5.91 to $6.01 per share, with revenue in the range of $47.6 billion to $48.6 billion. _____A portion of this story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on MRK at https://www.zacks.com/ap/MRK

Unlike many rivals developing vaccines that will require two doses, Merck is aiming for one-dose vaccines. The company bought Austrian vaccine maker Themis Biosciences this year to gain rights to its experimental COVID-19 vaccine. Human testing on a second type of vaccine, being developed with an international nonprofit vaccine consortium, is expected to begin this year. In addition, Merck and partner Ridgeback Bio are developing a coronavirus treatment that was well tolerated by patients in early studies. Thats up from its April forecast of between $46.1 billion and $48.1 billion in revenue and earnings per share of $5.17 to $5.37.

This microscope image made available by the National Cancer Institute Center for Cancer Research in 2015 shows human colon cancer cells with the nuclei stained red. Carroll jumped at the chance to help test a newer drug taken as a daily pill, AstraZenecas Tagrisso. A big drawback: It and other newer drugs are extremely expensive $150,000 or more a year. PROSTATE CANCERMen with advanced prostate cancer often are treated with medicines to suppress male hormones that can help the cancer grow. After a year, 55% on Keytruda were alive without worsening cancer versus 37% on chemo.

Stocks rose for the first time in three days on Wednesday as crude prices stabilized after a record plunge while better-than-expected earnings also lifted market sentiment. The West Texas Intermediate contract for June was up 19%, settling at $13.78 per barrel, after an earlier decline. Energy stocks rose broadly amid oil's surge. Yet, this is much bigger than oil," wrote Gregory Faranello, head of U.S. rates trading at AmeriVet Securities. White House economic advisor Larry Kudlow tried to assuage concerns over declining energy demand, telling CNBC's "Squawk Box" that prices should rebound once the economy re-opens.

General Motors, Merck & Co., and Peloton, among others, will report quarterly earnings on Wednesday. Automaker General Motors is expected to report earnings per share of 1 cent, well below the $1.43 earned in the fourth quarter a year prior, according to FactSet. Shares of General Motors are down more than 12% in the past six months. Analysts polled by FactSet are expecting pharmaceutical company Merck & Co. to report earnings per share of $1.15 on revenue of $11.979 billion. In the same quarter a year earlier, Merck reported earnings per share of $1.04 on revenue of $10.998 billion.

Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesInsurer UnitedHealth is Wall Street analysts' favorite stock based on highest percentage of buy ratings. In addition to the Minnesota-based healthcare company, financial services company Visa, technology giant Microsoft and pharmaceutical company Merck & Co. are all tied for second place. CNBC used FactSet to screen all the Dow Jones Industrial Average companies looking for the stocks with the highest percentage of buy ratings compared with total ratings. CNBC also used FactSet to screen analysts' least favorite stocks in the Dow Jones Industrial Average. FactSet gave a composite score of their analysts ratings and manufacturing company 3M ranked the least-liked stock in the Dow with only 4 buy ratings.