Actually, we just returned from the bank and the post office, but could use a good cup of coffee. So while our water is boiling (we fancy that metaphor), we thought this would be a good time to catch up with some of the stray items that were rattling around our computer while we were out. And of course, thanks for your patience. Hope your day is going well….

The UK’s National Health Service is spending nearly $4 billion annually to treat patients who had adverse reactions to drugs, according to new figures from the Compass think tank. The amount of money spent on hospital care for those given the wrong med or who suffered a side effect could pay for 10,000 new midwives or easily cover the estimated cost of combating MRSA infections, The Guardian writes.

Pfizer plans to launch a free treatment program in Nepal with its new Sutent cancer drug, LiveMint writes, and the move may upset efforts by India’s Natco Pharma to win a compulsory license to export a generic version. In January, Natco applied to India’s patent controller for permission to make and export a generic to Nepal, about the same time that Pfizer launched the drug. A person close to Natco says Pfizer’s program is good for patients in Nepal, but can’t cover the entire patient population.

Half a century after the launch of thalidomide, surviving victims are demanding $6.3 billion in compensation from the German government and the drug’s maker, Reuters reports. A newly formed group, the International Contergan Thalidomide Alliance (ICTA), kicked off a campaign for a global settlement in London today with a planned demonstration outside the German embassy. An estimated 3,500 victims are still alive and find life increasingly difficult as they get older. ICTA campaign leader Nick Dobrik says compensation plans agreed in the 1970s are no longer enough to pay the bills.

Glaxo is shutting the Liberty Corner, New Jersey, headquarters of Reliant Pharmaceuticals, which it acquired for $1.65 billion last year, and plans to lay off 109 workers, The Star-Ledger of New Jersey reports. Before Glaxo announced its acquisition plans last November, Reliant had recruited former Merck exec Bradley Sheares as ceo, and was poised to go public. At the time, Reliant employed about 1,000 people.