In fact, they weren’t afraid to suggest — in the middle of a (largely-self-inflicted) crisis — that it wasn’t “enough“. About 14 months earlier, in another self inflicted crisis, they did the exact same thing.

Again, great stuff — and, by my lights — feel free to “pee on any fire” you like.

Why else do we go campin’ anyway, if we can pee the occasional campfire right out?

Later, man.

Hang tough, as tomorrow both Merck and Schering-Plough report Q3 results, pre-market.

As ever, I’ll live blog any surprises or highlights.

Again, it is simply a treat (like Halloween was — when I was about 11 or so) to have you back, man!

Namaste

As trivial as it may sound, I cannot imagine any Pharma industry CEO actually calling the President anything but Obama. Just plain…Obama. It’s a euphony thing: funny to hear somebody in the C-suite quoted referring to him as President Obama.

If health care reform shakes out as a larger covered patient base and therefore increased net gains in sales and profit — despite some pricing restraint, Dick and other CEOs would be all for it.

Look, if “we don’t (just) treat chronic disease in this country,” then the industry self-bastes. It’s predicated on keeping people on chronic therapies. If, for instance and hypothetically, it discovered some one-time course of therapy that re-routed DNA to prevent coronary artery disease, there would be no need for statins. And without statins, all the players would’ve been hard-pressed to grow EPS in the same way they have since the day the Ph. 3 results for Mevacor were first disclosed. And without that, the industry’s collective ROI would’ve made it far less attractive in comparison to other industries, and so forth and so on.

As for the 40%-60% Merckification controversy, my guess is that’s a very wide-open statement supported by constantly shifting calculus. “Management” could mean a lot of things. And so could the cost of a poison pill, because, after all, management’s stated mission may relate to the best possible return to shareholders, but the reality will show it’s making sure the 300+ boys (and a relatively few number of girls) who happened to make it to the VP lounge walk away with enough money never to worry about it again. Among other things, the cost of deferred comp is beyond imagination.