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- 2025-12-26 22:50:17
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- Keytruda coverage expansion plan back to MSD for revision
- by Eo, Yun-Ho Sep 04, 2020 06:53am
- Regarding the Keytruda coverage expansion, the South Korean authority passed the ball back to MSD Korea. The pharmaceutical industry sources reported Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service (HIRA) informed MSD on Sept. 2 about PD-1 inhibitor Keytruda’s (pembrolizumab) financial burden reduction plan the Cancer Deliberation Committee discussed during an on-paper meeting on Aug. 26. The sources confirmed HIRA has requested MSD to revise the financial plan once more. But on a positive side, the health authority expressed their intention to be flexible on the controversial clause of ‘pharmaceutical company covering the administration cost of the first three cycles.’ This could be interpreted as a huge progress. As the MSD’s global headquarters was unconvinced of the clause, the company could have more wiggle room in expanding the coverage. However, the government proposed MSD to resubmit a financial plan ‘equivalent to the initial clause.’ In other words, MSD would have to increase the company’s financial burden more than the initial financial plan and the plan amended three times by the Cancer Deliberation Subcommittee and deferred by the Committee on Aug. 26. If the Cancer Committee refuses the new financial plan, Keytruda’s attempt to expand coverage would be technically over. Regarding the issue, MSD official noted, "To answer the government’s effort to positively review the unprecedentedly revised financial cost reduction plan, the company would discuss means to extend the company’s part in lessening the financial burden further for the last time.” The official added, “Delivering fair treatment opportunity to cancer patients in both South Korea and other countries is the most important part. The company would thoroughly discuss about the plan revision and submit it to the government again for the Cancer Deliberation Committee to reconsider in October.”
- Company
- Celebrex barrier still too high for NSAID Acelex
- by Nho, Byung Chul Sep 04, 2020 06:52am
- The 22nd Korean-made novel drug (Bio-venture No. 1) and a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) for arthritis Acelex (polmacoxib) seems to be stuck in a box pattern, struggling to narrow the sales gap with its biggest competitor Celebrex (celecoxib). IQVIA data found Acelex has generated 598 million won, 4.01 billion won, 4.78 billion won, 4.49 billion won and 5.34 billion won from 2015 through 2019, respectively. Celebrex has also generated 37.1 billion won, 34.4 billion won, 32.6 billion won, 36.4 billion won and 40.1 billion won in year 2015 through 2019, respectively, and its global sales have reached over 850 billion won. Both Acelex and Celebrex are not stepping out of their respective sales brackets ranging from 4 billion won to 5 billion won, and from 35 Billion won to 40 billion won. The two products are sluggish to break through the brackets, having no explosive growth in sight. Celebrex has consolidated the market leadership by selling the product seven times more than Acelex last year. Acelex, developed by Crystal Genomics, has received Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) approval in 2015 as a tissue-selective COX-2 inhibitor that selectively impedes COX-2 enzyme inducing inflammation and pain. The drug has conducted clinical trials not only in South Korea, but also in the U.S. and Europe. During its Phase III study, Acelex has confirmed to improve the participating patients’ physical function scores, as part of osteoarthritis indicators, faster than Pfizer’s Celebrex. Released to the market in 2000, Celebrex selectively hinders COX-2 enzyme causing pain and inflammatory. Celebrex has been an inevitable competitor of Acelex with its benefit of alleviating symptoms of osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and pain, while it lowers risk of digestive system complications that other existing NSAIDs often cause. Acelex has been distributed to major general hospitals and university hospitals in Korea through a partnership deal with Dong-A ST signed in September 2015, and it signed another sales deal with Daewoong Pharmaceutical in March 2018. Dong-A ST is in charge of healthcare institutes with over 300 beds, and other hospitals and clinics are handled by Daewoong Pharmaceutical. The drug is also expanding the sales network through its own subsidiary Crystal Life Sciences. And in late last year, the company launched a tablet form of the brand to expand its line-up. Acelex 2 mg tablet has generated 149.9 million won in last first quarter. After signing a co-marketing deal with Jeil Pharmaceutical in 2015, Pfizer and the Korean company each have been focusing their sales force on Celebrex sales in general hospitals, semi-general hospitals and clinics, assigned according to respective strength. Although Acelex has salespeople 1.6 times more than the competitor, the Korean-made drug could not overcome Celebrex’ consolidated prescriber networks. Dong-As ST and Daewoong Pharmaceutical have reportedly dispatched about 430 (180/ 250) sales people for Acelex, and Pfizer and Jeil Pharmaceutical have about 260 sales people (60/ 200) for Celebrex. Unless Acelex takes assertive and effective sales and marketing strategies now, it would be difficult for the drug to see a quantum jump from this point where the sales have been unchanged for five years. With such underwhelming performance in South Korea, Crystal Genomics have been actively working on exports and license-out deals. Acelex is accounted for approximately 38 percent of the overall sales of Crystal Genomics, which made 14 billion won last year.
- Company
- Galderma Korea appoints Younhee Kim as the new CEO
- by Eo, Yun-Ho Sep 03, 2020 12:55pm
- Galderma Korea has appointed Younhee Kim, former general manager of the Medical Solution Division, as the new CEO. According to related industries, CEO Kim started official business as the official president on the October 1st. Rene Wipperich, former CEO of Galderma's Korean subsidiary for two years from September 2018, has been confirmed to have moved to a Swiss subsidiary. Galderma Korea was transformed into a Korean president system about two years after former CEO Heung Bum Park resigned. CEO Rene Wipperich joined Nestlé, a Galderma holding company in 1999, and served as general manager of commercial operations at Nestlé's headquarters after representing Malaysia and Singapore, as well as representing Indonesia. The new CEO Kim has accumulated her career as a marketing manager in the women's business unit and vaccine business unit after working at MSD Korea. Afterwards, she served as Marketing Head of Merz Korea, experiencing the skin and beauty field, and until recently led the Medical Solution Division at Galderma's Korean subsidiary. Meanwhile, last year, Galderma became independent from its parent company Nestlé Healthcare Division after 28 years of inauguration. The change in ownership was due to the Swedish private equity EQT VIII fund (EQT), Luxinva and PSP Investments, a 100% subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), and a consortium of renowned institutional investors. It was completed under an exclusive negotiation with its former owner Nestlé SA. Since then, Galderma has been providing various medical solutions and solutions for consumer skin health through a total of two business units: the medical solution business unit including the pharmaceutical business unit and the aesthetic business unit, and the consumer care business unit.
- Company
- Sales of immunotherapy for Cancer are ↑18 times in 4 years
- by An, Kyung-Jin Sep 02, 2020 06:19am
- (Clockwise from top left) Yervoy, Opdivo, Keytruda,Imfinzi,& Tecentriq Immunotherapy for Cancer is expanding rapidly in the domestic pharmaceutical market. The domestic immune checkpoint inhibitor market started with Yervoy (Ipilimumab), Keytruda (Pembrolizumab), and Opdivo (Nivolumab), and generics such as Tecentriq (Atezolizumab) and Imfinzi (Durvalumab) were added one after another, sales increased by 18 times over the past four years. MSD's Keytruda, which took the lead in the lung cancer treatments, occupied 60% of the total market, showing its influence, and Roche's Ticentric' & AstraZeneca’s Imfinzi are on the rise. According to IQVIA, a drug market research institute on the 1st, sales of five types of Immunotherapy for Cancer in the first half of this year was a joint venture of ₩126.7 billion. This is a 31.7% increase from ₩96.1 billion in the first half of last year. It increased by 17.5 times from ₩7.2 billion four years ago. Immuno-anticancer agents are monoclonal antibodies that induce T cell activation by blocking inhibitory signals from T cells involved in immune regulation in the body. Unlike chemotherapy or targeted anticancer drugs, they are also called third-generation anticancer drugs in that they treat cancer by activating the body's immune system. There are various types of immune anticancer agents, but immune checkpoint inhibitors that treat cancer by activating immune function by suppressing the immune checkpoint, which is a pathway through which cancer cells evade immune cells, are collectively referred to as immune anticancer drugs. In Korea, BMS and Ono Pharmaceutical's immune anti-cancer drug Yervoy was approved in December 2014 as the primary treatment for melanoma patients who could not operate or have metastasized, Yervoy is the first immune checkpoint inhibitor that acts on the CTLA-4 protein on the surface of immune cells. In 2015, immune checkpoint inhibitors with mechanisms that inhibit PD-1 protein, such as Keytruda of MSD and Opdivo of BMS, were released and the market scale was in earnest. Since then, competition is accelerating with the launch of Roche's Tecentriq in 2017, AstraZeneca's Imfinzi in 2018, and Merck·Pfizer's Bavencio in 2019. Quarterly sales trend of five major immune checkpoint inhibitors (Unit: ₩ million, Source: IQVIA) Currently, Keytruda has taken the lead in the market. The sales of Keytruda in the first half of this year were totaled at ₩72.3 billion. It is 26.4% higher than ₩57.2 billion in the first half of last year, leading overall drug sales. Of the five immune checkpoint inhibitors, the proportion of Keytruda accounted for close to 57.1%. Keytruda inhibits the 'PD-1' protein on the surface of T cells to prevent binding to the PD-L1 receptor and acts as a mechanism to activate T cells. Following the first indication, melanoma, it has shown excellent efficacy in over 30 carcinomas such as lung cancer, head and neck cancer, gastric cancer, and cervical cancer, showing overwhelming results worldwide. Last year, it surpassed ₩10 trillion in global sales, ranking second in sales following Humira (Adalimumab), and It is observed that it will rise to the top in global sales by 2026. In Korea, because of its high price, the quarterly sales of Keytruda remained around ₩3 billion, but the application of health insurance benefits for secondary treatments for non-small cell lung cancer in August 2017 acted as a catalyst for sales growth. Keytruda sales exceeded ₩10 billion in the first quarter of 2018, and quarterly sales of ₩30 billion have been recorded since the second quarter of last year. In the first quarter of this year, it lowered Lipitor (Atorvastatin) and rose to the top in domestic pharmaceutical sales, and continued to lead for two consecutive quarters. If the reimbursement is expanded, the sales volume is expected to increase even more. However, there is a difference between the sales aggregate of Keytruda and the sales that the company actually secures according to the risk-sharing contract (RSA) of the refund type·expenditure cap signed with the government at the time of listing. Opdivo, which was once pointed as the biggest rival of Keytruda, widened the gap with sales of ₩30.6 billion in the first half of this year. Opdivo lost its leadership to Keytruda after clinical failure related to primary lung cancer treatment in 2017. In Korea, after setting a new record for quarterly sales of ₩17.2 billion in the fourth quarter of 2018, the trend continues to decline. As of the first half of this year, the share of the five immune checkpoint inhibitors accounted for 24.2% of sales. Opdivo is evaluated as having missed the market leadership because it failed to preoccupy it as a primary treatment indication for non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer showing positive PD-L1 findings. Non-small cell lung cancer accounts for about 80% of all lung cancers. About 25-30% of them are classified as squamous non-small cell lung cancer. Market share of 5 immune checkpoint inhibitors in the first half of 2020 (Unit: %, Source: IQVIA) Except for Keytruda and Opdivo, the influence of other items in the immune checkpoint inhibitor market is still insignificant. In the first half of this year, Yervoy's sales were ₩700 million, similar to the same period last year. Yervoy was first released in Korea, but it has not exceeded ₩2 billion in annual sales. Although it is trying to rebound in sales by adding indications for combination with other treatments such as Opdivo, its application range is limited compared to other PD-1 and PD-L1 inhibitors. The quarterly sales of Roche's Tecentriq and AstraZeneca's Imfinzi are rapidly increasing since their domestic release. Tecentriq recorded ₩15 billion in sales in the first half of last year, more than four times higher than ₩3.7 billion in the first half of last year, making it the third largest of the five immune checkpoint inhibitors. The market share rose to 11.8%. Imfinzi, which started generating sales in the first half of last year, recorded sales of ₩8.1 billion in the first half of this year. Five kinds of immune checkpoint inhibitors are trying to expand their indications based on continuous clinical research. Bavencio recently concluded a drug price negotiation with the NHIS, and the application of insurance benefits is imminent. For the time being, the domestic immune checkpoint inhibitor market is expected to continue high growth.
- Company
- AZ Korea Director Chon as a new Country President Indonesia
- by Eo, Yun-Ho Sep 02, 2020 06:18am
- Chon Sewhan, a director at AstraZeneca Korea, has been promoted as a Country President at PT. AstraZeneca Indonesia The industry sources reported the current Cardiovascular, Renal and Metabolic Diseases (CVRM) Business Unit Director, Chon Sewhan, has been appointed as a Country President Indonesia as of Sept. 1. Started off his career as an accountant, Director Chon was an acting-Country President Korea, until the current Country President Kim “Juno” Sangpyo was appointed after former Country President Liz Chatwin has been transferred back to the Australian and New Zealand office in September 2017. After graduating from Korea University, he earned his MBA from University of Pennsylvania the Wharton School and worked at a global accounting consulting group, PWC. He stepped into the pharmaceutical industry as a financial manager at Abbott Korea, and gained his experience in finance, R&D and business development from Novartis Headquarters, the U.S. branch and AstraZeneca Korea. In 2018, Chon was appointed as CVRM Business Unit Director at AstraZeneca Korea. The global company has yet to decide his successor. And due to COVID-19, the new Country President Indonesia would be remotely working from South Korea for a while.
- Company
- Forxiga by AstraZeneca appeals against Dong-A ST
- by Kim, Jin-Gu Sep 02, 2020 06:18am
- ForxigaAstraZeneca, which failed in the first round of the patent dispute over the SGLT-2 inhibitor-based diabetes treatment, Forxiga (Dapagliflozin), launched a counterattack against Dong-A ST. It disagrees with the trial decision of the Patent Tribunal, who sided with the generic company, and filed a lawsuit to the Patent Court of Korea to cancel the trial. As AstraZeneca led the patent dispute to the second trial, the 'Pro-drug' method of patent avoidance strategy brought up by Dong-A ST was also put to the test. In the pharmaceutical industry, The pharmaceutical industry is paying attention to the patent court's ruling on whether a new patent strategy that came out long ago can continue. According to the pharmaceutical industry on the 31st, AstraZeneca filed a lawsuit against Dong-A ST to cancel the trial decision in the Patent Court of Korea on the 28th. The intention is that the trial decision made by the Intecllectial Property Trial and Appeal Board is unfair. On June 23, the Board sided with Dong-A ST in a trial to confirm the passive scope of rights filed by Forxiga on a material patent. This decision received great attention from the pharmaceutical industry. This is because many pharmaceutical companies have challenged Forxiga’s material patent, but only Dong-A ST has succeeded in avoiding it. It is explained that there was a technology called 'pro drug' behind Dong-A ST's ability to overcome the patent. Chemical structure of DapagliflozinProdrugs are a different strategy, seemingly like salt-modifying drugs. It is a kind of incrementally modified drugs. It is a way to improve a little differently from the original by changing the substituent of the substance. However, the difference between the salt and the substituent is large. The chemical structure of the substance itself does not change. The chemical structure of the prodrug is partially changed. There is also a big difference in technology. it can be changed by simple ionic bonding. In the case of prodrugs, the substituents must be changed in a more tricky way, called a covalent bond. The likelihood of success is also lower. The salt change strategy adopted by many generic companies in the past has become impossible due to the so-called 'Solifenacin ruling' in January of last year. The Intecllectial Property Trial and Appeal Board (1st trial) regarded the prodrug as a new one different from the original ingredient. On the other hand, AstraZeneca believes that the product being developed by Dong-A ST exhibits the same pharmacokinetics in the body as Dapagliflozin, and is converted into Dapagliflozin to exert an effect, so it is believed to be infringing Forxiga's material patent. Accordingly, AstraZeneca said that it will reaffirm the scope of the rights of material patents and protect Forxiga's intellectual property rights. Sang-pyo Kim, CEO of AstraZeneca Korea said, "Material patent for Dapagliflozin is the result of research and development with a lot of effort and cost, and such excellent patent technology is respected until the expiration date." Forxiga has two material patents. One expires on April 7, 2023, and the other expires on January 8, 2024. Among them, the patent invalidation lawsuit that expires in 2024 won the first trial by generics, and the second trial is currently underway. Dong-A ST is the only one that has avoided both patents. Dong-A ST is expected to be released in the second half of next year as soon as it has undergone clinical and approval. If it goes as planned, it means that it will be possible to release the generic nine months ahead of other companies.
- Company
- Indication of Alunbrig expanded as ALK-positive lung cancer
- by Sep 02, 2020 06:18am
- The indication has been expanded as the first line treatment of Takeda Pharmaceutical Korea's lung cancer treatment, Alunbrig. Takeda Pharmaceutical Korea (CEO Moon Hee-seok) announced on the 28th that The MFDS approved Alunbriq (Brigatinib), an anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-positive non-small cell lung cancer drug, to expand its indication as a first-line treatment for ALK-positive advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer on the 27th. Alunbrig has been used in the treatment of ALK-positive advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer, which has been treated with Crizotinib in April of last year under insurance coverage. With the expansion of this indication, Alunbrig can also be used in patients with ALK-positive non-small cell lung cancer who have not been treated with existing primary ALK inhibitors. The approval was based on a second interim analysis of the ALTA-1L clinical trial in 275 patients with ALK-positive locally advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer who had not previously been treated with ALK inhibitors. Patients enrolled in the ALTA-1L clinical trial were randomly assigned to the Alunbrig group and the Crizotinib group according to the brain metastasis and past chemotherapy at baseline. The primary endpoint is the progression-free survival (PFS) evaluated by the Blinded Independent Review Committee (BIRC), and the secondary endpoint is the objective response rate (ORR) evaluated by the BIRC, the intracranial objective response rate (intracranial ORR), intracranial PFS and overall survival (OS). As a result of the second interim analysis conducted based on the progress up to June in 2019, it was confirmed that patients receiving Alunbrig improved the risk of disease progression or death by about 51% compared to the crizotinib group. (HR, 0.49; 95% CI, 0.35-0.68; log-rank P
- Company
- Now, a transition of power in the contraceptive market
- by Sep 01, 2020 06:13am
- The domestic over-the-counter (OTC) pre-contraceptive market, which was almost monopolized by imported finished products, is showing mixed trend. Sales of top-tier products such as Myvlar have been sold out for a long period of time, resulting in a sharp decrease in sales, and recently released products are fiercely competing, causing changes. According to IQVIA, a drug market research institute, the size of the major OTC pre-contraceptive drug market in the first half of this year was ₩7.9 billion, down 29% from ₩11.1 billion in the same period last year. Data: IQVIA The market contracted as sales of top-tier products fell sharply. In particular, Dong-A imports Myvlar from Bayer, but it has been discontinued as the problem of changing overseas production plants prolonged. Eventually, there was little sales in the first half of this year. Myvlar, which ranked second in the market, is not expected to recover easily as the out-of-stocks prolong. Dong-A's Melian also suffered a temporary out-of-stock phenomenon, but was able to maintain sales because the supply was fast. Melian's sales in the first half of the year were ₩800 million, up 4.5% from the previous year.. Again this year, Mercilon by Alvogen Korea became first place in OTC contraceptives. The gap with the second place also widened in the absence of Myvlar. However, Mercilon's sales declined slightly compared to last year. Mercilon's sales for the first half of this year were ₩3.9 billion, a 27.8% decrease from the same period last year (₩5.4 billion). Alvogen Korea, which jointly sold Mercilon with Yuhan until the first half of last year, signed a co-promotion contract with Chong Kun Dang from the second half of the contract. Along with Mercilon and Myvlar, Alesse sales by Ildong also declined 19% from 1.1 billion in the first half of last year to ₩900 million. Alesse is an item introduced by Pfizer Pharmaceuticals. OTC products The recent disruption in the supply of imported finished products and the launch of various domestically manufactured items is also leading the market change. First of all, Senseday, developed by Yuhan and introduced last year, is evaluated to have settled relatively, although sales have slowed slightly compared to last year. Senseday recorded ₩600 million in sales in the first half of this year. Ildong also introduced its own product. These are two types of Daon and Baraon released in May. They are estimated to have generated sales of ₩300 million and ₩100 million respectively in the first half of this year. Pharmaceutical companies that have launched their own products, such as Yuhan and Ildong, are competing to promote their brands to consumers. Yuhan expanded its product lineup by releasing a condom named Senseday, and Ildong launched an advertisement with a striking blue package and singer Son Dam-bi as a model. Alvogen Korea is trying to recover sales by attracting positive responses from pharmacists through the 'Mercipharm' campaign that supports contraceptive medication consultation with its partner Chong Kun Dang. With domestic companies introducing follow-up products one after another, attention is paid to the changes in the OTC contraceptive market, which was announced as a gap in sales of top-tier products was created.
- Company
- “Cosidering PPI when prescribing NOAC in high-risk patient"
- by Eo, Yun-Ho Sep 01, 2020 06:13am
- Professor Kim Min-su Already, it has been ten years since new oral anticoagulant (NOAC) has launched in the South Korean market. Experts are actively discussing the practical use of NOAC as relevant prescription records have been accumulated. Regarding the off-label prescription of the drug, the interest has heightened recently on optimizing the dose and bleeding control in Asian population. An example would be simultaneously using proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) with NOAC or dual antiplatelets therapy (DAPT) to manage gastrointestinal bleeding. Clinical evidences are collected to support the East Asian Paradox theory that claims antiplatelets therapy in East Asians and Westerners demonstrate different outcomes in efficacy and safety. Professor Kim Min-su of Cardiology Department at Chungnam National University Sejong Hospital spoke to Daily Pharm that, “In a clinical scene where there a patient has gastrointestinal bleeding while using NOAC, the therapy is maintained with PPI-like gastric mucous membrane protector, if the case is not critical.” As for DAPT, PPI prescription is recommended by American College of Chest Physicians (CHEST) guideline for antiplatelet therapy in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). The guideline recommends minimizing the risk of gastrointestinal bleeding in patients with AT, who uses aspirin and oral anticoagulant together, by administering 75 mg to 100 mg of PPI. Professor Kim stressed, “DAPT has reportedly increased the risk of gastrointestinal bleeding and led to death. As long-term DAPT is prevalently used in high-risk patients having myocardial infarction, the use of PPI to manage gastrointestinal bleeding should be taken in account.” He added, “We need to be careful on the interaction between antiplatelets and PPI. It dpends, but a drug-drug interaction definitely exists. Also the risk of bleeding could vary for NOAC based on the range of doses like once-daily or twice-daily.” So how about the private clinics prescribing NOAC, when the concern on bleeding still exists? Actually, experts claim the clinics prescribing the drug is not problematic. In fact, the Korean Heart Rhythm Society apparently provides training sessions on NOAC in six different regions with carefully selected speakers. The organization is also expanding programs to raise awareness of the disease. Professor Kim stated, “Even tertiary hospitals, most of the time, provide no other treatment than NOAC prescription for the first-time treated patient with chronic AF. A primary healthcare institute can sufficiently prevent and manage stroke after giving essential exams.” The professor added, “There shouldn’t be any issue for a primary healthcare provider to prescribe NOAC. In the age of warfarin, the prescription of anticoagulants was difficult with lack of international normalized ratio (INR) monitoring equipment and prescription management. But, the time has changed now. The issue is irrelevant with using PPI and NOAC. Personally, promoting prescription of anticoagulants in private clinics would enhance the management of AF in South Korea.”
- Company
- GC-Novartis report COVID-19 cases, all other test negative
- by Kim, Jin-Gu Sep 01, 2020 06:12am
- Although confirmed cases of COVID-19 were reported from GC Pharma and Novartis Korea, sources confirmed others in the companies were not further infected. According to pharmaceutical industry sources on Aug. 28, all workers, who had a close contact with the confirmed cases in the same department or in the vicinity at GC Pharma and Novartis Korea, were tested negative. On Aug. 24, GC Pharma reported its one employee from the R&D center at the Yongin Headquarters has been tested positive for COVID-19. While working from home since Aug. 21, the employee showed symptoms like coughing, sore throat and fever and was tested positive on Aug. 24. GC Pharma closed the headquarters and R&D center on the next day and informed all employees to stay at home. Immediately the buildings were disinfected. Although the patient was confirmed when working from home, all the colleagues working at the same department were tested as well. The company reported every one of them has been tested negative. Regardless, the Korean company plans to maintain the work-from-home system for a while. Novartis underwent the same ordeal as it reported a confirmed case a day prior to GC Pharma. On Aug. 23, Novartis’ Sandoz Korea division had one confirmed case, and each from Novartis and Sandoz, who came in contact with the first case, were tested positive. However, the company reported no other confirmed cases were found in the company. Novartis and Sandoz are housed on 48th and 49th floor in IFC Seoul Building. The patient was reportedly working from the 48th floor, and all other employees on the same floor were tested negative. Regardless of having a close contact or not, all employees were ordered to work from home. Tentatively, the change in workplace is to last until next week. But depending on the situation, the employees may work from home longer, the company official says. A sales person from Boehringer Ingelheim Korea, assigned to respiratory department at general hospitals, has been tested positive on Aug. 25. The company immediately sent home all employees, who had a close contact with the patient, and they are to work from home indefinitely. The multinational company plans to take fruiter actions and test more people who came in contact to follow up with the patient’s epidemiological investigation.
