Merck.com is a global pharmaceutical company based in Whitehouse Station
Merck & Co., Inc.
Merck.com.com is the Official website for the Fortune 500 company Merck & Co. Merck is a global pharmaceutical company based in Whitehouse Station New Jersey. It is a division of a German corporation called Merck KGaA and is the creator of the controversial arthritis drug Vioxx which Merck discontinued in 2004 due to studies that it increased heart attack risk over time. Other names for the company are MSD (outside US and Canada) and Merck, Sharpe & Dohme.
CEO: Richard T Clark Stock Symbol: MRK Employees: 61,500
Slogan: Where patients come first
Vioxx
Vioxx (generic name - rofecoxib), an anti-inflammatory drug, was voluntarily pulled from the market on September 30, 2004 by Merck after internal tests showed that it increased the chances for heart attack. The FDA later requested that Merck reintroduce Vioxx to market with a higher risk warning label.
There were several Vioxx lawsuits in 2005, somewhere in the neighborhood of 4000. Merck was ordered to pay $254 million for a 2005 lawsuit in the death of a Vioxx user, the amount was later reduced to $20,000. Pfizer also had several lawsuits because of a competing drug called Bextra. Both companies are currently seeking the approval of safer alterantives to Vioxx like Arcoxia (Merck) and Dynastat (Pfizer).
The Company
Merck was founded in 1891, and has a mission to develop, manufacture and research new drugs for unmet medical conditions. It was mentioned as one of the 100 best companies for working mothers to be employed by in Working Mothers magazine. Merck also produces many other drugs like Zocor, Proscar / Propecia (finasteride) – for male hair loss, Vytorin -, and Zetia. It hires a steady stream of pharmacologists, researchers and chemists as well as other types of scientists for its research work. It also provide entry level positions and internships for new employees.
Research and Development
The company offers opportunities for partnerships with other research firms and reviews new discoveries and products in order to accelerate breakthroughs. It usually offers licenses during negotiations with new partners. Research areas of interest to Merck include Alzheimer’s, Atherosclerosis, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, new vaccines, obesity, oncology, pain and sleeping disorders. It is currently partnered with several companies like Acumen (Alzheimer’s, Aveo (Cancer) , Geron (Cancer Vaccines) and CSL (Cancer Adjuvant).
Financial
Merck reported an annual revenue of $22.012 billion in 2005 with an operations income of $5.536 billion and a net income of $4.631 billion. Investor information, and documentation is always available from the investor’s section of their corporate site. The site also provides information such as general history, product list, world wide location, research pipeline and more.
Patients
Patients and health care providers can use the health information section of the corporate site to research medical conditions and products. The corporation also offers patient assistance programs, prescription discount programs, Medicare prescription drug coverage info and vaccine patient assistance. It also sponsors clinical trials of its products and allows patients to participate in the programs. Any patient can obtain information to participate in clinical trials and/or view results of clinical trials directly from the website.
Languages
English
Address
- 1 Merck Drive
- Whitehouse Station NJ 08889 US
Contact
- Merck and Co, Inc.
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- +1 908 423 1300
