In response to a looming decline in sales of its blockbuster diabetes drug, Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. is slashing nearly 1,600 jobs in the U.S. — nearly 500 of those in the north Chicago suburbs.
Japan's largest drugmaker, which operates from its U.S. base in Deerfield under Takeda Pharmaceuticals North America Inc., faces competition in the next two years from coming generic versions of Actos, its flagship product. Actos was the eighth-best-selling drug brand in 2009, generating $3.4 billion in U.S. sales.
The company hopes to save more than $500 million over three years by eliminating jobs mostly in the U.S. In a forecast Wednesday, Takeda expects net income to plunge 26 percent to a decade-low of about $2.2 billion in the year ending March 2011.
Meanwhile, the company's revenue has been falling since its once-blockbuster prescription heartburn pill Prevacid, which now has dosages in cheaper generic and over-the-counter forms, lost patent protection in November. Takeda said Prevacid sales for fiscal 2009 were $1.2 billion, a 30 percent drop from the prior fiscal year. At one time, Prevacid sales were more than $3 billion annually.
Takeda said the loss of sales plus challenges in its drug development pipeline were key reasons the company needs to restructure. Last summer, the Food and Drug Administration asked Takeda to conduct additional studies of its experimental diabetes drug alogliptin.
The company has 5,000 U.S. employees. About 1,400 jobs, mostly in sales, will be cut. About 300 will come from the Deerfield home office, and 170 of the 840 jobs at Takeda Global Research and Development Center in Lake Forest will also be eliminated.
"This will position us for success in 2010 and beyond so we can continue the important work of research and development in order to deliver important new treatments for unmet patient needs," the company said in a statement Wednesday.
The moves come less than a month after Takeda said Actos would be available in generic form in two years under a settlement reached with several drugmakers trying to bring cheaper versions to U.S. consumers.
Takeda has said it is "operating under the assumption that the entry of generic versions of Actos" will be by Aug. 17, 2012.
Bloomberg News contributed to this report.
1 comment:
1600 people being laid off... well I can't help everyone, but I do have several openings with another large pharmaceutical manufacturer specifically in the area of diabetes as a start! Teh Web site is www.tfgrecruiting.com and the position to start with is the Clinical Manager.
Emily Faulkner
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