Merck writes off $2.9 billion amid falling HCV sales
A US Securities and Exchange Commission filing reveals that Merck & Co (NYSE: MRK) has taken a $2.9 billion ($1.9 billion after taxes) impairment charge in relation to hepatitis C drug uprifosbuvir.
The company obtained the drug in 2014 as part of its $3.9 billion acquisition of Idenix Pharmaceuticals. The candidate HCV therapy, which is still in clinical trials, is now estimated by the company to be worth $240 million.
This is partly due to a decline in the value of the market the drug aims to treat, as more effective cures reduce the pool of treatable patients.
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