2 pain drugs launched by Covidien with new sales forces

Covidien announced today the launch of two branded pain drugs — Exalgo and Pennsaid — and hired around 250 reps to support the products. Professional ads for both products are in the works for May.

Both drugs contain active ingredients that have been on the market for years — hydromorphone and diclofenac — but Covidien licensed in novel delivery mechanisms in order to create two new products that address unmet needs, according to Herb Neuman, chief medical officer and VP of medical affairs at Covidien.  

To educate prescribers on these new offerings, Covidien enlarged nearly every function of its medical affairs department, including the addition of medical science liaisons, a first for the company, said Neuman.

JoAnna Schooler, communications director at Covidien, said "a couple hundred" reps would be deployed in support of each product. Direct mail went out to physicians this week, Schooler said.

Read more in the MM&M article at Covidien launches two pain drugs with fresh sales forces - Medical Marketing and Media