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To: Mighty_Mezz who wrote (6718)	11/8/2004 6:45:47 PM
From: scion	Respond to of 12465

SEC, Justice Department Probe Vioxx Withdrawal A WALL STREET JOURNAL ONLINE NEWS ROUNDUP November 8, 2004 6:02 p.m. Merck & Co. disclosed in a securities filing Monday that it received a subpoena from the Justice Department related to its Vioxx research, marketing and selling activities. The company also said it faces an informal investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission. In September, Merck took painkiller Vioxx off the market after a company-sponsored study found a doubling of the risk of heart attack or stroke for patients who took the painkiller for more than 18 months. Merck, of Whitehouse Station, N.J., said in its filing that the Justice Department's inquiry is connected to a federal health-care investigation under criminal statutes. Merck said will cooperate with the SEC and the Justice Department. The company said it "cannot predict the outcome of these inquiries, however, it is possible that highly unfavorable outcomes, including a potential civil disposition from the SEC and/or potential civil or criminal dispositions from the Justice Department, could have a material adverse effect" on its finances, liquidity and results. The company's stock continues to be battered in the wake of the Vioxx withdrawal. The company came under more pressure last week when the British medical journal Lancet published an analysis of public clinical-trial data, concluding that Vioxx should have been withdrawn several years earlier because there already was clinical evidence of harmful side effects. A scathing editorial said approval of Vioxx by regulators and its subsequent sale in the face of evidence showing harm from the drug were "public health catastrophes." The company has vigorously defended its conduct, saying it pulled Vioxx from the market as soon as officials learned definitively that the once-a-day pill increased the risk of heart attacks and strokes in patients who took the medicine longer than 18 months. Merck said last week that it was "vigilant in monitoring and disclosing the cardiovascular safety of Vioxx" and that the Lancet study wasn't based on new data or as comprehensive as the company's own analyses. "Merck acted responsibly and appropriately as it developed and marketed Vioxx, and made decisions based on all available data at the time," the company said. In 4 p.m. trading Monday, shares of Merck were up 36 cents to $26.57 on the New York Stock Exchange, well off the 52-week high of around $50 set in February. Write to the Online Journal's editors at newseditors@wsj.com3 URL for this article: online.wsj.com