Corporate Governance

An FDA panel spent much of yesterday examining whether GlaxoSmithKline?s blockbuster diabetes drug Avandia should be pulled from the market. The probe includes an examination both of Avandia?s safety, and Glaxo?s trustworthiness with regards to drug testing. As the New York Times? reporting notes:

Company documents indicate that GlaxoSmithKline hid important data about the drug from the public and the Food and Drug Administration. A review of one of the company?s largest clinical trials, called the Record study, found that a number of patients who suffered heart attacks were left out of the trial?s final tally.

Of course, while the panel heard from medical experts on both sides of the issue, the stock market soared on news of positive corporate earnings. With the market booming yesterday, it was difficult to decipher how the investing public was processing the Glaxo story. On the day, Glaxo shares rose 1.71%.