WSJ Leftovers

A few tidbits from the last few weeks Wall Street Journals.

"An old gout drug gets new life and a new price, riling patients," by Jonathan D. Rockoff 4/12.

In July 2009, a Philadelphia drug maker received FDA approval to exclusively market colchicine for gout attacks for three years. The company, URL Pharma, Inc., was taking advantage of a push to bring medicines predating the FDA, like colchicine, under the agency's regulatory umbrella. The FDA offers exclusive marketing rights if a drug maker conducts clinical trials.

"Bailout looking much less pricey," by Deborah Solomon 4/12. The headline says it all. There are some multi-color graphics with the article. The total cost is now projected at $89 billion.

"States skip pension payments, delay day of reckoning," by Gina Chon 4/09. The chart with the article says Pennsylvania funded the pension system 86% in 2008 and 56% in 2009. Not as well as Texas did but much much better than Illinois.

"Philadelphia bonds benefits other," by Romy Varghese, 4/09. Excerpt: "Philadelphia, the nation's sixth most-populous city, thus becomes the latest municipality to pay millions of dollars to extricate itself from a money-losing interest-rate swap with a Wall Street bank." [sigh]