Novartis Cuts In U.S., Spares Swiss Plant

Novartis is shedding some 1,960 positions in the U.S. as it girds itself for tougher times. Diovan, a blood pressure medicine that brought in more than $6 billion in 2010, will lose patent protection in September; meanwhile, the Swiss firm expects a drop in demand for the hypertension drug Rasilez after it was linked to a cluster of adverse events. Novartis will take a $160 million charge related to the job cuts, which should generate $450 million in savings by 2013, and a $900 million charge due to the drop in Rasilez sales. Separately, under pressure from local unions, Novartis reversed a decision to close a plant in Nyon, Switzerland, sparing roughly 320 jobs. It’s also making fewer cuts than previously planned at a chemical plant in Basel, Switzerland.