Sanford Heisler LLP has filed a $100 million individual and class action suit in the U.S. District Court for New Jersey against Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK). The action was brought by Kelli Smith on behalf of all female sales representatives at Merck. According to the complaint, the company systematically discriminates against its female and pregnant employees in assignment, promotion, advancement, and pay and retaliates against female employees in violation of Title VII of the US Civil Rights Act, the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act and the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination. The complaint asserts that employees on maternity leave are ineligible for merit awards and recognition for their sales, even when their sales surpass those of their male counterparts. According to Smith's legal team, Merck has long been on notice about its company-wide gender and pregnancy discrimination, but has taken no steps to remedy them. In fact, the complaint notes that Merck routinely retaliates against women who raise discrimination complaints.

Merck & Co. Inc. announced that the company has been awarded a significant portion of the UNICEF human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine tender, and will provide sustained supply of GARDASIL(R) [Quadrivalent Human Papillomavirus (Types 6, 11, 16, 18) Recombinant Vaccine] to GAVI-eligible countries. This agreement follows the GAVI Alliance's earlier announcement that HPV vaccines would be included in its portfolio for the first time. GAVI is expected to support the introduction of HPV vaccination in 28 countries by the end of 2017. GAVI Alliance is a public-private partnership focused on saving children's lives and protecting people's health by increasing access to immunization in poor countries. Through this initial tender award, Merck expects to supply approximately 2.4 million doses of GARDASIL to GAVI-eligible countries between 2013 to 2017 to help meet vaccine demand for countries already approved or recommended for approval by GAVI for HPV vaccine demonstration projects and national introductions. Additional awards by UNICEF are anticipated as vaccine demand increases.

Merck announced that the Biologics License Application (BLA) for its investigational ragweed pollen (Ambrosia artemisiifolia) sublingual allergy immunotherapy tablet has been accepted for review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The BLA for Merck's investigational ragweed pollen sublingual allergy immunotherapy tablet is supported by five studies evaluating the efficacy and safety of the tablet in adults, 18 years of age or older, with ragweed induced allergic rhinitis (with or without conjunctivitis).