Britney Hospitalized, Lilly Subpoenaed, More Zyprexa News

Multiple press accounts report that pop star Britney Spears was hospitalized earlier today on a 72-hour hold at UCLA. With all the alleged medical care she's been getting for bipolar disorder, one wonders why she's spinning out so hard that she needs to be hospitalized. Or are the meds just not working for her?

News is out today that Eli Lilly has been subpoenaed for documents relating to the marketing of Zyprexa by a federal grand jury in Pennsylvania. Clearly, the feds are turning up the heat on Lilly as settlement talks with the drug maker continue.

Meanwhile, the media continues to cover Lilly's Zyprexa settlement talks. WSJ's Health Blog has some news. So does Fierce Pharma. And so does damn near every other news outlet. Glad to see Lilly's claims that it did nothing wrong in handling the drug are falling on deaf ears.

Jack Friday at PharmaGossip makes the excellent point that within 24 hours Lilly has engaged in some jaw-dropping hypocrisy. A couple of days ago Lilly's incoming CEO tells the WSJ Health Blog that Big Pharma is unfairly targeted and at the same time is holding settlement talks with the feds and states to halt legal claims against the company over all the illegal marketing it did for Zyprexa. Apparently, the new CEO has a future as a comedian.