Valeant buys maker of women’s libido drug days after approval

WASHINGTON – Valeant Pharmaceuticals will pay about $1 billion in cash to buy Sprout Pharmaceuticals, the maker of the first prescription drug intended to boost sexual desire in women.

The deal comes two days after U.S. regulators approved the pill Addyi, a milestone for the drug industry that could revive interest in medications for women’s sexual problems.

Founded by a husband-and-wife team, Sprout has aggressively pushed the case for their product for years, arguing in dozens of interviews that the Food and Drug Administration had unfairly overlooked women’s sexual disorders. But the company gave no hint of plans to sell the drug to a larger company.

“After all their talk about women’s health disparities, it’s time for Sprout’s founders to just take the money and run,” said Erik Gordon, a University of Michigan business professor.

Sprout CEO Cindy Whitehead said she would continue to lead Sprout, which will become a division of Valeant.

“I’m not going anywhere and am very excited to continue working with our 34 employees,” Whitehead said in a statement.

Gordon and some other analysts predicted the buyout, noting Sprout had only a few dozen employees in its Raleigh offices. Gordon said Valeant has the size and expertise to market the new pill.