MannKind Plans to Slash Workforce

MannKind Corp. plans to lay off about 41 percent of its workforce as its takes a more narrow focus on getting its AFREZZA diabetes drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the Valencia-based company announced. The employee cut will eliminate about 179 positions, which will reduce payroll spending by about a third, MannKind executives said in a quarterly earnings announcement conference call. “We certainly made sure that we retained the critical people that will bring us to the approval that we’re pursuing for AFREZZA,” said Hakan Edstrom, the company’s president and chief operating officer. “Otherwise, across that, all of the functions were impacted to a great extent.” The FDA has already delayed approval of the drug multiple times last year due additional information that was required. The agency is calling for two additional clinical studies to be performed before the drug can be approved. Alfred Mann, chairman and CEO of Mannkind, said he is optimistic that the company can reach the new protocols required by the FDA. “We are requesting guidance from the FDA in order to clarify the regulatory path for AFREZZA and we will promptly implement recommendations as soon as possible after our requested meeting,” Mann said. “We remain committed to our goal of making AFREZZA available for millions of patients with diabetes.” The company also announced that it had a lower net loss for both the fourth quarter of 2010 and for the full fiscal year that ended Dec. 31. For the fourth quarter, the company had net loss of about $38.3 million, or $0.33 per share, compared to a net loss of $59.5 million, or $0.53 per share, for the same period in 2009. For the full fiscal year, the company had a net loss of $170.6 million, or $1.50 per share, compared a net loss of $220.1 million, or $2.07 per share, for the previous year. Jessica Vernabe