Merck pushes for over-the-counter statin in U.S.

Reuters: "SILVER SPRING, Maryland (Reuters) - Making a cholesterol drug available over the counter could give millions of Americans a new option to reduce the risk of heart disease and provide a major public health benefit, drugmaker Merck & Co Inc argued to a U.S. advisory panel on Thursday. The company is making its third bid for U.S. approval to sell a low-dose, nonprescription version of its Mevacor cholesterol-lowering pill. Mevacor is one of the statin drugs taken by millions to cut cholesterol and the risk of heart disease, the leading killer of Americans."