GSK to divest meningitis shots in exchange for EU clearance of Novartis deal

The European Commission has cleared GlaxoSmithKline's ($GSK) deal for most of Novartis' ($NVS) vaccines unit--on a couple of conditions. Glaxo has agreed to divest meningitis vaccines Nimenrix and Mencevax, marketed outside the U.S.; the duo generated £36 million ($54.7 million) in 2013. The British drugmaker will also part with two small bivalent vaccines sold in Italy and Germany that protect against diphtheria and tetanus, it said. Release