HEALTH

Immunex Announces Suit Against Hoechst: Immunex Corp. said it was suing Hoechst AG over a drug used in bone marrow transplants that the German pharmaceutical giant allegedly provided free to Immunex customers and others. The drug, a white blood cell stimulant marketed by Immunex as Leukine, was developed by Immunex in collaboration with the Hoechst unit Behringwerke AG and was approved by the FDA a year ago. Hoechst markets the drug under the name Prokine. It is Immunex’s first product, made for Hoechst and marketed in the United States by the Seattle-based firm. Immunex Chairman Stephen Duzan accused Hoechst, Behringwerke and another Hoechst unit of targeting Immunex customers with huge giveaways of the drug, also known as GM-CSF, to “severely damage” sales. Immunex stock plunged $10.50 to $31.50 in over-the-counter trading.