In Business This Week

THE PATCH LOOKS KIND OF SPOTTY

Nicotine-patch sales are skimpier than ever. On July 27, Marion Merrell Dow reported that sales of its market-leading Nicoderm patch slipped to $40 million in the first half of 1994, down 34% from last year's opening half. Industry-wide, says drug analyst Hemant Shah, sales this year may barely reach $150 million in the U.S., down from $225 million last year and from more than $500 million in their introductory year, 1992. Patchmakers may eventually try to salvage the product by asking for approval to sell it over the counter, rather than by prescription.EDITED BY THANE PETERSON