Hemispherx Needs to Face Reality

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. (TheStreet) -- Hemispherx Biopharma(HEB) CEO Bill Carter refuses to take accept any responsibility or even concede that his company was damaged by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's decision to deny approval of the company's chronic fatigue syndrome drug Ampligen.

In a fantastical, hour-long conference call Thursday, Carter and other members of Hemispherx's management team turned reality upside down, suggesting that the company's prospects were actually better today than they were before the FDA's dismissal of Ampligen.

That notion is total bunk, of course. Anyone with two eyes and a functioning brain stem knows that FDA took Hemispherx to the proverbial woodshed. The FDA concluded the Ampligen studies submitted by Hemispherx for approval "did not provide credible evidence of efficacy."

Ouch!

Carter's response Thursday was both pathetic and hilarious. It also sums up quite well Hemispherx's 30-year track record for outright flim flam.

The FDA's rejection letter, said Carter, "provided us with a clear path to approval and commercialization."

The only thing missing was a laugh track.

Carter may sound like a fool, but he's no dummy. An FDA slam down would be the end of the road for a lot similar companies. But Hemispherx still has $60 million in the bank -- enough coin to pay Carter his $600,000 annual salary plus bonuses for a long time. With that sort of financial cushion and a board of directors made up of spineless wonders, Carter (or one of his cronies) can say or do anything.