Nature of Business	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2016
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Nature of Business	Nature of Business The Medicines Company (the Company) is a global biopharmaceutical company focused on saving lives, alleviating suffering and contributing to the economics of healthcare. The Company markets Angiomax^® (bivalirudin), Ionsys^® (fentanyl iontophoretic transdermal system), Minocin (minocycline) for injection and Orbactiv^® (oritavancin). The Company also has a pipeline of products in development, including Carbavance^®, inclisiran (formerly known as PCSK9si) and MDCO-700 (formerly known as ABP-700). The Company has the right to develop, manufacture and commercialize inclisiran under its collaboration agreement with Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Alnylam). The Company believes that its products and products in development possess favorable attributes that competitive products do not provide, can satisfy unmet medical needs and offer, or, in the case of its products in development, have the potential to offer, improved performance to hospital businesses. In addition to these products and products in development, the Company has a portfolio of ten generic drugs, which it refers to as its acute care generic products, that the Company has the non-exclusive right to market in the United States. On November 3, 2015, the Company announced that it was in the process of evaluating its operations with a goal of unlocking stockholder value. In particular, the Company stated its current intention was to explore strategies for optimizing its capital structure and liquidity position and to narrow the Company’s operational focus by strategically separating non-core businesses and products in order to generate non-dilutive cash and reduce associated cash burn and capital requirements. On February 1, 2016, the Company completed the sale of its hemostasis portfolio, consisting of PreveLeak (surgical sealant), Raplixa (fibrin sealant) and Recothrom Thrombin topical (Recombinant) (the Hemostasis Business), to wholly owned subsidiaries of Mallinckrodt plc (collectively, Mallinckrodt) pursuant to the purchase and sale agreement dated December 18, 2015 between the Company and Mallinckrodt. At completion of the sale, the Company received approximately $174.1 million in cash from Mallinckrodt, and may receive up to an additional $235.0 million in the aggregate following the achievement of certain specified calendar year net sales milestones with respect to net sales of PreveLeak and Raplixa. As a result of the transaction, the Company accounted for the assets and liabilities of the Hemostasis Business as held for sale at December 31, 2015. As a result of the classification as held for sale, the Company recorded impairment charges of $133.3 million, including $24.5 million related to goodwill, to reduce the Hemostasis Business disposal group’s carrying value to its estimated fair value, less costs to sell for the year ended December 31, 2015. Further, the financial results of the Hemostasis Business held for sale were reclassified to discontinued operations for all periods presented in our consolidated financial statements. See Note 24 “Discontinued Operations” for further details. On June 21, 2016, the Company completed the sale of three non-core cardiovascular products, Cleviprex (clevidipine) injectable emulsion, Kengreal (cangrelor) and rights to Argatroban for Injection (collectively the Non-Core ACC Products) and related assets, to Chiesi USA, Inc. (Chiesi USA) and its parent company Chiesi Farmaceutici S.p.A. (Chiesi) pursuant to the purchase and sale agreement dated May 9, 2016 by and among the Company, Chiesi and Chiesi USA. At the completion of the sale, the Company received approximately $263.8 million in cash, which included the value of product inventory, and may receive up to an additional $480.0 million in the aggregate following the achievement of certain specified calendar year net sales milestones with respect to net sales of each of Cleviprex and Kengreal. As part of the transaction, we sublicensed to Chiesi all of our rights to Cleviprex and Kengreal under our license from AstraZeneca. Subsequent to the completion of the sale, these sublicenses from us to Chiesi were terminated, Chiesi purchased from Astrazeneca all or substantially all of AstraZeneca’s assets relating to Cleviprex and Kengreal, we and Chiesi released certain claims against one another, and we paid Chiesi $7.5 million. See Note 23, “Dispositions,” for further details.

Nature of Business

The Medicines Company (the Company) is a global biopharmaceutical company focused on saving lives, alleviating suffering and contributing to the economics of healthcare. The Company markets Angiomax^® (bivalirudin), Ionsys^® (fentanyl iontophoretic transdermal system), Minocin (minocycline) for injection and Orbactiv^® (oritavancin). The Company also has a pipeline of products in development, including Carbavance^®, inclisiran (formerly known as PCSK9si) and MDCO-700 (formerly known as ABP-700). The Company has the right to develop, manufacture and commercialize inclisiran under its collaboration agreement with Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Alnylam). The Company believes that its products and products in development possess favorable attributes that competitive products do not provide, can satisfy unmet medical needs and offer, or, in the case of its products in development, have the potential to offer, improved performance to hospital businesses.

In addition to these products and products in development, the Company has a portfolio of ten generic drugs, which it refers to as its acute care generic products, that the Company has the non-exclusive right to market in the United States.

On November 3, 2015, the Company announced that it was in the process of evaluating its operations with a goal of unlocking stockholder value. In particular, the Company stated its current intention was to explore strategies for optimizing its capital structure and liquidity position and to narrow the Company’s operational focus by strategically separating non-core businesses and products in order to generate non-dilutive cash and reduce associated cash burn and capital requirements.

On February 1, 2016, the Company completed the sale of its hemostasis portfolio, consisting of PreveLeak (surgical sealant), Raplixa (fibrin sealant) and Recothrom Thrombin topical (Recombinant) (the Hemostasis Business), to wholly owned subsidiaries of Mallinckrodt plc (collectively, Mallinckrodt) pursuant to the purchase and sale agreement dated December 18, 2015 between the Company and Mallinckrodt. At completion of the sale, the Company received approximately $174.1 million in cash from Mallinckrodt, and may receive up to an additional $235.0 million in the aggregate following the achievement of certain specified calendar year net sales milestones with respect to net sales of PreveLeak and Raplixa. As a result of the transaction, the Company accounted for the assets and liabilities of the Hemostasis Business as held for sale at December 31, 2015. As a result of the classification as held for sale, the Company recorded impairment charges of $133.3 million, including $24.5 million related to goodwill, to reduce the Hemostasis Business disposal group’s carrying value to its estimated fair value, less costs to sell for the year ended December 31, 2015. Further, the financial results of the Hemostasis Business held for sale were reclassified to discontinued operations for all periods presented in our consolidated financial statements. See Note 24 “Discontinued Operations” for further details.

On June 21, 2016, the Company completed the sale of three non-core cardiovascular products, Cleviprex (clevidipine) injectable emulsion, Kengreal (cangrelor) and rights to Argatroban for Injection (collectively the Non-Core ACC Products) and related assets, to Chiesi USA, Inc. (Chiesi USA) and its parent company Chiesi Farmaceutici S.p.A. (Chiesi) pursuant to the purchase and sale agreement dated May 9, 2016 by and among the Company, Chiesi and Chiesi USA. At the completion of the sale, the Company received approximately $263.8 million in cash, which included the value of product inventory, and may receive up to an additional $480.0 million in the aggregate following the achievement of certain specified calendar year net sales milestones with respect to net sales of each of Cleviprex and Kengreal. As part of the transaction, we sublicensed to Chiesi all of our rights to Cleviprex and Kengreal under our license from AstraZeneca. Subsequent to the completion of the sale, these sublicenses from us to Chiesi were terminated, Chiesi purchased from Astrazeneca all or substantially all of AstraZeneca’s assets relating to Cleviprex and Kengreal, we and Chiesi released certain claims against one another, and we paid Chiesi $7.5 million. See Note 23, “Dispositions,” for further details.