Doxepin
In 2016 the American College of Physicians advised that insomnia be treated first by treating comorbid conditions, then with cognitive behavioral therapy and behavioral changes, and then with drugs; doxepin was among those recommended for short-term help maintaining sleep, on the basis of weak evidence. The 2017 American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommendations focused on treatment with drugs were similar. A 2015 AHRQ review of treatments for insomnia had similar findings.
Tasimelteon
Tasimelteon (previously known as BMS-214,778) was developed for the treatment of insomnia and other sleep disorders. A phase II trial on circadian rhythm sleep disorders was concluded in March 2005. A phase III insomnia trial was conducted in 2006. A second phase III trial on insomnia, this time concerning primary insomnia, was completed in June 2008. In 2010, the FDA granted orphan drug status to tasimelteon, then regarded as an investigational medication, for use in totally blind adults with N24HSWD. (Through mechanisms such as easing the approval process and extending exclusivity periods, orphan drug status encourages development of drugs for rare conditions that otherwise might lack sufficient commercial incentive.)