STAT News – Biotech
STAT+: Pharmalittle: We’re reading about an FDA OK for a rare disease drug, a grilling of the PTO chief, and more
Top of the morning to you, and a fine one it is. Sunny skies and mild breezes are enveloping the Pharmalot campus once again. And to celebrate, we are brewing still more cups of stimulation and inviting you to join us. Our choice today is blackberry hibiscus. Remember, a prescription is not required. So no need to mess with rebates or even TrumpRx. Meanwhile, here are a few items of interest. Hope you have a meaningful and productive day and, of course, do stay in touch. …
Novo Nordisk chairman Lars Rebien Sorensen will face investors at the company’s annual meeting for the first time on Thursday after his boardroom coup and is in for an earful, Bloomberg News tells us. Sorensen and new chief executive officer Mike Doustdar have had just months to start remaking Novo as a more aggressive and fast-moving company, but investors point to two recent missteps. The drugmaker failed in an attempt last fall to wrest an obesity startup away from Pfizer and it surprised the market this year with a gloomy forecast that sent shares plunging. Two other events further eroded investor faith in the company at the heart of the obesity drug revolution. Novo shares have fallen about 45% since Sorensen, a company veteran, intervened to oust former chief executive officer Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen last May. Over the same period, Eli Lilly’s market value grew by a fifth, briefly turning a key rival into the world’s first $1 trillion drugmaker.
Novo Nordisk is cutting South African prices of its weight loss drug Wegovy for a second time since it launched in August, pointing to fierce competition in a market led by Eli Lilly, Reuters says. The company launched Wegovy in South Africa in August, when reference pricing was uncertain due to talks with the U.S. administration on its proposed “most-favored nation” policy linking U.S. drug prices to those in peer countries. “We were of the view that the prices at the time were not conducive for the South African market,” said Thabeng Leping, who oversees market access and public affairs in South Africa. Because we couldn’t delay the launch, we just decided we’ll fix it as we go along. So we reduced our prices in December. We’ve submitted another reduction of our prices yesterday.” The lowest injected dose dropped 60% to $110, while the highest dose fell 27% to $221. A further 12% cut to the 1.7-milligram dose — the second highest — awaits approval.
WASHINGTON — Food and Drug Administration officials briefed senators on the agency’s plans for food policy for 2026, according to a person familiar with the meeting.
The agency plans to focus on infant formula safety, updating food labels, defining ultra-processed foods, expanding inspections of food processing plants, and bolstering seafood safety programs, according to a document shared with lawmakers, obtained by STAT.
The meeting comes amid a shift in the administration’s health agenda toward food issues and away from vaccine policy. In recent polls, food reforms have been more popular than the vaccine agenda, catching the attention of administration officials looking to sharpen their message for the midterms.
STAT News – Biotech
STAT+: In private meetings, White House works to win pharma companies’ support for drug pricing bill
WASHINGTON — The White House has drafted legislative text for its drug pricing policy, and officials are in the process of sharing it with more than a dozen major pharmaceutical companies, according to people familiar with the meetings.
The legislative text, according to a White House official, closely follows the outlines of the voluntary deals the administration made with pharma companies. The draft includes a policy that would allow drugs purchased in cash to count toward a patient’s deductible.
The Trump administration’s push for drug price legislation is part of a larger effort to get health reforms signed into law. The president’s focus on his affordability agenda in an election year has heightened the profile of the effort.
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The NIH’s foreign subaward crackdown is scrambling global collaborations, while China’s rapid ascent is reshaping drug development. Meanwhile, Wave Life Sciences sheds half its value on underwhelming obesity results.
Also, breaking: I’m adopting a rogue backyard tortoise and will name it Philbert.
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