Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
4 Drug Companies Agree To $26 Billion Opioid Settlement
The Washington Post: Drug Companies, Plaintiffs Close In On $26B Deal To Settle Opioid Lawsuits
Four companies that made or distributed prescription opioids and played roles in the catastrophic opioid crisis have reached a tentative $26 billion settlement with counties and cities that sued them for damages in the largest federal court case in American history. The settlement offer from opioid manufacturer Johnson & Johnson and the “Big Three” distributors, McKesson, Cardinal Health and AmerisourceBergen, potentially brings a large measure of legal closure for the companies and will funnel money to communities devastated by an addiction crisis that claims more than 70,000 lives in America every year. That death toll continues to rise even as it is overshadowed by the coronavirus pandemic. (Achenbach, Rowland, Zezima and Davis, 11/5)
The New York Times: Opioid Epidemic Settlement Offer, Worth $26 Billion, Gains Support
If the deal is finalized, four of the most prominent defendants in the behemoth, nationwide litigation — McKesson, Cardinal Health, AmerisourceBergen and Johnson & Johnson — would no longer be at risk from future opioid lawsuits by these governments. Other drug manufacturers and the national pharmacy chains are still facing thousands of such cases. (Hoffman, 11/5)
In other pharmaceutical and biotech news —
Modern Healthcare: Veterans Health Administration Takes Steps To 3D Print Medical Devices
The Veterans Health Administration is building up processes to 3D print its own medical devices, striking a new contract with a 3D printing company. Under the contract, the Veterans Health Administration will purchase 3D printers, software and other printing materials from company 3D Systems. 3D Systems will also work with the Veterans Health Administration to set up a manufacturing program that complies with regulations from the Food and Drug Administration. (Cohen, 11/5)
Stat: Pharma Experts Weigh In On The Next 4 Years Of Drug Pricing Policy
Results from Tuesday’s presidential election remain unclear — but that didn’t stop a panel of experts from trying to parse the consequences for the pharmaceutical industry. At a virtual event hosted by the Massachusetts trade group MassBio Thursday, three panelists were skeptical that either potential president would immediately push aggressive drug pricing legislation. But no one assumed the election would end the issue, either. (Sheridan, 11/5)
Stat: Americans Are Spending More On Specialty Drugs, Despite Payer Rebates
Between 2010 and 2017, Americans nearly doubled their spending on pricey specialty medicines that they purchased at pharmacies or by mail. And this was after accounting for rebates paid by drug makers to health plans, according to a new analysis in Health Affairs. (Silverman, 11/4)
Stat: Doctors View Biogen Alzheimer's Drug Favorably After Reviewing Documents
Ahead of a widely anticipated regulatory review of Biogen’s experimental Alzheimer’s drug, a small survey found an overwhelming majority of physicians viewed the treatment favorably after combing through the briefing documents. Specifically, 57% of the doctors believed Biogen (BIIB) presented strong evidence that its medicine, aducanumab, has a positive effect on Alzheimer’s. (Silverman, 11/5)
Stat: Alphabet's X Falls Short On Goal To Find A Single Biomarker For Depression
X, the Alphabet subsidiary trying to use artificial intelligence to discover a biomarker for depression and anxiety in brainwave data, reported this week that its initiative had failed to home in on a single indicator that could make measuring mental health as simple as reading a glucose meter. (Ross, 11/4)
