Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Chemical Breakthrough Could Lower Some Drug Production Costs, Prices
Newsweek: Chemical Discovery Could Lower Prescription Drug Costs
A new sustainable method to produce pharmaceuticals could help to lower prescription drug costs in the U.S. This chemical discovery by the University of Maine, the USDA Forest Products Laboratory and the University of Wisconsin could help to address one of the main factors driving high prices for medications like cholesterol-lowering drugs and antibiotics—the cost of production. (Millington, 9/18)
More on drug costs and tariffs —
Modern Healthcare: Cigna's Shield Health Investment Signals Specialty Pharmacy Focus
Cigna aims to strengthen its grip on the specialty pharmacy market through a recent deal with Shields Health Solutions. The company’s Evernorth Health Services subsidiary, which includes the pharmacy benefit manager Express Scripts and the specialty pharmacy Accredo, announced a $3.5 billion investment into Shields Health Solutions on Sept. 2. (Tong, 9/18)
FiercePharma: Fujifilm Signs On To Produce Argenx's Vyvgart At Site In NC
In addition to manufacturing drug substance for argenx’s autoimmune blockbuster Vyvgart at its facility in Hillerød, Denmark, Fujifilm will also make the product at its large-scale complex in Holly Springs, N.C. The CDMO will initiate production of Vyvgart at the plant in 2028. ... Deals are coming quickly for Fujifilm as the industry reacts to the threat of sector-specific tariffs on pharmaceutical imports under the second Trump administration. (Dunleavy, 9/18)
In other pharma and tech developments —
Stat: FDA Warns Telehealth Providers Over Obesity Drug Marketing
Hundreds of telehealth companies, concierge medical practices, and medical spas have over the last few years built huge businesses offering compounded versions of popular GLP-1 obesity drugs while branded versions were in shortage. In more than 50 warning letters sent last week and published on Tuesday, the FDA took these health providers and companies to task for false and misleading claims about the compounded products they market. The FDA has framed the letters as part of a broader crackdown on direct-to-consumer drug advertising from the Department of Health and Human Services, which also included dozens of letters to drugmakers about promotional activities. (Palmer, 9/19)
Newsweek: Daily Pill May Slow Progression Of Type 1 Diabetes-'Really Exciting Step'
A daily pill previously shown to slow the progression of type 1 diabetes has now shown a loss of therapeutic benefit when stopped—affirming the promise of the treatment. In 2023, an Australian trial reported that a daily pill of baricitinib—commonly prescribed for rheumatoid arthritis and alopecia—could safely preserve the body's own insulin production and slow the development of type 1 diabetes in those recently diagnosed. (Millington, 9/18)
Bloomberg: China’s Brain Implant Startups Take On Musk’s Neuralink In New Tech Race
America’s leadership in the cutting-edge field of brain technology is being challenged as Chinese startups rise with the support of a full-throttle policy drive. For years, US companies like Elon Musk’s Neuralink Corp. have led the industry with state-of-the-art procedures implanting chips into patients’ brains. A wave of clinical trials by Chinese startups this year is shifting that narrative. (Tong and Rai, 9/18)
KFF Health News: Exactech Will Pay $8M To Settle Lawsuits Over Defective Knee Implant Parts
Medical device manufacturer Exactech has agreed to pay $8 million to settle allegations that it concealed defects in a popular line of artificial knee implants, which have been blamed for thousands of patient injuries in lawsuits. The settlement resolves two whistleblower lawsuits alleging the Florida company violated the federal False Claims Act by billing government health care programs such as Medicare for knee replacement parts it knew were defective. (Schulte, 9/19)
