Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
CMS Announces Rx Deal For Medicaid; Trump Touts Plan To Discount GLP-1s
Fierce Healthcare: CMS' New Model Brings Most-Favored Nation Pricing To Medicaid
The Trump administration is rolling out a new model that aims to bring most-favored nation pricing to the Medicaid space. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced late Thursday the launch of the GENErating cost Reductions fOr U.S. Medicaid (GENEROUS) model, under which participating state Medicaid programs will be able to purchase certain drugs at prices that align with what is paid in other countries. (Minemyer, 11/6)
On weight loss drugs —
Politico: Trump Unveils Deal To Lower Prices For Weight-Loss Drugs
The Trump administration has struck a deal with drugmakers Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk to offer their breakthrough weight-loss medications at steep discounts for certain Medicare and Medicaid patients, President Donald Trump announced at the White House on Thursday. The deal also includes lower prices for GLP-1 drugs for Americans who use cash to buy them through a new government website, expected to debut next year, that will allow people to buy drugs directly from companies. (Lim and Haslett, 11/6)
The Independent: Dr Oz Says Drug Exec Who Fainted In Oval Office Is Recovering: ‘He’s Doing Much Better’
Dr Oz says that the drug executive who collapsed in the Oval Office is doing “much better,” after the man fainted on live television. The unnamed businessman was attending an official meeting at the White House, where Donald Trump told reporters that a deal had finally been reached between the government and the manufacturers of weight-loss drugs. Now, Dr. Mehmet Oz says that he has spoken with the businessman following his collapse. “He is doing much better,” Dr Oz, the administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, told Newsmax. “I actually just corresponded with him so he’s doing okay.” After that, the former TV doctor shared some advice with viewers. He urged them to step in immediately if they thought someone was about to faint. (Scott, 11/7)
Stat: RFK Jr. Reverses Course On GLP-1s, Befuddling Many MAHA Faithful
Health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was uncharacteristically chummy with pharma executives at the White House on Thursday as he cheered the Trump administration’s plan for lowering obesity medication prices. Kennedy has railed against drugmakers in the past, and his lifestyle-focused Make America Healthy Again movement has opposed Medicare coverage of GLP-1 weight loss drugs. (Cueto, 11/6)
Stat: Did Medicare Price Negotiations Help Trump's Obesity Drugs Deals?
The Trump administration’s deal on weight loss drugs might have been made possible in part by Biden’s Medicare drug price negotiation program, three experts said. (Wilkerson, 11/6)
More pharma and tech developments —
Becker's Hospital Review: FDA Grants 6 More National Priority Vouchers
The FDA awarded six additional products a Commissioner’s National Priority Voucher, bringing the total number of recipients to 15, according to a Nov. 6 news release. The pilot program aims to reduce drug review timelines to as short as two months for therapies addressing key public health priorities, affordability or domestic manufacturing, according to an Oct. 16 FDA podcast episode. (Jeffries, 11/6)
Stat: Researcher Says $25 Version Of Gilead Drug Could Eradicate HIV In USA
For the past few months, CVS Caremark has declined to add a groundbreaking HIV prevention drug from Gilead Sciences to its formularies. Clinical trials showed the twice-a-year injectable, called Yeztugo, was highly effective in preventing the infectious disease, prompting enthusiasm about combating HIV globally. But the pharmacy benefits manager has argued that the $28,000 price tag — before any rebates or discounts — in the U.S. is too high. (Silverman, 11/7)
Bloomberg: Neuralink Rival Synchron Raises $200 Million For Brain Implant
Synchron Inc. raised $200 million to advance its work building brain implants that doctors can insert through blood vessels, avoiding the costly and high-risk surgeries necessary to install devices made by other rival companies like Elon Musk’s Neuralink. With the new funds, the company’s valuation is nearly $1 billion, a Synchron spokesperson said. That makes it the second-most valuable brain implant company after Neuralink, which investors think is worth more than $9 billion. (Swetlitz, 11/6)
Bloomberg: Bayer Weighs Roundup’s Demise Over Thousands Of Cancer Lawsuits
Earlier this year, a Georgia jury punished Bayer AG to the tune of almost $2.1 billion after a man who had used Roundup, the German company’s glyphosate-containing weedkiller, developed non-Hodgkin lymphoma. It was only the latest slapdown by a jury. Bayer has coughed up more than $10 billion in legal costs over a product it inherited last decade with its $63 billion acquisition of agrochemical producer Monsanto. Its legal battles are far from over, too, with Bayer facing more than 60,000 outstanding claims from US plaintiffs who say the chemical caused their cancer. (Loh, Warren and Janicki, 11/6)
AP: Last Monkey From Mississippi Highway Escape Is Captured By Authorities
The last monkey on the loose among several that escaped after a Mississippi highway crash has been found and captured, authorities said Thursday. A resident who lives near the crash site called authorities to report the animal’s location and it was then “successfully recovered,” the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks said in a statement to The Associated Press. (11/6)
