Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Court Document Reveals Elizabeth Holmes Mental-Disease Defense
CNN: Elizabeth Holmes May Attempt To Claim 'Mental Disease' In Theranos Criminal Case
Elizabeth Holmes, the founder and former CEO of Theranos, may seek a "mental disease" defense in her criminal fraud trial, according to a new court document. Holmes, whose failed biotech company purported to have revolutionized blood testing and was once valued at $9 billion, was indicted on federal wire fraud charges in June 2018, along with Theranos' former COO. The indictment alleged they engaged in a multi-million dollar scheme to defraud investors, as well as a scheme to defraud doctors and patients. They could face up to 20 years in prison. (O'Brien, 9/10)
In other pharmaceutical and biotech industry news —
Stat: Novartis, Roche Are Fined $528 Million For Anti-Competitive Practices
France’s anti-trust regulator fined Roche (RHHBY) and Novartis (NVS) a combined $528 million for conspiring to boost sales of a pricey treatment for a serious eye disease by discouraging unapproved uses of a less expensive medication. At issue is a long-running drama over Lucentis, which is used to treat age-related macular degeneration, a common disease among the elderly that can lead to blindness. (Silverman, 9/10)
Boston Globe: Korro Bio Raises $90 Million To Fix Mutations That Cause Diseases
Korro Bio, a Cambridge biotechnology firm, said Thursday it has raised more than $90 million in venture capital to advance its technology to repair genetic mutations that cause a variety of diseases.The startup, which was founded in 2018 by Cambridge venture capital firm Atlas Venture, hopes to treat disorders through RNA editing, a cutting-edge approach that makes changes to the molecular messengers that create proteins implicated in various illnesses. (Saltzman, 9/10)
Boston Globe: Casma Brings In Another $50 Million To Target Muscular Dystrophy
Casma Therapeutics, a Cambridge biotech trying to develop new medicines based on discoveries about how cells detoxify and repair themselves, has raised $50 million in fresh venture capital and wants to use the money to create drugs for treating muscular dystrophy. It’s the second fund-raising round for Casma, which was launched by Boston-based Third Rock Ventures in 2018 with $58 million in venture capital. (Saltzman, 9/10)
