Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Dark Shadow Of Secrecy, Fear And Hubris Erodes Promising Biotech Startup's Sheen
Stat: Inside Moderna Therapeutics, Biotech's Richest And Most Secretive Startup
At first glance, Moderna Therapeutics looks like the most enviable biotech startup in the world. It has smashed fundraising records and teamed up with pharmaceutical giants as it pursues a radical plan to revolutionize medicine by transforming human cells into drug factories. But the reality is more complicated. A STAT investigation found that the company’s caustic work environment has for years driven away top talent and that behind its obsession with secrecy, there are signs Moderna has run into roadblocks with its most ambitious projects. (Garde, 9/13)
In other industry news —
Stat: J&J To Start Testing Vaccine For Ebola Strains, Marburg Virus
Johnson & Johnson will soon start testing a vaccine the world badly needs — one that protects against the worst strains of Ebola and its very dangerous cousin, the Marburg virus. Although there are currently no licensed Ebola vaccines on the market anywhere, J&J’s subsidiary, Janssen Vaccines and Prevention BV, is working on a second-generation product, which would provide protection against three killer viruses. (Branswell, 9/12)
Stat: FDA Reviewers Question Pfizer Study About Safety Of Its Chantix Smoking Cessation Pill
A new regulatory review is casting doubts on whether Pfizer can succeed in a long-running quest to dial back some of the neuropsychiatric warnings on its Chantix smoking cessation pill. In advance of a US Food and Drug Administration expert panel meeting on Wednesday, agency reviewers found that the drug may not have properly noted all adverse events in a trial that Pfizer was ordered to undertake. (Silverman, 9/12)
