Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Doctors' Skepticism Is Thwarting Wider Rollout Of Alzheimer's Drug
Reuters: Alzheimer's Drug Adoption In US Slowed By Doctors' Skepticism
Nine months into the U.S. launch of the first drug proven to slow the advance of Alzheimer's, Eisai and Biogen's Leqembi is facing an unexpected hurdle to widespread use: an entrenched belief among some doctors that treating the memory-robbing disease is futile. Alzheimer's experts had anticipated bottlenecks due to Leqembi's requirements, which include additional diagnostic tests, twice-monthly infusions and regular brain scans to guard against potentially lethal side effects. In interviews with Reuters, seven doctors treating patients for Alzheimer's attributed their own reluctance to prescribe Leqembi to concerns about the drug's efficacy, cost and risks. (Steenhuysen, 4/23)
Reuters: Novartis Accused Of Promoting Asthma Drug For Preterm Labor Despite Brain Risk
Novartis has been hit with a lawsuit by people with autism and their mothers alleging the drugmaker illegally promoted an asthma drug for treatment of preterm labor despite knowing it was ineffective and could cause abnormal fetal brain development. The lawsuit, filed last week, opens new tab in Alameda County, California state court, also names the University of California, alleging that a now-deceased professor helped Novartis promote terbutaline for the dangerous off-label use. (Pierson, 4/23)
CIDRAP: New Antibiotics Aren’t Being Fully Used, Study Finds
A new study shows that, despite having newer options for antibiotic-resistant infections, US clinicians are still frequently opting for less optimal older, generic antibiotics. The study, which was conducted by researchers with the National Institutes of Health and published late last week in the Annals of Internal Medicine, found that, from 2019 to 2021, more than 40% of patients at US hospitals who had infections with difficult-to-treat resistance (DTR) were treated exclusively with traditional antibiotic agents, including antibiotics that were known to be potentially toxic, when newer options were available. (Dall, 4/23)
Stat: Health Care Spending Will Be Boosted By Ozempic-Like Drugs, Reports Find
Spending on GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy ballooned last year and they’re set to cost the U.S. health care system and the federal government still more this year and beyond, two new reports released Wednesday show. (Chen, 4/24)
The Baltimore Sun: Ozempic ‘Oops’ Babies Spark Debate About Weight-Loss Shot Use As Fertility Drugs
A surprising thing is happening to some women on weight-loss drugs who’ve struggled with fertility issues: They’re getting pregnant. That’s leading to questions about the safety of medications from Novo Nordisk A/S and Eli Lilly & Co. during pregnancy. “I thought I couldn’t have any more kids,” said Torria Leggett, 40, who had been trying for another after her first child was born in 2018. (Muller, 4/22)
Reuters: U.S. Supreme Court Rejects Vanda Pharmaceuticals Case Over Sleep-Drug Patents
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear a bid by Vanda Pharmaceuticals to revive patents for its sleep-disorder drug Hetlioz that were previously declared invalid in a dispute with generic drugmakers Teva and Apotex. The justices turned away Vanda's appeal of a ruling by the patent-focused U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit against the company, which in 2018 had sued Teva and Apotex in Delaware for patent infringement after they applied to make generic versions of Vanda's Hetlioz, a circadian-rhythm drug used to treat rare sleep disorders. (Brittain, 4/22)
