Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Eli Lilly To Spend Billions Shifting Its Drugmaking To US
FiercePharma: With $27B Plan To Build 4 New Plants, Eli Lilly Doubles Down On US Drug Manufacturing
On Wednesday, Indianapolis-based Eli Lilly said it will begin construction this year on four new production facilities in the U.S. The $27 billion effort more than doubles what the company has earmarked for domestic manufacturing since 2020, bringing the total outlay to more than $50 billion. "This represents the largest pharmaceutical expansion investment in U.S. history," Lilly CEO David Ricks, said during the press event, calling the new facilities "mega sites." (Dunleavy, 2/26)
Axios: A New Era Of Made In America Drug Manufacturing
Reshoring pharmaceutical manufacturing would be a shift for the industry, which still sources most drug ingredients from overseas and has seen its global supply chains buckle from disease outbreaks and natural disasters. Now, political winds from Washington could force a reckoning. (Reed, 2/27)
On prescription drug costs —
Modern Healthcare: PBM Legislation Will Pass In 2025, Lawmakers Say
Lawmakers who support tough rules on pharmacy benefit managers reaffirmed their ambitions to reanimate legislation that nearly passed Congress in December. The House Energy and Commerce Committee's Health Subcommittee relaunched the push at a hearing Tuesday that featured declarations from majority Republicans and minority Democrats that they will tackle high pharmaceutical prices and limited competition in the PBM market through bills that have lingered for more than a year without final action. (McAuliff, 2/26)
KFF Health News: Republicans Once Wanted Government Out Of Health Care. Trump Voters See It Differently
Like many Americans who voted for Donald Trump, Jason Rouse hopes the president’s return will mean lower prices for gas, groceries, and other essentials. But Rouse is looking to the federal government for relief from one particular pain point: high health care costs. “The prices are just ridiculous,” said Rouse, 53, a retired Michigan firefighter and paramedic who has voted for Trump three times. “I’d like to see a lower cap on what I have to pay out-of-pocket.” (Levey, 2/27)
Have you experienced Rx sticker shock? —
The podcast “An Arm and a Leg” is collecting stories from listeners about what they’ve done to get the prescription drugs they need when facing sticker shock. If you’re interested in contributing, you can learn more and submit your stories here.
On artificial intelligence —
Modern Healthcare: Philips Updates AI Tech For MRI Scanners
Philips released an updated artificial intelligence technology for its MRI scanners on Wednesday called SmartSpeed Precise, which the company says triples exam speed and improves image resolution by 80%. The release is the latest iteration of Philips’ SmartSpeed AI-powered MRI acceleration software, which received Food and Drug Administration clearance in July 2022. (Dubinsky, 2/26)
Modern Healthcare: UnitedHealthcare's AI Lawsuit Not Deterring Claims Automation
A recent court ruling on UnitedHealth Group’s use of automation in the claims process may signal what’s ahead for its competitors. Earlier this month, a federal judge partially advanced a potential class action lawsuit against UnitedHealth Group and its UnitedHealthcare insurance unit over their alleged use of artificial intelligence to deny post-acute care for some Medicare Advantage members. That could spell bad news for other insurers like Humana and Cigna that also automate the process and have seen lawsuits filed against them, legal experts said. (Berryman, 2/26)
