Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Perspectives: Obesity Drugs May Not Be Worth The Cost; Exciting New Sickle Cell Treatment On The Horizon
The Washington Post: Obesity Drugs Might Not Be Worth Their High Price
The math seems simple enough: More than 40 percent of American adults have obesity, which increases their risk of expensive chronic illnesses such as diabetes and heart disease. The drug semaglutide, marketed under the name Ozempic for treating diabetes and Wegovy for treating obesity, reduces body weight. Semaglutide must, therefore, be cost-effective, because of all the medical costs saved from preventing later complications of obesity. (Leana S. Wen, 10/31)
The New York Times: A New Sickle Cell Treatment Will Change Lives — But How Many?
The Food and Drug Administration is gearing up to review what could be the first approved gene therapies for sickle cell disease — treatments that could offer functional cures and transform what it means to have this diagnosis. An advisory committee for the agency is meeting to discuss one of the drugs on Oct. 31, with a formal decision by the F.D.A. expected by early December. (Daniela J. Lamas, 10/30)
New England Journal of Medicine: Reforming Pharmacy Benefit Managers — A Review Of Bipartisan Legislation
This year, U.S. congressional leaders have been prioritizing legislation to lower prescription drug prices by regulating pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs). (Christopher Cai, M.D., and Benjamin N. Rome, M.D., M.P.H., 10/28)
The Tennessean: Pharmacy Benefit Managers: Ways Patients Can Protect Their Pocketbooks
Patients and their local pharmacies are increasingly under attack by multibillion-dollar corporate middlemen called pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), which are third party administrators that manage prescription drug formularies on behalf of insurance companies. (Anthony Pudlo, 10/30)
New England Journal of Medicine: Scaling Up Point-Of-Care Fentanyl Testing — A Step Forward
Whereas the first two waves of the U.S. opioid epidemic were driven by prescription opioids and heroin, a fundamental shift occurred around 2013. This third wave has been marked by the rise of illicitly manufactured synthetic opioids, which are much more potent and cheaper than their predecessors. In 2016, these illicit opioids, primarily fentanyl and its ultrapotent analogues, surpassed prescription opioids as the leading cause of overdose-related deaths. (Brian S. Barnett, M.D., Peter R. Chai, M.D., M.M.S. and Joji Suzuki, M.D., 10/28)
