Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
'Positive' Results In Small COVID-19 Vaccine Trial, But Key Data Missing
Stat: Inovio Claims Positive Results On Covid-19 Vaccine But Key Data Are Missing
Inovio Pharmaceuticals on Tuesday said that its investigational Covid-19 vaccine had “positive” results in a small trial. But the company, which has gained more than $4 billion in value since the coronavirus pandemic began, provided none of the details necessary to determine whether the vaccine is working. (Garde and Feuerstein, 6/30)
Politico: Pharmaceutical Giant Charged With Price-Fixing In Generic Drug Probe
The Justice Department on Tuesday charged generic drug giant Glenmark Pharmaceuticals with manipulating the prices of drugs sold in the U.S., as part of a broad federal probe of price-fixing in the generics industry. The company was charged with one count of conspiracy in restraint of trade in a filing in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The complaint alleges that Glenmark and other companies raked in $200 million from the illegal scheme. (Woodruff Swan, 6/30)
NBC News: COVID-19 Helped This Small Syringe Business Boom. Then Came The Taxpayer-Backed Windfall.
The federal coronavirus response created a reversal of fortune for Retractable Technologies Inc., a small syringe manufacturing company overlooking Lewisville Lake on the northern edge of suburban Dallas. In late March, the Department of Health and Human Services began drafting an $83.8 million order for RTI to produce the lion's share of roughly 330 million needles and syringes for a future COVID-19 mass vaccination campaign. That coincided with private business brisk enough for the company to report a 41.8 percent increase in first-quarter sales compared with the same period in 2019, according to one of its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. (Ruhle and Allen, 6/30)
Stat: Ex-Indivior CEO Pleads Guilty In Connection To Suboxone Promotion Scheme
The former chief executive of Indivior pleaded guilty to misbranding Suboxone Film, a medicine used to treat addiction to opioids and narcotics, one year after the company was charged with engaging in a multibillion-dollar fraudulent scheme to increase prescriptions. Shaun Thaxter, who had led the company since 2009 before stepping down Monday, was charged with misrepresentations made to a state Medicaid program about the safety of the dissolvable film strip, according to court documents. (Silverman, 6/30)
