Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Sackler Family Set To Avoid Future Opioid Lawsuits
NPR: Sackler Family, Owner Of Purdue Pharma, Set To Win Immunity From Opioid Lawsuits
After more than a year of high stakes negotiations with billions of dollars on the line, a bankruptcy plan for Purdue Pharma, the maker of Oxycontin, cleared a major hurdle late Wednesday. Federal Judge Robert Drain in White Plains, N.Y., moved the controversial deal forward despite objections from dozens of state attorneys general, setting the stage for a final vote by the company's creditors expected this summer. The drug maker filed for Chapter 11 protection in 2019 facing an avalanche of lawsuits tied to its aggressive opioid sales practices. (Mann, 6/2)
NBC News: Kentucky Sues CVS, Accuses Company Of 'Fueling' Opioid Crisis By Turning Blind Eye
Kentucky sued the drugstore chain CVS on Wednesday, accusing the company of “fueling” the opioid crisis that has ravaged the commonwealth. “As both distributor and pharmacy, CVS was in a unique position to monitor and stop the peddling of these highly-addictive drugs from their stores,” Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron said in a statement. “Yet they ignored their own safeguard systems.” (Siemaszko, 6/2)
Burlington Free Press: VT Decriminalizes Buprenorphine Used For Opioid Dependence
Vermont has decriminalized possession of a medication typically prescribed to treat opioid use disorder. Gov. Phil Scott signed into law H.225, a bill that replaces criminal penalties with civil penalties for possession in quantities of 224 milligrams or less of buprenorphine. The medication is considered an opioid partial agonist and can produce effects weaker than heroin and methadone, known as full opioid agonists. Benefits associated with buprenorphine include its ability to diminish the effects of opioid dependence, like cravings and withdrawal symptoms. (Syed, 6/2)
In other pharmaceutical and biotech developments —
The New York Times: F.D.A. Approves Pricey Pill to Treat Vaginal Yeast Infections
The Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday approved a new drug to treat a vaginal yeast infection that is especially common in women who are pregnant, using birth control pills or taking antibiotics. The drug, Brexafemme (ibrexafungerp) made by SCYNEXIS, is a one-day oral treatment and the first of a new class of triterpenoid antifungal drugs. The company said the new drug kills candida — the yeast that can cause an infection. (Kaplan, 6/2)
Stat: Morphosys To Buy Constellation Pharma In $1.7 Billion Deal
German drugmaker MorphoSys said Wednesday that it will acquire Constellation Pharmaceuticals for $1.7 billion to bolster its research pipeline of cancer drug candidates. Constellation, based in Cambridge, Mass. is in the late stage of clinical trials for a drug to treat patients with myelofibrosis, a type of bone marrow cancer. The company is also developing a second drug in earlier development for different types of blood-related cancers and solid tumors. (Feuerstein, 6/2)
Stat: Parents Hoped An Existing Drug Might Treat Their Kids' Rare Disease
When Amber Freed heard in 2020 that a drug might help save her young child from a rare, progressive form of epilepsy, she was ecstatic. The news came just in time. Many children with the genetic mutation that causes her son’s illness begin experiencing debilitating seizures as 4-year-olds. Maxwell was 3. Even better, the drug, Ravicti, was already approved by the Food and Drug Administration, so a doctor might be able to prescribe it right away. But there was a catch: At around $740,000 per year, Ravicti is one of the most expensive drugs in the world. (Hayden, 6/3)
360Dx: BARDA Venture Capital Program Dedicates Up To $500M For Pandemic Preparedness
The US Department of Health and Human Services' Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, or BARDA, has launched a new program to spur development of technologies to combat future pandemics and health emergencies. For the initiative, the BARDA Division of Research, Innovation, and Ventures, or DRIVe, will support the BARDA Ventures program in a partnership with the nonprofit Global Health Investment Corporation. According to a statement from HHS, BARDA Ventures will provide GHIC with a minimum of $50 million over five years, and the potential of up to $500 million over 10 years. In turn, GHIC will launch a global health security fund with matching capital from other investors. (6/2)
