Government
A spokesperson for the FDA said the agency is “considering a wide range of options to support American innovation.”
Merck has made a $9.2 billion play for Cidara, and there’s another bidding war afoot, this one for sleep biotech Avadel. Meanwhile, Rick Pazdur has taken the helm at CDER while tensions run high between FDA Commissioner Marty Makary and Health Secretary RFK Jr.
Top Trump administration officials have taken issue with Marty Makary’s management style, pointing to infighting between his appointees and the difficulty to get a hold of the FDA commissioner.
Nearly two dozen life sciences companies that were awarded Massachusetts tax incentives to create and retain about 1,000 combined jobs hit just 13% of that target in 2024. Ten awardees had reported layoffs last year, including Charles River Laboratories and Moderna.
Pfizer seals the deal with Metsera for $10 billion after Novo Nordisk bowed out; President Donald Trump welcomes executives from Novo and Eli Lilly to the White House to announce that the companies’ GLP-1 medicines would be sold at a reduced cost; and the FDA grants the second round of priority review vouchers—primarily to already marketed drugs.
During a press conference to announce a drug price deal for GLP-1s, President Donald Trump asked for more details about the ongoing bidding war between Novo Nordisk and Pfizer over obesity biotech Metsera.
Following restricted vaccine approvals and changes to CDC immunization schedules, Merck, Pfizer, GSK and Sanofi are all suffering revenue hits to their vaccine programs.
The agreement will also secure a $150 price for future weight loss pills from Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly—at least initially.
Pfizer and Novo Nordisk continue to fight for ownership of obesity startup Metsera; CDER Director George Tidmarsh leaves his position amid an ongoing probe into his “personal conduct”; FDA reverses course on approval requirements for uniQure’s Huntington’s gene therapy; Sarepta’s exon-skipping Duchenne muscular dystrophy drugs fail confirmatory study.
Nearly one-third of biotech and pharma professionals are thinking about leaving the U.S. to find biopharma jobs, according to a BioSpace LinkedIn poll. Career coaches discuss why people are considering relocating and what they should do before heading for the exit.
PRESS RELEASES