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Despite rehiring hundreds of FDA, CDC and NIH employees, the Department of Health and Human Services is still a skeleton of its former self under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
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FDA
FDA Commissioner Marty Makary last week announced a directive that would limit industry participation in the agency’s advisory committees. But not only do company reps serve only as non-voting members, a 1997 law actually requires industry involvement.
Disruptive conditions are typical in non-Western markets. The U.S. industry, thrown into a period of significant change as the Trump administration overhauls HHS and considers implementing tariffs, could learn a thing or two by looking overseas.
Like they say about the weather in Iceland, if you don’t like an action taken by the new administration, wait five minutes; it’ll probably change. The markets, it seems, don’t react kindly to that kind of policymaking.
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The HHS secretary recently canceled $500 million worth of BARDA contracts around mRNA vaccine research. But the U.S. government has already spent billions on this work, which has saved millions of lives.
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According to an internal email, the agency may be in for more consolidation in areas including human resources, communications, travel and acquisitions.
Sarepta’s shares crashed 41% in premarket trading Monday morning to $21.01 after the biotech reported a second death from acute liver failure, a known side effect of adeno-associated virus-based gene therapies.
AstraZeneca, Pfizer and more are leveraging the computational power of AI to better design trials, predict the potential efficacy and safety profiles of their molecules and synthesize massive multi-omic information to gain a more complete understanding of challenging cancers.
While cancelled NIH grants and regulatory uncertainty are less hospitable to clinical research in the U.S., Europe must play its cards right to attract more studies.
RSV
Later this month, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s revamped CDC vaccine advisory committee will discuss RSV vaccination guidelines for the newly approved patient group, high-risk adults 18 through 49. Analysts and other experts have warned that the new panel includes some who have documented anti-vaccine sentiments as well as those who have spoken out against mRNA technology specifically.
Friday’s deal with CSPC fits neatly within AstraZeneca’s business development strategy of upping investments in AI and in China.
Martin Kulldorff and Robert Malone, both outspoken vaccine skeptics, have received compensation for their expert participation in various vaccine-related cases against Merck.
The FDA’s Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee narrowly voted against the approval of Zusduri, citing the lack of a completely randomized study to back up the application.
Scientists and analysts express concern that the newly appointed ACIP members—which include known anti-vaxxers—could relitigate recommendations that have already been made. Many are imploring Sen. Bill Cassidy to step up.
The biopharma job market failed to turn around in May, but employers were still hiring, especially in Indiana and California, based on BioSpace data. The two states had the most job postings live on BioSpace last month, with Indiana showing a 108% year-over-year increase.