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Former FDA, CDC and NIH leaders convene at the BIO International Convention to discuss the dismantling of the Department of Health and Human Services under the Trump administration—and where we go from here.
If cell and gene therapy makers are going to achieve their mission to improve patients’ lives, the industry must come together to share information across stakeholders, from regulators to manufacturers to payers.
While drugmakers and other stakeholders want to see faster approvals, experts say the FDA’s Commissioner’s National Priority Voucher program is still bereft of important details, with candidate selection and interference from the agency’s senior leaders topping the list.
FROM OUR EDITORS
Read our takes on the biggest stories happening in the industry.
FDA
UniQure’s planned third-quarter submission for its Huntington’s disease gene therapy may be a harbinger of a more flexible FDA under acting commissioner Kyle Diamantas—but how long will it last? And how can companies be sure these positive decisions won’t just be reversed?
THE LATEST
Ocular Therapeutix’s lead asset is Axpaxli, being developed for wet age-related macular degeneration. A Phase III study is underway, with data expected this quarter.
Speaking on the sidelines of the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference, Novo business development executive Tamara Darsow said the company is gunning for obesity and diabetes assets.
The Novo Nordisk Foundation’s funds will go toward supporting early-stage companies working in “human health, planetary health and societal resilience.”
Robert Kramer, former CEO of Emergent BioSolutions, allegedly earned more than $10.1 million by executing trades with information related to the company’s manufacturing operations that had yet to be made public.
After a cacophony of troubles hit the RNA editing biotech last fall, CEO Ram Aiyar is in San Francisco to develop partnerships, pitch the potential of its new AATD program and find more money to keep the dream alive.
Incoming PhRMA Chair Paul Hudson, a day before the White House announcement, pledged to work with the administration as the president turns to insurers as a source of cost savings for prescription medicines.
FDA
Target action dates for drugs sponsored by Sanofi, Boehringer Ingelheim and Disc Medicine have also been pushed back despite assurances of swift reviews under the FDA’s new Commissioner’s National Priority Voucher program.
Strive Compounding Pharmacy alleged in its lawsuit that Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk have worked to lock telehealth providers in exclusive partnerships, disallowing them from offering compounded versions of GLP-1 medicines.
Half of the net proceeds will go to Jazz; it remains unclear who will get the remaining sum. Jazz did not reveal the buyer of the voucher.
2026 is shaping up to be a pivotal year for rare disease drugmakers, with key approvals, filings and readouts lined up for this year.