Health
The FTC is going after pharmacy middlemen
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Federal Trade Commission Chairman Lina Khan
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THe Federal Trade Commission focuses on the intermediaries in the prescribed drug supply chain that partly determines the prices a patient pays at the pharmacy counter. The federal agency released a report this week detailing how just three pharmacy benefit managers – Caremark from CVS Health, Express Scripts from Cigna and Group OptumRx from UnitedHealth – represent 80% of prescription medications filled in the US FTC report said the market has become highly concentrated as smaller companies have been acquired by the nation’s largest health insurers and pharmacies, giving them significant power over access and pricing.
In a statement, FTC Chairman said Lina Khan alleged “dominant” PBM patients “can increase drug costs, including overcharging patients for cancer drugs.” About 30% of Americans report rationing or… skipping doses of their prescription medications because of the cost, the FTC said. Today The Wall Street Journal reported that the FTC plans to file lawsuits against the three largest PBMs “over their tactics in negotiating prices for drugs, including insulin.” As he campaigns for a second term, President Biden has often mentioned how the Inflation Reduction Act, passed in 2022, caps the out-of-pocket cost of insulin for seniors on Medicare at $35. Neither Caremark, Express Scripts nor OptumRx immediately responded to requests for comment from Forbes.
Cancer patient can talk again after unique voice box transplant
Mayo Clinic
A Massachusetts man can speak again after his cancerous larynx was removed and replaced in a rare procedure, the Mayo Clinic announced Tuesday. This marked the world’s first successful larynx transplant in a patient with cancer.
The patient, who was diagnosed with a rare form of laryngeal cancer, was previously unable to speak, swallow and breathe normally. Four months after the operation, he can talk, swallow and breathe independently again
Read more here.
Pipeline and deal updates
Venture Capital: Flagship Pioneering has announced that this is the case Raised $3.6 billion to support the creation and investment in potentially up to 25 new healthcare startups.
Biotechnology: Lilly is acquiring biopharmaceutical company Morphic Holding in a deal valued at $3.2 billion. The company was co-founded by billionaire scientist Timothy Springer, whose fortune rose $200 million on the news.
Dermatology: The FDA approved topical skin therapy roflumilast, marketed by Arcutis as Zoryve, for the treatment of atopic dermatitis in patients over 6 years of age.
Prenatal care: Sera Prognostics announced a study that found the use of its prenatal technology reduced severe neonatal morbidity and mortality by 18% and reduced the average hospital stay by seven days by enabling timely interventions.
Home care: HarmonyCares, which provides longitudinal care in the home, has increased a $200 million investment round.
Antibody-drug conjugates: Myricx Bio, which develops antibody-drug conjugates to fight certain cancers, raised a $114 million Series A round co-led by Abingworth and Novo Holdings.
GOP platform endorses legal theory that could lead to national abortion ban
AFP via Getty Images
The Republican Party’s policy platform for the November elections dropped an explicit, long-standing call for a national abortion ban, but abortion rights advocates warn that the GOP could still try to ban the procedure. That’s because the platform still endorses “fetal personhood,” a legal theory that goes even further — not just a potential ban on abortion, but also in vitro fertilization and certain forms of contraception.
Read more here.
Other healthcare news
Health officials in Colorado confirmed a rare human case bubonic plague this week.
After the Supreme Court thwarted OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma bankruptcy settlement, the billionaire Sackler family faces new lawsuits if the parties fail to reach a new settlement.
by Eli Lilly popular obesity injection Zepbound tronces Novo Nordisk Wegovy when it comes to losing weight, according to a new study. Additionally, new research suggests that the medications known as GLP-1 agonists may also help protect against a variety of cancers cancersIn addition to mounting evidence, the shots offer numerous other health benefits.
The lonely star tick, that can cause alpha-gal syndrome or red meat allergy, as well as other dangerous viruses, is spreading across the United States beyond its usual habitat in the Southeast, according to a new study.
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What else we read
‘We’re Living in a Nightmare:’ Inside the Health Crisis of a Bitcoin Town in Texas (Time)
Scientists edit the genes of intestinal bacteria in living mice (Nature)
