PhRMA loses another one

The fallout from the PhRMA’s failure to stop the Medicare-can-negotiate provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act continues to plague the trade group.

Now that they’re being reminded that capitalism is about buyers and sellers, member companies are apparently not happy with the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA). The latest to quit the association is Teva, following in Abbvie’s December footsteps.

Of course, Teva doesn’t give a particular reason for leaving the group, but considering the move (like Abbvie’s) was made soon after PhRMA’s big defeat, one might draw a conclusion….

Drugs by contact lens

Forget about using those old-fashioned eye drops to treat glaucoma. How about a contact lens that monitors inter-ocular pressure and releases drugs as needed?

That’s what South Korean researchers have developed, although to be fair they’ve only tested it on rabbits so far.

The contact lens […] is fitted with hollow nanowires made of gold, which serve as sensors that constantly track intraocular pressure. It’s powered by an integrated circuit chip, which allows the lens to release amounts of a drug on demand.

FDA news

EUAs will keep a-goin’

A lot will happen when the Covid-19 emergency ends in May, but one thing that won’t, says the FDA, is its ability to approve tests, treatments, and even vaccines on the fast track if necessary.

That’s because (it reminds us) the FDA’s emergency powers aren’t tied to the official declaration of a health emergency; they’re simply part of it’s bailiwick under the good ol’ Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.

FDA feeling more heat over Aduhelm

The agency is coming under yet more pressure over it’s controversial approval of Biogen’s Aduhelm treatment for Alzheimer’s. (You might remember that the FDA granted an accelerated approval even when its own advisory panel gave the drug a thumbs-down. And Aduhelm’s high price is one of the biggest reasons for Medicare’s 2023 premium hikes.)

Now, experts and pointing to new data — and several deaths (unexplained by the company) — and asking the agency to do a better job when considering final approval.

For starters, they want experts to address safety concerns. But they also want the issue of Aduhelm’s lack of effectiveness put on the table.

[T]he underlying concern is the FDA’s decisions could undermine medical standards and give millions of patients false hope, because greenlighting more drugs just because they might work could unleash perverse incentives.

Long Covid declines

Slowly but surely, the number of people with long Covid — the symptoms of Covid-19 after having been infected — is declining.

Previous studies have found that those symptoms can last more than a year in some unlucky folks, so the number of long Covid cases will track Covid itself — just with several months’ lag.

Elsewhere: South of the Equator edition

Next time a “mysterious virus” starts spreading, it could well be the Global South — countries below the equator — that identify it to give the rest of us a head start on containing it.

“One good example was how long it took the United States to have an effective genomic surveillance network. It took years.” By contrast South Africa set up its surveillance network to look for Covid variants within months.

Flu updates

Influenza B has disappeared

The last time anyone in the world was infected with the influenza B virus (IBV), it was 2020. That means — because it doesn’t have an animal reservoir — that IBV could potentially be gone for good.

Dealing with just the ‘A’ variants would be good news, as it would open the door to making annual vaccines more quickly, and in theory more effective. But don’t write off B too quickly; experts point out that “IBV lineages have been known to periodically enter a state of ‘dormancy’ for long time intervals.”

The waning continues, but…

So far this season, 45 Georgians have died from the flu, with the vast majority being over 65. That’s true across the country: Cases continue to drop, and now 90 percent of those being hospitalized also have a chronic condition “such as heart disease, history of stroke, diabetes, obesity, and chronic lung diseases.”

The end of the season is the good news. The bad news is that “Compared to last year’s mild flu season, the U.S. has already seen more than three times the number of flu-related deaths.”

The Long Read: Late-Stage Capitalism edition

CVS isn’t making enough money on parenteral nutrition, so it’s firing pharmacists, nurses, and dieticians — and leaving patients in the lurch — so it can focus on more-profitable sectors.

CVS abandoned most of its less lucrative market in home parenteral nutrition, or HPN, and “acute care” drugs such as IV antibiotics. Instead, it would focus on high-dollar, specialty intravenous medications such as Remicade.

CVS “pivots when necessary,” spokesperson Mike DeAngelis said.

Optum, too, decided to pivot away from patients and toward the higher-profit market.