| | | |   | | | Medicare might open the door for Alzheimer’s drugs Medicare will consider expanding its coverage of Alzheimer’s drugs, thanks to the promise of Eisai and Biogen’s experimental drug lecanemab. “I can’t speak to any specifics, but just to say that our door is really open,” CMS administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure said Thursday at the Milken Institute Future of Health Summit. “We will look at it as new data comes.” This is quite the turnaround: Just in April, Medicare said it would pay for Aduhelm — lecanemab’s controversial predecessor — only if patients were enrolled in a clinical trial. Biogen had initially listed Aduhelm at $56,000 per year, but later cut that price tag in half. Read more. | How effective was that mpox vaccine? The mpox vaccine made by Jynneos offers strong protection against the virus, a new CDC study shows. Unvaccinated people were 9.6 times more likely than fully vaccinated people to develop the illness. And infection incidence was 7.4 times higher in unvaccinated people than in those who received just a single dose. The estimates were based on data from 9,544 reported mpox cases among men aged 18 to 49 who were diagnosed in a two-month time frame. The vaccine was initially developed to protect against smallpox — but was used to treat mpox because the two viruses are similar in genetic structure. Until this new data, however, there wasn’t real-world evidence of the Jynneos vaccine’s efficacy amid the mpox outbreak. Read more. | Pioneering approaches to caring for and addressing the diverse needs of people with blood diseases Hematologic disorders comprise a vast category of diseases, and although some types can be managed to prevent symptoms or complications, others lead to a poor prognosis because the disease relapses or is refractory to treatment.
Scientists at Genentech are pursuing effective treatment options for patients with hematologic cancers and rare blood diseases at all stages of their journey, rethinking what is possible when it comes to standards of care and the treatment experience. Learn more about how research has made important strides in treating various types of blood diseases. | Who gets dibs on in-demand medicines? Can you get a refund on an $8 billion buy? And what happens when sweetheart deals go bad? We cover all that and more this week on “The Readout LOUD,” STAT’s biotech podcast. STAT’s Elaine Chen joins us to explain how the escalating demand for a potent diabetes drug is putting patients with obesity in a difficult situation. We also discuss a curious trend in biotech investing, the future of Illumina, and another sentencing in the Theranos saga. Listen here. | Vertex makes another dystrophy investment Vertex Pharmaceuticals is paying Entrada Therapeutics $224 million upfront for its preclinical candidate ENTR-701. The drug targets myotonic dystrophy type 1 — a rare genetic disorder that causes progressive muscle weakness. Last month, Entrada said it was planning on filing an IND for the DM1 candidate next year. Under the new deal, Vertex would be in charge of the development, manufacturing, and commercialization of ENTR-701, and any other programs targeting DM1. Entrada’s technology aims to ferry biologic drugs across cell membranes to hit intracellular targets, FierceBiotech writes. The company has developed its own drug for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, which prompted it to raise $116 million in a private round and then $181.5 million in a public offering. | More reads - New dengue vaccine approved in Europe, Wall Street Journal
- Exclusive: EU to propose delay to medical device law amid supply worries, Reuters
- FDA authorizes updated Covid-19 boosters for youngest children, STAT
- Regeneron's Yancopoulos draws boos as he touts pharma innovation over cost considerations, FierceBiotech
| Thanks for reading! Until next week,  | | | |
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