Trump's threats to health care giants are working — sometimes

Taking stock of the drug industry, from the lab to the medicine chest

August 6, 2025 Check out STAT+

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By Ed Silverman Pharmalot Columnist, Senior Writer

Andrew Harnik/Getty Images STAT+ | Trump is threatening health care giants with the weight of the federal government. It's working — sometimes Trump administration health officials are skipping new laws and regulations in favor of voluntary compliance mixed with threats. Results are mixed. By Daniel Payne, Chelsea Cirruzzo, and Sarah Todd STAT+ | Sarepta hired a Trump-connected firm to lobby on Duchenne treatment The biotech firm added the lobbying firm after the death of a patient who received the Duchenne muscular dystrophy treatment Elevidys. By John Wilkerson Opinion: Steve Forbes: CMS must cover FDA-approved medical devices and treatments Aligning CMS reimbursement with FDA approvals would reintroduce predictability and practicality into a system that has for too long been short on both. By Steve Forbes Adobe STAT+ | Health secretary RFK Jr. shuts door on U.S. investment in mRNA vaccine research Technology used during Covid pandemic long criticized by anti-vaxxers despite extensive safety data. Kennedy says he's "investing in better solutions." By Helen Branswell Lithium, a treatment for bipolar disorders, might be a key to Alzheimer's disease A study in mice finds that lithium depletion in the brain may be one of the earliest triggers of Alzheimer's and offers a potential path for treatment. By Marissa Russo

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