The Wall Street Journal reports that
A monoclonal antibody drug to treat early Covid-19 infections has been authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, said Vir Biotechnology Inc.and GlaxoSmithKline PLC, makers of the drug.
The drug, called sotrovimab, is the third antibody medicine authorized to treat patients early in the course of disease who are at high risk of developing severe cases.
Vir and Glaxo said in March that a study of the drug had been stopped early because it was shown to be highly effective, reducing hospitalizations or death by 85%, compared with a placebo. * * *
It is unclear what near-term role the drug will play in the U.S., where new infections are falling and there remains a glut of unused antibody drugs made by Eli Lilly & Co. and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc.
Having a Plan B usually is a prudent step.
Speaking of prescription drugs, Healthcare Dive informs us that
- “The Institute for Clinical and Economic Review, a nonprofit and frequent critic of drugmakers for excessively high drug prices, now plans to assess how health insurance policies harm patient access to care, the group announced Tuesday. This follows research by the group that argued cost-sharing should not be structured to shift healthcare costs to patients when they have no medically appropriate lower cost option.
- “ICER’s review will not, however, look at whether cost-sharing should be reduced for drugs on which payers receive large rebates or whether payers should be asked to demonstrate how their policies on drug access save overall healthcare costs.
- “Drugmakers have repeatedly tried to shift the blame for high out-of-pocket costs and limited access to drugs by pointing to the design of insurance plans. ICER’s review suggests a new emphasis by the group on examining the role insurers play alongside pharmaceutical companies in determining patient access and costs.”
Fedweek features Reg Jones’ latest missive on the relationship between federal employment benefits and life events. This report concerns the coverage of children under FEHB and FEGLI.
The FEHBlog has been tracking developments in the implementation of the No Surprises Act. In the course of doing so today, he found several letters from healthcare trade associations to federal regulators on this topic. Because it can be helpful to look over the fence, here are implementation comments from American Association of Orthopedic Surgeons, the American College of Radiology, the National Association of Free Standing Emergency Centers, the American Association of Medical Colleges, and the American College of Emergency Physicians. What’s more the Workgroup for Electronic Data has helpfully collected links to a bevy of expert analyses of the law. It’s a heavy lift.
In healthcare business news
- Healthcare Dive tells us that “Hospital operator HCA Healthcare is linking up with Google Cloud on a new data analytics platform to support provider decision-making, the companies announced Wednesday. The deal between the 186-hospital system and the technology behemoth will build on HCA’s existing use of technology to streamline both clinical and non-clinical operations, and represents “significant investments” in the system’s mobile functions, the companies said. The goal is to give doctors and nurses workflow tools, analysis and alerts on their mobile devices for real-time updates on patients’ conditions, while also improving workflows such as supply chain, human resources and physical plant operations.”
- Fierce Health reports that “The combined company of Grand Rounds Health and Doctor On Demand has expanded yet again to include a care concierge platform for the LGBTQ+ community. The virtual care companies announced Wednesday they signed a definitive agreement to acquire Included Health to improve health outcomes and address the health challenges facing communities including lesbian, gay and transgender patients as well as black, indigenous and people of color (BIPOC), the companies said in a press release.” Terms of the agreement were not disclosed