The FDA oncologic drugs advisory committee voted against the approval of GSK’s blood cancer treatment Blenrep, delivering a setback to the drugmaker’s efforts to reintroduce the drug to the U.S. market, The Wall Street Journal reported July 17.  The FDA’s…

340B Health is raising objections to new Medicare payment proposals from CMS, which includes deeper cuts to outpatient payments and the possibility of future drug reimbursement reductions.  Under the newly released 2026 outpatient rule, CMS said it plans to accelerate…

Pfizer and Bristol Myers Squibb have launched a direct-to-patient program offering their blood thinner Eliquis at a 40% discount for cash-paying patients.  The list price for Eliquis (apixaban) is $606 for a 30-day supply, but through the new program, the…

Prescription denial rates from private insurers grew from 18.3% in 2016 to 22.9% in 2023 — a 25% increase, according to a July 18 article from The New York Times.  Healthcare analytics company Komodo Health conducted an analysis of more…

A third patient has died from acute liver failure after receiving a gene therapy treatment from Sarepta Therapeutics, the biotech company confirmed to Bloomberg on July 18.  The patient died while receiving Elevidys, a gene therapy treatment approved to treat…

Hospital pharmacists are urging Congress to act on a number of their priorities, including Medicare coverage for pharmacist services and protections for residency funding.  In a July 9 letter, Tom Kraus, vice president for the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists,…

Pfizer is warning physicians that it expects a new shortage of Bicillin L-A, a long-acting penicillin injection that is currently the single recommended treatment for syphilis during pregnancy, CNN reported July 16.  The drugmaker’s alert follows a July 10 recall…

Cincinnati-based UC Health has opened its fifth outpatient pharmacy, located inside the new UC Blood Cancer Healing Center on the UC Medical Center campus.  The new pharmacy offers same-day access to medications, clinical pharmacist guidance and close coordination with care…

U.S. inspectors have found new breakdowns at a Sun Pharmaceuticals plant in India that produces medications for U.S. customers, ProPublica reported July 16.  The FDA found the factory failed to identify the source of bacterial contamination in test samples and…

President Donald Trump said he will most likely impose tariffs on pharmaceuticals as soon as the end of the month, along with tariffs on semiconductors, Bloomberg reported July 15.  Here are four notes: