Americans spent $98 billion out of pocket on prescription drugs in 2024, marking a cumulative 25% increase over five years, according to an annual report from analytics firm IQVIA.
Amid ongoing anticipation over tariffs on pharmaceuticals, President Trump on Monday signed an executive order designed to lower regulatory hurdles and make it faster for drug companies to manufacture their products in the U.S. The move also includes plans to place more pressure on foreign drugmakers to comply with quality control inspections.
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will ask the CDC to develop new guidance for treating measles with drugs and vitamins. The move comes as Kennedy has faced criticism during this year's record measles outbreaks for remarks misleading people into thinking that measles infections are easily curable and inflating myths about measles vaccines.
The explosion of compounded GLP-1 offerings over the past two years is coming to an end, and many patients are left with no good options. Blockbuster obesity and diabetes drugs — such as Wegovy, Ozempic, and Mounjaro — are no longer deemed by regulators to be in shortage, so compounding pharmacies and the telehealth companies they work with must stop offering copies of the treatments.
A Maryland man who took Ozempic and then became legally blind is suing the drug's manufacturer, arguing it had an obligation to warn patients that loss of sight could be a possible side effect. Todd Engel, 62, was prescribed Ozempic in 2023 to manage his Type 2 diabetes. The lawsuit said about four months later, Engel was diagnosed with nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy, a condition in which a loss of blood flow to the optic nerve causes sudden and irreversible vision loss.
Novavax's closely watched COVID-19 vaccine is on track for full approval after additional discussions with the Food and Drug Administration, the company said Wednesday. The news sent company shares soaring more than 21% in morning trading and appeared to resolve concerns that Trump administration officials might be holding up a decision on the shot. Novavax makes the nation's only traditional protein-based COVID-19 vaccine. It is still being sold under emergency use authorization — unlike mRNA vaccines made by Pfizer and Moderna that have earned full FDA approval for certain age groups.