A secretive group inside the FDA gave the global manufacturer a special pass to continue shipping more than a dozen drugs to the United States even though they were made at the same substandard factory that the agency had officially sanctioned. Pills and injectable medications that otherwise would have been banned went to unsuspecting patients across the country, including those with cancer and epilepsy.
All 50 states as well as the District of Columbia and U.S. territories have approved a $7.4 billion settlement with Purdue Pharma, maker of Oxycontin, over the company's improper marketing of opioids. The deal was filed with a federal bankruptcy court by Purdue Pharma officials in March after negotiations with state attorneys general and other stakeholders. If this plan is finalized, payouts will occur over the next 15 years.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has unveiled eight people he has chosen to serve on the CDC's vaccine advisory panel – just two days after taking the unprecedented step of removing all 17 sitting members.
The stunning drop in drug deaths among people in the U.S. is being tracked in data compiled by the CDC and other federal agencies. The latest available records found fentanyl and other drugs killed more than 31,000 people under the age of 35 in 2021. By last year, that number had plummeted to roughly 16,690 fatal overdoses, according to provisional CDC data.
As President Trump touts his own executive orders to lower drug prices, the Medicare drug price negotiations begun during the Biden administration are continuing behind the scenes. Two companies – Novo Nordisk and Amgen – confirmed to NPR that they had received opening price offers from the government, kicking off bargaining that could last through October.
New research shows measles vaccination rates for children fell in almost 80% of counties across the country after the COVID-19 pandemic. A Johns Hopkins University study tracked immunization records across 2,066 counties and 33 states. Researchers compared the kindergarten vaccination rates from 2017-2020 to averages from 2022-2024.