Author: Peter

Cancer immunotherapy is one of the hottest areas of cancer research these days, and the market looks to be worth billions. Which big pharma do we think will be the biggest winner in the space?...the fight against cancer is the growing field of immunotherapy, which aims to harness the power of a patient's own immune system…Given the huge opportunity that exists for this new class of medicine, we asked our team of Motley Fool healthcare contributors to share with us the big pharma company they think has the best chance of grabbing a big piece of this emerging market.

Israel-based MediWound has signed a five-year, $112 million contract with the U.S. authority that handles public health medical emergencies to further develop and buy the company's drug treatment for severe burns (NexoBrid,bromelain)…Investment group Clal Biotechnology, which has a 45 percent stake in MediWound, said in a statement that the deal with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority would raise preparedness for mass-casualty incidents.

Drug maker’s stock price falls 17% after Democrats request subpoena...Democrats on the House oversight committee are trying to force Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. to provide documents explaining hefty price increases for two heart drugs.( 212% Isuprel and 525% Nitropress)..Valeant shares fell 16.5% to $166.50 Monday following news of the request for a subpoena. The stock had fallen more than 12% over the previous several days amid increasing criticism from law makers about drug-price increases…"We believe it is critical to hold drug companies to account when they engage in ‘a business strategy of buying old neglected drugs and turning them into high-price ‘specialty drugs…

More than 15 million people enrolled in the top 10 Medicare "Part D" prescription drug plans will face average premium hikes of 8 percent next year,...Those top 10 plans account for more than 80 percent of enrollment in such drug plans…Five of the top prescription drug plans will see double-digit premium hikes next year.

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd's research chief said...the drug industry must act responsibly when it comes to pricing medications, given the mounting anger over the high cost of therapies in the United States…True innovation needs to be rewarded, he said, citing strides against HIV, recent cures for hepatitis C, and those working to develop effective treatments for Alzheimer's disease…"But we need to be responsible too. Our goal is not to make money and disrupt the whole healthcare system,"…

Drug prices: where the free market and public interest collide...Dr. Peter B. Bach, director of the Center for Health Policy and Outcomes at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, has become an articulate advocate for creating a stronger connection between the costs of drugs and the value they deliver to patients. Fortune recently sat down with Dr. Bach to talk more about what is behind the drug price mayhem and what could be done to stem the rise.

• What have been the primary forces driving drug prices higher?
• So do you see these factors reversing or slowing at any point?
• What is the difference, then, when it comes to drug pricing and what’s happening with Turing versus the broader market of new, innovative drugs?
• Why is there a seeming lack of transparency when it comes to how companies decide on these drug prices?
• Do you see the role of government heading in that direction?

CVS Health pharmacists can now provide the opioid overdose antidote naloxone to patients without a prescription in a dozen more states…CVS patients could already receive naloxone in Rhode Island and Massachusetts without a prescription, CVS recently announced that it was expanding access in 12 more states, which have the following legislation concerning naloxone dispensing:

• Arkansas
• California
• Minnesota
• Mississippi
• Montana
• New Jersey
• North Dakota
• Pennsylvania
• South Carolina
• Tennessee
• Utah
• Wisconsin

Everyone with HIV should be given anti-retroviral drugs as soon as possible after diagnosis, meaning 37 million people worldwide should be on treatment, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday…early drug use extends the lives of those with the AIDS-causing virus and cuts the risk of disease transmission to partners…making the new recommendation a reality would require dramatically increased financial support from donors and governments… WHO estimates…low- and lower-middle income countries will need $18.4 billion annually for the expanded HIV fight.

Avalere Health’s Mike Johnsrud moderated a panel of leading stakeholders in the specialty pharmacy arena at an exclusive National Community Pharmacists Association...forum that explored specialty pharmacy as a viable and promising business model for entrepreneurial independent pharmacists. DSNTV was on hand to capture the highlights of that panel in this video, including insights from Diplomat Pharmacy’s Ela Lourido and H.D. Smith Specialty Solutions’ Tom Doyle. (video)

In the largest settlement of its kind involving allegations of drug diversion…Massachusetts General Hospital has agreed to pay the United States $2.3 million to resolve allegations that lax controls enabled MGH employees to divert controlled substances for personal use…two of its nurses had stolen…nearly 16,000 pills, mostly oxycodone,…from automated dispensing machines…revealed pill count discrepancies totaling over 20,000, missing or incomplete medication inventories,..hundreds of missing drug records, all in violation of the…Controlled Substances Act...