Pharmaceuticals

Boxes of Wegovy made by Novo Nordisk are seen at a pharmacy in London, Britain March 8, 2024. Hollie Adams | ReutersMedicare can start covering certain weight loss drugs for the first time – as long as they are approved for an added health benefit, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said Thursday.That opens up the door for broader coverage of some highly popular weight loss medications such as Novo Nordisk's Wegovy, which is now approved in the U.S. for heart health. Those treatments have skyrocketed in demand…

Close-up of a hand holding a cellphone displaying the Amazon Pharmacy system, Lafayette, California, September 15, 2021. Smith Collection | Gado | Getty ImagesEli Lilly on Wednesday said Amazon Pharmacy will help send certain prescription drugs, including the red-hot weight loss treatment Zepbound, to patients' homes through the drugmaker's new direct-to-consumer program. Starting Wednesday, Amazon Pharmacy can deliver certain drugs from Eli Lilly that are prescribed for obesity, diabetes or migraine to patients who order…

In this photo illustration, the Madrigal Pharmaceuticals logo is displayed on a smartphone screen. Rafael Henrique | SOPA Images | Lightrocket | Getty ImagesThe Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved the first-ever treatment for a common and potentially deadly form of liver disease that affects millions worldwide.The FDA's decision means Madrigal Pharmaceuticals has succeeded in a disease area that several larger companies have failed — or are still trying to break into. Madrigal shares jumped more than 20% in…

Victoria Klesty | ReutersIn the U.S., Wegovy is no longer just for weight loss.The blockbuster drug — one of a handful of weight loss treatments to skyrocket in popularity over the last year — is now approved in the U.S. for heart health, too. But that may not translate to wider insurance coverage of the weekly injection drug from Novo Nordisk and similar obesity treatments just yet.Some employers and other health plans are still reluctant to cover Wegovy due to its hefty $1,350 monthly price tag, which they say could…

Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty ImagesPfizer is ready to move on from Covid. Now, the company is betting on cancer drugs to help it regain its footing after a rocky year marked by the rapid decline of its Covid business. It just might take a while before that bet pays off. Pfizer pitched its deeper push into oncology during a four-hour investor event last week. And it had a splashy 60-second Super Bowl ad that touted its initiative to "outdo cancer." The shift comes at a crucial time for Pfizer. The pharmaceutical giant has…

Novo Nordisk CEO Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen on Friday said the company's experimental weight loss pill, amycretin, could eventually become a best-in-class treatment for obesity. The Danish drugmaker is racing to capitalize on the runaway success of its blockbuster weight loss drug Wegovy by developing a new generation of treatments for obesity, including more convenient and potentially cheaper pills. His remarks came one day after Novo Nordisk impressed investors with early-stage trial data on amycretin. Patients on the…

Eli Lilly headquarters in Indianapolis, Indiana, US, on Wednesday, May 3, 2023. Eli Lilly & Co.'s shares climbed in early US trading after its experimental drug for Alzheimer's slowed the progress of the disease in a final-stage trial, paving the way for the company to apply for US approval.AJ Mast | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesEli Lilly said Friday that the Food and Drug Administration has pushed back its approval decision deadline for the drugmaker's experimental Alzheimer's treatment donanemab in a surprise move.The…

Injection pens of Novo Nordisk's weight-loss drug Wegovy are shown in this photo illustration in Oslo, Norway, Nov. 21, 2023.Victoria Klesty | ReutersCigna on Thursday unveiled a new effort to expand insurance coverage for weight loss drugs by limiting how much health plans and employers spend on the highly popular treatments each year. The move comes as many insurers mull whether they should cover those drugs or drop them from their plans altogether due to their high costs. Americans have flocked to the treatments, along…

President Joe Biden speaks during an event at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, Dec. 14, 2023.Chris Kleponis | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesPresident Joe Biden on Wednesday said the federal Medicare program should negotiate prices for at least 50 prescription drugs each year, up from the current target of 20 medicines. That's one of several new health-care policy proposals that Biden will outline during his State of the Union address Thursday, according to a fact sheet released by the White House on…

This picture taken on October 23, 2023, shows Ozempic medication boxes, an injectable antidiabetic drug, in a pharmacy in Riedisheim in eastern France.Sebastien Bozon | Afp | Getty ImagesNovo Nordisk's blockbuster drug Ozempic cut the risk of kidney disease progression and related health complications in diabetic patients, according to initial late-stage trial results released Tuesday. Ozempic specifically lowered the risk of kidney disease progression and death from kidney or cardiovascular complications by 24% in…