Drug pricing. The opioid crisis. Patent thickets. Scientific misinformation. Around every corner is an issue that has chipped away at the biopharma industry’s reputation even after public perception reached a zenith during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The consensus among biopharma leaders that PharmaVoice spoke to at the Biotechnology Innovation Organization’s (BIO) conference this week was that, yes, the industry still has a reputation problem. But they also said there is a good deal of miscommunication around drugmakers’ intentions and education about the drug development process would go a long way to rebuilding trust.
Still, business reputation research firm RepTrak saw pharma’s reputation fade away in the minds of the public just as the pandemic did.
“The unpredictable culture storm that boosted pharma’s reputation at the beginning of the pandemic has fizzled out in the first half of 2022 — their scores are down across the board,” RepTrak’s 2022 report said. “We’ve warned that high scores aren’t a permanent stamp of approval, but a call to action. And pharma’s actions going into the ‘post-pandemic’ phase haven’t earned them those lasting highs.”
While there are many factors to consider when calculating the industry’s reputation, patient access to medicines has become a major sticking point. In 2022, only 32% of patient groups surveyed by the research firm PatientView thought pharma was “excellent” or “good” at improving patient access to medicines. As many as 52% of respondents felt pharma was only “fair” or “poor” at improving access. In 2020, PatientView’s survey showed that 76% of groups thought the pharma industry was “very effective” or “effective” at supporting patients. READ MORE
by Michael Gibney
Source: pharmavoice.com
Novo Nordisk has acquired the global rights to China-based United Laboratories’ triple-agonist weight-loss and diabetes drug in a deal worth up to $2bn as the Wegovy (semalgutide) developer seeks a successor for its blockbuster drug.
The Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday cleared a new kind of oral antibiotic for the treatment of common urinary tract infection in women and girls 12 years or older. The oral drug gepotidacin, which its maker GSK will sell as Blujepa, is approved to treat uncomplicated urinary tract infections caused by five common types of bacteria, including E. coli.
23andMe, the DNA testing company once valued at $6 billion, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Sunday as it runs low on cash. CEO and co-founder Anne Wojcicki resigned on Sunday but will remain a director on the board. Joseph Selsavage, 23andMe’s chief financial and accounting officer, was named interim CEO.
