Good Day BIO: Deal 'makes building future drugs nearly impossible.’

The House could vote today on the Build Back Better agenda, which includes a “rushed and highly politicized” drug pricing deal—here’s what BIO says about it, plus how to reduce emissions in the health care supply chain and thoughts on how to better support vulnerable sickle cell patients. (796 words, 3 minutes, 58 seconds)

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‘This legislation makes building future drugs nearly impossible.’

The House is expected to try to vote on President Biden’s Build Back Better spending bill, which includes what BIO President & CEO Dr. Michelle McMurry-Heath calls a “rushed and highly politicized” drug pricing deal.

“We have long fought for legislation to help patients with their out-of-pocket costs,”she says. “Policymakers said that was their intention as well—and said that would be reflected in this ‘deal.’ However, after reading through the nearly 3,000-page bill it seems as if they have continued to insist on using a price control scheme reminiscent of HR-3, which was rejected for being too extreme.” 

“The goal of the bill is to ‘build back better.’ But for the scientists working in labs, this legislation makes building future drugs nearly impossible.” Read the full statement. 

Visit www.SaveCures.com to tell your Member of Congress why price controls will harm patients and future cures.

Equity in action aids young people with sickle cell disease

Patients in vulnerable populations, particularly children living with sickle cell disease, "need more than a checkup; they need a check-in," says Dr. Kim Smith-Whitley, a hematologist at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and EVP and Head of R&D at Global Blood Therapeutics (GBT).

Sickle cell disease is a “model” of health and social inequity,” Dr. Smith-Whitley said during BIO’s Patient Health and Advocacy Summit. It disproportionately affects Black and Hispanic patients and there are huge inequities in R&D funding. 

“Scientists identified the gene responsible for sickle cell disease in the 1950s, but used their understanding of the inheritance and genetics of sickle cell disease primarily to advance the fields of molecular biology and genetics,” she writes in STAT News. “Little was done to directly benefit those with sickle cell disease, primarily people of color.” 

Transcranial Doppler ultrasonography, cutting-edge technology to identify stroke risk, benefits people living with sickle cell, 11% of whom have a stroke before age 20. 

With outreach and a campaign to remove barriers, such as transportation or scheduling difficulties, Children’s Hospital ensured the rate of annual transcranial Doppler exams among patients only dropped from 90% to 85% during the pandemic. 

GBT uses similar tactics to improve participation in clinical trials, she told BIO’s Patient and Health Advocacy Summit. GBT provides things like transportation and childcare to involve the heavily impacted Black community in trials. “It's through their participation that we've been able to advance the field of sickle cell,” she said.


More Health Care News:

CNN: U.K. becomes first to authorize Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics' COVID-19 antiviral pill
"It is the world's first oral antiviral to be authorized anywhere for the treatment of COVID-19."

The New York Times: FAQ about the Biden administration's vaccine mandate
"Companies of 100 or more employees have until Jan. 4 to ensure all their workers are either fully vaccinated or submit to weekly testing and mandatory masking."

BIO joins supply chain leaders seeking to reduce carbon footprint of health care

International leaders are discussing best ways to eliminate carbon emissions in the health care supply chain this week and next week at the UN Climate Summit.

Recognizing health care delivery contributes 4.4% of global carbon emissions, the U.K. National Health Service (NHS) took the lead in committing to cutting carbon emissions to zero. The effort requires participation from NHS suppliers.

NHS’s ambition is to achieve net zero in their own operations by 2040, and by 2045 for indirect emissions, including supply chain, and travel, with an 80% reduction by 2036-2039. 

Of course, BIO’s position is that biotechnology has a major role to play in reducing carbon emissions. 

Biotechnology is already producing sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), which can reduce GHG emissions from travel by 80%. 

For example, United Airlines last month successfully tested a flight relying 100% on SAF from BIO member Virent. As the Houston Chronicle reports, “United will be the first commercial airline to operate a 100 percent drop-in SAF,” which “meets current petroleum-based jet fuel requirements and can be substituted for jet fuel without any modifications to engines and airframes.”

USDA’s efforts to encourage use of SAF and address agriculture’s impact on climate is likely to get a boost from confirmation of Robert Bonnie, Biden’s pick for USDA undersecretary for farm production and conservation. Sen. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer moved to expedite that confirmation, with a vote possible Tuesday or Wednesday. Bonnie is an expert in conservation and environmental issues. 

President Biden’s Friday: Delivering remarks on the October jobs report in the morning, then attending the funeral of Gen. Colin Powell in the afternoon. After a night of calling lawmakers, Biden is sure to be watching House action on his agenda. 

What’s Happening on Capitol Hill: While the Senate is in recess, House members are expected to vote on the bipartisan infrastructure bill and budget reconciliation package.