Pharma goes to Washington, Alnylam’s future, & Gilead’s dealmaking

Has PhRMA lost its fangs? Are 11th-hour changes ominous for clinical trials? And what’s next in pain medicine?

We cover all that and more this week on “The Readout LOUD,” STAT’s biotech podcast. The pharmaceutical industry, in court and in Congress, is working to water down legislation that will let Medicare negotiate certain drug prices. STAT Washington correspondent Rachel Cohrs joins us to explain the industry’s struggle to make headway — and how it factors into the 2024 election. We also discuss the latest news in the life sciences, including a twist in the future of Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, competition to Vertex Pharmaceuticals’ pain drug, and Gilead Sciences’ latest acquisition.

For more on what we cover, here’s all of Rachel’s coverage; here’s more on Vertex’s competition; here’s the news on Gilead; here’s where you can find episodes of Color Code; here’s where you can subscribe to the First Opinion Podcast; and here’s where you can subscribe to our biotech newsletter, The Readout.

Be sure to sign up on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, TuneIn, or wherever you get your podcasts.

And if you have any feedback for us — topics to cover, guests to invite, vocal tics to cease — you can email [email protected].