Denise Myshko

Drug approvals this year have reflected the trend in clinical development of biologics shifting from intravenous to subcutaneous administration, offering shorter injection times, home use, and cost savings for cancer, Alzheimer’s, and inflammatory diseases.

Kamuvudines are a new class of drugs that are derived from the anti-HIV nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors. They are designed to inhibit the inflammasome, part of the innate immune system that is triggered in geographic atrophy.

CMS has released the negotiated prices for the second set of drugs for Medicare Part D through the Inflation Reduction Act. Discounts range from 38% for Austedo and Austedo XR to 85% for Janumet and Janumet XR.

Itvisma is a one-time gene therapy approved for both children and adults with spinal muscular atrophy. It will be available in December.

A provision in the One Big Beautiful Bill delays or exempts high-spending medications with orphan indications from Medicare drug price negotiations.

Beginning in January 2026, Optum Rx is removing reauthorizations for two new drug classes: hormone therapies and knee osteoarthritis injectables.

A pilot program limiting the patient co-pay to $50 could burden Part D plans, depending on whether manufacturers discount their prices — and by how much.

Eylea HD offers two dosing options for patients with retinal vein occlusion: 8-week and 4-week dosing intervals.

Promising new medications for resistant gonorrhea, such as zoliflodacin and gepotidacin, are waiting for FDA approval, and they offer hope for effective treatment options.

Redemplo has been approved to treat adults with familial chylomicronemia syndrome. The therapy will be available by the end of the year and will have an annual wholesale acquisition cost of $60,000.

The findings in a new study published in Health Affairs suggest that Semglee’s interchangeability status may have partially increased adoption by supporting improved formulary coverage.

In addition, Elevidys’s indication for non-patients has been removed, and the gene is now indicated only to treat ambulatory patients four years of age and older with Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

Increased adoption of biosimilars requires regulatory changes, educational efforts, and PBM reimbursement policies that enable fair competition, argues Dr. Benjamin Rome in a new paper.

Lesion growth was reduced by 40.5% in patients receiving Izervay in an open-label study. A real-world study confirms safety in more than 10,000 patients.

The discounts will be for not-yet-approved formulations of Wegovy, Zepbound and Lilly’s oral GLP-1 orforglipron. Additionally, a pilot program starting in 2026 will provide for Medicare Part D coverage of these investigational anti-obesity medicines.

Researchers at the University of Michigan suggest the findings of their analysis could be used to guide the timing of dosing of drugs for patients with Parkinson’s disease, depression, and other neurological conditions.

Phase 3 trials showed oveporexton effectively treated narcolepsy type 1 by restoring orexin, a neurotransmitter that regulates sleep and wakefulness signaling.

Almost 3,000 managed care pharmacy leaders attended the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP) Nexus meeting, which was held last week at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland.

Prior authorization using integrated medical claims data helps diabetes patients get medications faster, with two-thirds processed automatically by July 2025 in this Prime Therapeutics analysis.

Prime Therapeutics executives discuss specialty drug trends at AMCP Nexus. Key areas include autoimmune therapies, multiple sclerosis treatments, and emerging cell and gene therapy challenges for payers.

'It just knows black or white; it does not know the gray in between...humans have to fill that gray in between.'

Bispecific T-cell engagers demonstrate lower total costs and reduced cytokine release and neurotoxicity rates compared with CAR T therapy for patients with follicular lymphoma.

Payers and providers are using real-world data to identify high-performing treatment centers, reduce administrative bottlenecks, and support value-based contracting arrangements.

Former House Speaker Paul Ryan called for evidence-based reforms, risk pools and premium support models for Medicare, to fix the nation’s strained healthcare system.

Panelists at AMCP’s policy summit debated PBM reform, disagreeing on spread pricing ethics and rebate transparency while discussing costs, risks, and whether current contracting models benefit patients.

"It’s people versus business interests, party interests, and ideology," Robert Costa of CBS News told the AMCP Nexus audience.

Benjamin Lockshin, M.D., from Georgetown University, discusses how oral TYK2 inhibitors that rival biologics’ efficacy have changed the management of patients with psoriasis.

New clinical data demonstrate Zoryve's effectiveness in treating atopic dermatitis, reducing sleep disruptions and maintaining disease control with minimal adverse events across all ages.

Icotrokinra is a first-in-class targeted oral peptide that blocks interleukin (IL) 23 and its receptor, which plays a key role in the inflammatory response in plaque psoriasis.