U.S. President Donald Trump today unveiled his “Great Healthcare Plan,” an initiative he said would slash prescription drug prices, maximize price transparency in the health care system and hold big insurance companies accountable. While short on details, the president said the basis of the plan is that, instead of the government paying subsidies to insurance companies, it will give the money directly to the people, who can use it to buy their own health care. The proposal also would lock in the discount on prescription drugs the administration negotiated with individual biopharmas in its most-favored-nations drug pricing agreements. However, the plan could end up on the president’s wish list scrap heap, as it will require Congress to put it into law. As it is, Congress already is squabbling over the best way to deal with the pandemic-era expansion of Affordable Care Act insurance subsidies.
EMA had second busiest year in 2025, says momentum poised to continue
The EMA had its second busiest year in 2025, approving 104 drugs, of which 38 had a new active substance. Sixteen of these are for treating rare diseases and four are advanced therapy medicinal products. In 2025, there were negative opinions for seven products, and 22 applications were withdrawn. Extensions of the indications for marketed drugs were approved in 89 cases and 41 biosimilars passed EMA scrutiny. The overall tally of drug approvals is down from 114 in 2024, with the EMA ascribing that record number to post-pandemic pent-up demand. However, the agency is expecting momentum to be maintained in 2026, with companies having notified it of more than 80 marketing authorization applications they aim to file in the next six months.
Benefits and challenges of European drug development
At a pair of panels on developing drugs in Europe at the Biotech Showcase 2026, experts discussed the good, the bad and the ugly parts of the European drug development scene. On the plus side, there’s a substantially reduced cost, R&D tax credits and a workforce that tends to stick around at companies. However, challenges exist, including the major issue of dealing with many different local rules and regulations.
Muted and missing M&As: JPM deals absent in 2026
For years, the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference (JPM) kicked off with splashy headlines of major M&A activity among biopharma companies, but in 2026, the hype outweighed reality and in the end, no major merger announcements were made during the conference for companies developing therapeutics. Still, a few of the companies that were the subjects of published rumors do, in fact, appear to be ripe takeout targets, according to analysts. While Eli Lilly and Co. offered to buy Ventyx Biosciences Inc. for about $1.2 billion a week ago, it is the only major M&A announced so far this year.
New insights bring clarity to multiple sclerosis’ EBV connection
For decades, scientists have searched for a mechanistic link between viral infection and multiple sclerosis (MS). Insights from three studies recently published in Cell bring that connection into sharper focus. By tracing how the immune system responds to Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) – and how those responses can misfire against the brain – researchers are beginning to uncover a compelling biological explanation for MS.
Biopharma financings pick up in Q4 to cap uneven 2025 recovery
Total biopharma financing values have shown quarterly volatility over the past decade, with surges often concentrated in specific quarters rather than evenly distributed across the year. In 2025, total financings accelerated as the year progressed, rising from $13.12 billion in the first quarter (Q1) to a peak of $33.16 billion in Q4, the strongest quarter since early 2024 and the primary contributor to 2025’s annual total. The largest IPO of Q4 came late in the year, with Insilico Medicine Inc. raising HK$2.27 billion (US$292 million) in a listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange to support its clinical pipeline and expand its generative AI and automated laboratory capabilities.
Biopharma consultant charged with insider trading
A biostatistician who was consulting for C4 Therapeutics Inc. is facing civil and criminal charges of U.S. securities fraud related to insider trading that allegedly netted him nearly $500,000 in profit. Working through his company, Precision Clinical Consulting LLC, on a biostatistical analysis of the clinical trial data related to C4’s flagship multiple myeloma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma drug, Hong Wang, of East Brunswick, N.J., had access to positive trial results and allegedly traded on that information weeks before C4 publicly announced them, according to the SEC.
Also in the news
Alloy, Alto, Bayer, Beyond Air, Biofrontera, Briacell, Caldera, Elpasbio, Emergent, Ferrer, Fosun, Genethon, Hatchtech, Immedica, Immunis, Immunitybio, Ipsen, Novartis, Oncolytics, Pelthos, Peplib, Pharmather, Plus, Praxis, Sandoz, SL Bio, Tahoe, Travere, Vivere
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