The U.S. FDA granted 14 approvals in April 2026, down from March’s 19 but broadly in line with the historical range for the month.

Biopharma stocks, as measured on the BioWorld Biopharmaceutical Index, underperformed both the Nasdaq Biotechnology Index and the Dow Jones Industrial Average through the first four months of 2026.

Med-tech M&A value through the first four months of 2026 reached $62.01 billion, the highest total for the period since 2022’s $73.58 billion and a dramatic step up from 2025’s $20.03 billion and 2024’s $5.74 billion over the same period.

On the heels of the ouster of Marty Makary as the U.S. FDA commissioner and the serial leadership vacancies at the CDC and the FDA’s drugs and biologics centers, the government’s adherence to science took another blow May 16 when Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., lost the Louisiana primary, ending his bid for re-election.

On Sunday, May 17th, 2026, the World Health Organization classified the ongoing Bundibugyo ebolavirus outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC). The rapid escalation to PHEIC is due to several factors. Given the high number of cases, the outbreak has likely been going undetected for some time, and may be a “much larger outbreak than what is currently being detected and reported, with significant local and regional risk of spread,” according to the WHO statement. The outbreak appears to already have crossed the border from the DRC into Uganda at least twice. And all this is happening with a virus for which there are no approved treatments or vaccines.