“If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again” seems to be the motto of U.S. lawmakers – at least when it comes to the bipartisan Biosecure Act. After missing a ride last year in the must-pass annual defense spending bill, a version of the bill that seeks to protect the genetic data of Americans while securing U.S. pharmaceutical supply chains made it into the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act, which is now just a Senate vote away from becoming law.
A group of eight Democratic senators is asking biopharma companies to spill the beans about their private most-favored-nation pricing deals with U.S. President Donald Trump. Led by Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, the senators sent letters Dec. 11 to Astrazeneca plc, Eli Lilly and Co., Novo Nordisk A/S and Pfizer Inc. seeking the details of those deals. While it’s difficult to discern how the deals will benefit patients, it’s clear the companies stand to gain a lot from the agreements, the letter asserted.
The EU finally reached agreement on an update of the 20-year-old pharmaceutical legislation, more than five years after the EU Commission first put forward the case for reform and following two and a half years of negotiations on the new rules.