Recon: Abbott profits triple with OTC test launch; Good news for bluebird

• Large clinical trial to study repurposed drugs to treat COVID-19 symptoms (NIH)
• Q&A with Acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock on the Future of the FDA (BioSpace)
• Covid cases, vaccinations remain elevated as U.S. nears Biden’s 200 million goal (CNBC)
• U.S. CDC expands COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to 16 and older (Reuters)
• Johnson & Johnson reports $100 million in quarterly sales from Covid vaccine (CNBC)
• U.S. Covid vaccination obstacle shifts towards lack of demand from scarce supply, warns doctor (CNBC) (Vox)
• Women turning out more than men for COVID-19 vaccines (The Hill)
• Abbott Profits Triple As Over-the-counter Covid-19 Tests Hit Drugstore Shelves (Forbes) (Reuters)

• Europe Orders 100 Million More Doses of Pfizer/BioNTech Vaccine (FDA News)
• WHO director-general says pandemic can be brought under control within months (PMLive)
• UK launches human challenge trial on COVID-19 reinfection (Biopharma Reporter)
• Swiss Biotechs May Get SPAC Listing Option Soon (Scrip)
• NICE sets out plans for ‘ambitious’ five-year strategy (PMLive)
• Enhertu now available via Cancer Drugs Fund following NICE decision (Pharmafile)

• We know a lot about Covid-19. Experts have many more questions (STAT)
• AZ And J&J’s Problems Fuel Demand For Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 Vaccines (Scrip)
• Op-Ed: Can Statisticians Save the J&J Vaccine? (MedPage Today)
• Covid vaccines and the race to understand blood clots (FT)
• Rapid COVID-19 Tests Are Coming to the Home (MD+DI)
• More than half India’s population could be immune by September, says hospital executive (CNBC)
• US to expand 'do not travel' warning to 80 percent of countries amid COVID-19 spike (The Hill)

• Biden officials met privately with 3M, AmerisourceBergen, PhRMA, and more to debate shoring up the national stockpile (STAT)
• A Tecfidera Comeback? Investors Await More On Patent Plans From Biogen (Scrip)
• Researchers In Europe, U.S. Team Up for First Ever 5-MeO-DMT Psychedelic Training Program (Forbes)
• Long COVID’s long R&D agenda (Nature Reviews Drug Discovery)
• PPD-backed siteless trial specialist Medable reels in $78M as the pandemic continues to push its biz forward (Fierce)
• Vertex pays CRISPR $900M to take control of sickle cell partnership, betting they can beat bluebird (Endpoints)
• Blue­bird says it has more good news for its gene ther­a­py safe­ty, but a pric­ing dis­agree­ment in Ger­many will spur lay­offs (Endpoints)
• Biogen Reports New Spinraza Data in SMA (Global Genes)
• Janssen will not seek regulatory approval for Erleada plus Zytiga in prostate cancer (PMLive)
• US FDA pauses work on Anixa's novel CAR-T cell candidate (Pharmaletter)
• FDA slaps a hold on KalVista's PhII study of an HAE drug, raising a red flag on preclinical results (Endpoints)
• Breakthrough designation granted for Amgen’s bemarituzumab (PharmaTimes)
• Express Scripts 2020 Update: Utilization Drove Drug Spending Growth—While Maximizers Gained Further Traction (Drug Channels)
• Biotech Funding Tops The Charts Again (Life Sci VC)
• Rezolute Enters $30 Million Debt Agreement to Advance Rare and Metabolic Disease Pipeline (Global Genes)
• Forbion closes final European life sciences funding round at €360M with help from Eli Lilly (Fierce)
• The Battle Over an Alzheimer’s Treatment (WSJ)
• Gene therapy shows promise in initial trial for patients with childhood blindness (EurekAlert)
• Opioid vaccine in the works (EurekAlert)
• Once-a-week insulin treatment could be game-changing for patients with diabetes (EurekAlert)

• Virta Health Raises $133M to Reverse Type 2 Diabetes (MD+DI)
• BD Alaris pump recall again labeled Class I event by FDA (Medtech Dive)
• Oxford University & Prenetics to collaborate on global rapid testing tech (Pharmafile)
• As at-home Covid-19 testing rose, so did demand for other tests (MedCity News)
• Australian addiction support platform eyes US expansion after closing $1.9M seed round (MobiHealth News)
• Renovia raises $17M to help tackle female pelvic floor disorders (MobiHealth News)
• Our Quest to Understand the Human Brain Is Limited by Ethics, Not Science (Slate)
• Tiny implantable tool for light-sheet imaging of brain activity (EurekAlert)

• $50B Opioid Trial Starts With Warring Views Of Drug Marketing (Law 360)
• FTC’s challenge to Illumina’s vertical merger with Grail is all wrong (STAT)
• The Ongoing Step Therapy Debate (Bill of Health)
• Senators Want Expert Panel To Guide $100B Plan For R&D (Law360)
• A new book traces the roots of the opioid crisis through the secretive Sackler family (STAT)
• Lower Reimbursement For Accelerated Approval Drugs May Get Push From ICER (Pink Sheet)
• AdvaMed pushes CMS to implement MCIT final rule without further delay (Medtech Dive)
• The 'burn' of ranitidine recall: current insights and mitigation strategies (PubMed)