Recon: Lilly plans to test weight-loss drugs for alcohol, drug addiction; PhRMA not lobbying against RFK Jr. nomination

• Budget negotiations heat up as ACA subsidy extension, BIOSECURE get dropped (STAT)
• The pharma industry isn’t lobbying against RFK Jr.’s nomination for a top health role (STAT)
• Walgreens in talks to sell itself to PE firm Sycamore, WSJ reports (Reuters)
• Cases of severe RSV in two Moderna vaccine candidates' trials raise questions about future (Endpoints)
• Lilly CEO says tax and regulation reform, drug affordability are focuses under Trump (Reuters)
• Eli Lilly to test obesity medications as treatments for alcohol and drug addiction, CEO says (STAT)
• High-flying Eli Lilly plots $15B share buyback plan (Fierce Pharma)

• WHO's Tedros confident of finalising pandemic treaty in 2025 (Reuters)
• BioNTech reports early survival data for VEGF bispecific, weeks after buying Chinese partner (Endpoints)
• Inertia For Supply Chain Change May Stick Even If BIOSECURE Fails (Pink Sheet)
• EU HTA-Co-ordination Group Prepares For New Wave Of Joint Clinical Assessments In 2025 (Pink Sheet)
• Tackling Mpox: Global Regulators Call For Larger Trials And Coordinated Pathways (Pink Sheet)
• Japan Recommends Approval Of Dato-DXd, Sipavibart (Pink Sheet)
• BioMarin to add €60M lab to Irish manufacturing site in push to grow production capacity (Fierce Pharma)
• Record dengue outbreak in Americas kills 7,700 this year, PAHO says (Reuters)

• Stem cell transplant not needed for most mantle cell lymphoma patients, study suggests (STAT)
• Young biotech venture firm raises $500 million for its second fund (STAT)
• Uniqure gets FDA OK to seek accelerated approval (STAT)
• Do GLP-1s work for Parkinson’s? A health tech startup pitches pharma on quick answers (STAT)
• Johnson & Johnson seeks first drug approval for treatment of smoldering myeloma (STAT)
• Siga's mpox drug did not improve lesion resolution or pain, NIH study finds (Reuters)
• CervoMed's dementia drug fails mid-stage trial, shares slump (Reuters)
• Zealand Pharma starts Phase 2b trial for obesity drug candidate petrelintide (Reuters)
• Spruce Biosciences to wind down investment for genetic disorder drug (Reuters)
• GSK's drug combo shown to cut risk of death by 42% in type of blood cancer (Reuters)
• Roche initially didn't want to buy Poseida — and partner Astellas didn't submit an offer, new filings show (Endpoints)
• New oncology biotech launches with $52M in its pocket (Endpoints)
• Cardiff unveils positive Phase 2 data for colorectal cancer drug, $40M offering (Endpoints)
• Halia Therapeutics takes NLRP3 inhibitor into final stage of Phase 2 trial (Endpoints)
• Early data suggest Arvinas, Pfizer could combine their breast cancer drug with Lilly’s Verzenio (Endpoints)

• How Trump’s second term will affect the medtech industry (MedTech Dive)
• Vicarious Surgical CFO William Kelly stepping down in January (MedTech Dive)
• Intuitive’s da Vinci beats non-robotic surgeries in cancer meta-analysis (MedTech Dive)
• AI-enabled apps top ECRI’s list of health tech hazards in 2025 (MedTech Dive)
• PharmStars’ Founder Aims To Bridge ‘Pharma Start-Up Gap’; Alumni Are Ready To Pounce On Pharma Deal (MedTech Insight)

• Police arrest suspect in killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson (STAT)
• Jamie Foxx calls on the Senate to pass a bill funding Down syndrome research (STAT)
• Researchers are betting on cockroaches as the cure to elitism in neuroscience (STAT)
• Pharmacies prevail in appeal of $650-million opioid award in Ohio (Reuters)
• HPM and Riparian to Co-Host Webinar on CMS Misclassification Penalties Rule (FDA Law Blog)