Recon: Pfizer gets conditional OK from EMA for Paxlovid; Moderna starts trial for Omicron booster shot

• Moderna starts trial for Omicron-specific booster shot (Reuters)
• Most US local governments opt to join $26 bln opioid settlement (Reuters)
• Roche nabs a priority review for Evrysdi, hoping to become the first oral treatment for infants with SMA (Endpoints)
• Pfizer pushes to intervene in lawsuit seeking COVID vaccine information from FDA (Reuters) (Endpoints)
• Under pressure, Biogen outlines ambitious diversity goals for Aduhelm study — but the Medicare fight is still on (Endpoints)
• The Biden administration used billions in hospital Covid-19 funds to pay drugmakers (STAT)
• A senior Biogen commercial exec exits Alzheimer's unit amid exodus as Aduhelm woes mount (Endpoints)
• Top US FDA Drug Policy Leader Leaving For White House Detail (Pink Sheet)
• Consortium Costs Debated As BARDA, Industry Discuss Plans For Next Pandemic Response (Pink Sheet)

• EU drug regulator OKs Pfizer COVID pill for high-risk patients (EMA) (Bloomberg) (Reuters)
• Booster shots could cut Europe's COVID hospitalisations by up to 800,000 -EU (Reuters)
• As Omicron-specific boosters are in the news, BioNTech to expand German site workforce by 200 employees (Endpoints)
• China's Walvax says has most participants for large mRNA COVID vaccine trial (Reuters)
• UK Tests Streamlined Assessment Of Requests For Trials Involving Drugs & Devices (Pink Sheet)

• Government watchdog says HHS at 'high risk' of bungling public health crises (Politico)
• Boosters increase protection against death from Omicron in over-50s to 95% - UKHSA (Reuters)
• Sweden decides against recommending COVID vaccines for kids aged 5-12 (Reuters)
• Covid-19 Curbs Eased Further in Europe as New Version of Omicron Spreads in Places (WSJ)
• As Omicron ebbs, England revives Plan A: living with COVID (Reuters)
• No exit from zero-COVID: China struggles to find policy off-ramp (Reuters)
• Hong Kong may become a living laboratory in search for Covid-19 answers (STAT)
• Patchwork system for rationing a Covid drug sends immunocompromised patients on a ‘Hunger Games hunt (STAT)
• Hospitals are denying transplants for patients who aren’t vaccinated against Covid, with backing from ethicists (STAT)

• Taysha mulls tweaks to gene therapy trial after subject dies (Fierce)
• Immunocore Ready For First-Ever Launch After Kimmtrak’s US Approval (Scrip)
• After a banner year, Samsung will charge forward with 'super plant' plans, and look to expand abroad (Endpoints)
• As Sanofi keeps shrinking its US HQ footprint during pandemic, new owners scoop up its old campus (Endpoints)
• Early research suggests Merck cancer drug may target dormant HIV (Reuters)
• Novartis marketing vets move on to new commercial roles in biotech (Endpoints)
• Selling shares at a discount, Zymeworks grabs $100M cash in hopes of turnaround (Endpoints)
• Going after an old GSK target in a new way, a Yale spinout hits the clinic and nabs a modest raise (Endpoints)
• China Biotechs Bag $740m As Ox Makes Way For Tiger (Scrip)
• A new Third Rock startup seeks a 'second golden age' of GPCR drug discovery based on Nobel laureate's work (Endpoints)
• Big Pharma R&D legend Paul Stoffels is trading his J&J title for the CEO role at one of the most deeply troubled biotechs in the industry (Endpoints)

• Playing Big: Akili To Be Bought By Chamath Palihapitiya’s SPAC In $1Bn Deal (MedTech Intelligence)
• Philips adds even more ventilators to Class I recall caused by faulty sound-muffling foam (Fierce)(MedTech Intelligence)
• 4 key trends for procedure-reliance medtechs in 2022 (MedTech Dive)

• Dying Covid Liability Laws Prompt Push for Their Revival (Bloomberg)
• Sign-ups in Affordable Care Act marketplaces reach record 14.5 million (Washington Post) (Reuters)
• Michigan attorney general pursues investigation into Lilly’s ‘grossly’ excessive insulin prices (STAT)