Gilead scored a full FDA approval for COVID-19 drug Veklury, but experts aren't convinced AstraZeneca’s U.S. COVID-19 trial is back on track after 45-day hold Demand for virtual mental healthcare is soaring. Here are key trends on who is using it and why CDC's distribution road map, safety monitoring plans plus other takeaways from FDA's big COVID-19 vaccine meeting Convalescent plasma fails phase 2 in moderate COVID-19 patients Biopharma roundup: AstraZeneca gets OK to unpause U.S. trial; Merck's slow and steady vaccine approach sparked internal debates: report Gen Zers, millennials feeling impacts of COVID-19 on health coverage, costs: TransUnion Merck, Pfizer pneumonia vaccines running low in EU as researchers fight COVID-19: report Deaths rattle South Korea's seasonal flu vaccination, but authority presses ahead with free scheme Novartis launches metastatic breast cancer Instagram series to address new patient concerns during COVID-19 Avalere: 1 in 3 Medicare Advantage plans to offer supplemental benefits linked to COVID-19 next year Featured Story | By Eric Sagonowsky As new COVID-19 cases spike in the U.S., and ahead of an expected winter surge, the FDA just issued its first full approval for a drug to treat the disease—Gilead Sciences’ Veklury, formerly known as remdesivir. But the approval closely follows a large trial that showed no benefit for the therapy, and experts quickly questioned the FDA's move. read more |
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| | Webinar: The Power of Virtual Health Assessments during COVID Tuesday, October 27 | 11am ET / 8am PT COVID-19 has forced us to rethink how we effectively support members, and manage quality improvement and risk adjustment initiatives. This webinar provides a look at how Virtual Health Assessments improve healthcare outcomes for members, providers, and payers. Explore how Advantmed’s telehealth solution supports quality improvement and risk adjustment. Register Today. |
Top Stories By Amirah Al Idrus It’s been a minute, but AstraZeneca has gotten the FDA’s all-clear to restart the U.S. study of its COVID-19 vaccine. The British pharma slammed the brakes on the program in early September, when a patient in the U.K. developed an inflammatory side effect. The pause came just one week after the 30,000-patient U.S. trial kicked off. read more By Heather Landi The COVID-19 pandemic is driving enormous demand for virtual mental health care services. Here is how mental health diagnoses have shifted during COVID-19 and other notable tele-therapy trends, based on data from leading telehealth companies. read more By Eric Sagonowsky In less than a year, scientists around the world have rallied against COVID-19 and developed promising vaccines that could stem the pandemic. Concerns remain, though, and, amid that backdrop, top government expert took a chance Thursday to discuss safety and efficacy requirements, distribution plans and vaccine confidence—plus more. read more By Nick Paul Taylor A randomized phase 2 clinical trial has found convalescent plasma has no effect on progression to severe disease or all-cause mortality in COVID-19 patients. The data raise significant doubts about the efficacy of an intervention that has been given to more than 100,000 people in the U.S. read more By Eric Sagonowsky, Angus Liu, Kyle Blankenship, Conor Hale, Fraiser Kansteiner AstraZeneca's trial can resume in the U.S., WSJ reports. Plus, Merck's slow entry into the vaccine race was controversial among employees, the Journal wrote. HHS Secretary Azar has discussed firing FDA chief Hahn, Politico reports. Some experts want more than two months vaccine safety data. And plasma missed the mark in a mid-stage trial. read more By Paige Minemyer Millennials and Generation Zers are particularly feeling the impacts of COVID-19 on their health coverage, according to a new survey. read more By Kyle Blankenship As COVID-19 continues to rage worldwide, health authorities worry that a perfect storm of the novel coronavirus, pneumonia and seasonal flu could overtake hospital systems. Two major pneumococcal vaccines are already seeing shortages in the EU, which could be an ill omen for the coming months. read more By Angus Liu South Korea is preparing to fight two infectious diseases this winter: the novel coronavirus and the flu. But reports of deaths after flu shot vaccination may jeopardize the second effort. Despite 36 deaths linked to at least seven companies, including Sanofi, local health authorities still decide to continue with the national vaccination scheme. read more By Beth Snyder Bulik Novartis is taking its metastatic breast cancer campaign to Instagram with a newly launched video series. It's part of the long-running “Make Your Dialogue Count” effort that's now shifted focus to patients’ changed needs during the COVID-19 crisis. The first video focuses on mindfulness, with two MBC patients talking about the practice and demonstrating actual techniques. read more By Robert King A new analysis found that 34% of Medicare Advantage plans are offering some form of supplemental benefit related to COVID-19, including relief packages. read more |
