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President Trump on Friday announced a deal with the British drugmaker AstraZeneca to lower drug prices, his second pact with a major pharmaceutical company in an effort to make prescription drugs more affordable. Under the deal, AstraZeneca agreed to sell its drugs to Medicaid, the health insurance program for lower-income Americans, at about the same prices that it offers to wealthy countries in Europe. (Robbins and Sanger-Katz, 10/10)

A troubled Indiana contract manufacturing plant recently acquired by Novo Nordisk is considered to not be in compliance with the Food and Drug Administration standards, a serious designation that could further delay the approval of drugs made in the facility, including some from Scholar Rock and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals. (Chen, 10/13)

The World Health Organization issued a global alert over three contaminated cough syrups made in India, the latest development in a series of quality-control failures linked to the deaths of more than a dozen children. The tainted products were found in specific batches of COLDRIF, Respifresh TR and ReLife manufactured by Sresan Pharmaceutical, Rednex Pharmaceuticals and Shape Pharma, the WHO said in a notification late Monday. These were used to treat cough, flu and common cold. (Sanjay, 10/14)

Hospitals across the world have recorded an alarming rise in common infections that are resistant to antibiotics, with doctors saying the number of deaths driven by drug resistance will increase sharply in the years ahead. One in six laboratory-confirmed bacterial infections were resistant to antibiotic treatments in 2023, with more than 40% of antibiotics losing potency against common blood, gut, urinary tract and sexually-transmitted infections between 2018 and 2023, records show. (Sample, 10/13)

The US Food and Drug Administration has given clearance to another blood test to help assess Alzheimer’s disease and other causes of cognitive decline, providing a broader understanding of when the disease can be ruled out. (Howard, 10/13)