And so, another working week will soon draw to a close. Not a moment too soon, yes? This is, you may recall, our treasured signal to daydream about weekend plans. Our agenda is still coming into focus, but we expected to catch up on our reading, promenade with the official mascots, and host another listening party, where the rotation will be appropriately seasonal and include this, this, this, this, this and this. And what about you? The world is already spooky enough, but you might care to stop by a gathering or two where you could pretend to be something else for a little while. Maybe a spider from mars or werewolf in London. The possibilities are endless, actually. And once you recover, you could spend the rest of the weekend enjoying the falling leaves and other pleasantries of the great outdoors. Well, whatever you do, have a grand time. But be safe. Enjoy, and see you soon. …
A slow-boiling feud between Vinay Prasad and his staff at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is threatening the future of the center that regulates the nation’s vaccines, biological products, and blood supply, STAT says. Dozens of scientists are considering leaving the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, where Prasad serves as director, to escape a work environment that eight agency officials described as rife with mistrust and paranoia. These officials said staffers are terrified of pushing back on Prasad, lest they face retaliation. The fear has been fueled by Prasad pushing at least seven senior leaders out of their positions and offering no public explanations to staff or supervisors. Some of his workers are fed up, and are attempting to transfer to the FDA Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. Prasad has tried to block these transfers in apparent recognition that CBER cannot afford to lose many more employees.
Sandoz chief executive officer Richard Saynor warns that European governments need to protect local antibiotics manufacturing from a flood of cheaper Chinese products resulting from U.S. tariffs, Bloomberg News notes. The company said the price of the key ingredient in penicillin — a lifesaving product for bacterial infections like pneumonia — has roughly halved lately as Chinese suppliers turn from the U.S. to Europe, putting pressure on its business. “We’ve been in antibiotics nearly 80 years in Europe and we want to stay in antibiotics for the next 80 years,” he said. “But when we’re selling a pack of antibiotics more cheaply than a packet of M&Ms, then governments need to recognize that if they want that to continue, then we need to work in partnership to make sure it’s sustainable.” Saynor called on European governments to commit to procuring at least 20% of antibiotics from local suppliers, arguing Sandoz is Europe’s last producer of penicillin.
