It’s who you know that matters

Sarepta Therapeutics, which has come under regulatory pressure over its gene therapy for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, hired the Trump-connected lobbying firm Michael Best Strategies after the death of a teenage boy treated with the drug, according to lobbying disclosure reports.

It’s not clear what exactly the firm lobbied on, other than that it had to do with “rare disease therapeutic development and access.” And multiple factors were likely at work in the fast-moving saga involving Sarepta and the FDA, including the involvement of far-right social media influencer Laura Loomer.

But it’s hard to ignore the timing. Michael Best Strategies registered to lobby for Sarepta on June 10. By the end of the following month, FDA had reversed a controversial decision to stop shipment of Sarepta’s gene therapy and the head of the FDA center that oversees that treatment had resigned.

Read more for all the details and disclaimers.

white house

Regulating from the bully pulpit

Instead of changing laws and regulations, the Trump administration is asking that companies take voluntary action, offering incentives for those that comply and making vague threats of penalties for those that don’t.

Daniel Payne, Chelsea Cirruzzo, and Sarah Todd describe the administration’s approach to persuading companies to do what it wants, helping President Trump declare quick wins. But the tactic has a downside: once Trump is no longer president, companies may return to their previous ways.

Read more for how Trump’s approach is playing out across the health care and food landscape.

congress

Democratic senators probe UnitedHealth

U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) are investigating whether UnitedHealth Group encouraged nursing homes to limit hospitalizations among patients enrolled in some of the company’s health plans, Tara Banow reports.

The investigation is the latest in a long line of challenges for UnitedHealth. It follows a scathing Guardian article that reported on those practices. (UnitedHealth has sued the news outlet for defamation.)

UnitedHealth said in a statement that it stands firmly behind the integrity of its institutional special needs plans, or I-SNPs, which are Medicare Advantage plans designed to serve people dually eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid who live in nursing homes. The company said The Guardian’s article misrepresented the program and added that the U.S. Department of Justice reviewed the allegations and found no evidence of wrongdoing.

vaccines

RFK Jr. takes another shot at vaccines

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the government’s emergency preparedness agency will no longer fund work on messenger RNA vaccines, Helen Branswell writes, delivering a crippling blow to the country’s capacity to develop vaccines during the next pandemic or public health emergency.

The mRNA vaccine platform was first used to deliver Covid-19 vaccines in record time. Scientists also are exploring the technology for cancer immunotherapies.

Read more for the reactions from vaccine experts and people steeped in pandemic preparedness.

research funding

Congressional watchdog: Cancellation of NIH grants is illegal

First, a federal court ruled that some of the NIH’s grant terminations were illegal.

Now, the independent, non-partisan Government Accountability Office, which works for Congress, has gone even further, stating that the Trump administration violated impoundment law by canceling more than 1,800 NIH grants, according to Anil Oza and Megan Molteni.

The report also says that NIH’s $8 billion shortfall in new and continuing awards between February and July is an illegal withholding of funds.

But does it matter? The Trump administration is still appealing the court ruling, and the GAO report is not binding. It’s up to the Republican-controlled Congress to decide whether to uphold the law. Read more.

More around STAT

Check out more exclusive coverage with a STAT+ subscription

Read premium in-depth biotech, pharma, policy, and life science coverage and analysis with all of our STAT+ articles.

What we’re reading

Lithium, a treatment for bipolar disorders, might be a key to Alzheimer’s disease, STAT
Opinion: The Political Race for Fewer Cures, The Wall Street Journal
Opinion: Trump deserves the Nobel Peace Prize for Operation Warp Speed’s global impact, STAT
The GOP is choosing pesticides over the MAHA moms, Bloomberg
Rare disease patients caught in Trump crackdown on foreign grant awards, STAT

Thanks for reading! More next time,