Canada In conversation in the October edition of DIA’s Global Forum magazine, Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health (CADTH) CEO Suzanne McGurn highlights how the work of HTA bodies like CADTH has evolved, the most significant challenges in their work, international collaboration, and RWE integration.   Health technology assessment…

Japan Writing in the October edition of DIA’s Global Forum magazine, Chief Executive of Japan’s Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency (PMDA) Yasuhiro Fujiwara outlines how his agency has begun to utilise real-world data (RWD) and real-world evidence (RWE) in its regulatory decision-making processes and how this will evolve moving forward.  …

Turkey Boehringer Ingelheim (BI), the largest private pharma company in the world, has become the latest Big Pharma player to commit to Turkish localization after announcing a contract manufacturing partnership with Abdi Ibrahim, the country’s national pharma champion.   The plan is to produce one out of every two boxes of…

China The latest news from Chinese pharma and biotech, including BMS’ attempts to pull out of its Abraxane supply deal with local player BeiGene; a conversation with Qihan Biotech CEO Luhan Yang who is aiming to produce the first pig organs that can be successfully transplanted into humans; and the Republican…

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia’s ambitious Vision 2030 economic transformation plan aims at transitioning the Middle East’s largest economy away from an over-reliance on fossil fuels and into a more diversified modern nation. This transition is being felt especially keenly in healthcare, where the Ministry of Health’s functions are shifting with the aim…

Africa In a notable first, following successful pilot immunisation programmes in Ghana, Kenya and Malawi, the World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended that the RTS,S malaria vaccine be rolled out across sub-Saharan Africa and in other regions with moderate to high malaria transmission.   Financing for the pilot programme has been…

India The latest news from Indian pharm and healthcare, including Piramal Enterprises’ decision to demerge and list its pharma arm, the country’s 15 pharma billionaires, Danish CNS firm Lundbeck’s decision to shutter its Indian operations, Bharat Biotech’s connection to the world’s first malaria vaccine, and the two million missing workers within…

Global Shawview Consulting’s Brendan Shaw examines the WHO’s recently released updated Essential Medicines List. Shaw highlights some of the key trends and new inclusions in the List, why pricing and transparency are hotter topics than ever, and how pharma can incorporate this important document and its implications into their strategies for…

USA The National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD) is set to host its annual Rare Diseases and Orphan Products Breakthrough Summit on October 18-19th. Ahead of the Summit, the Chair of NORD’s Board of Directors Kay Holcombe explains its significance for cross-stakeholder interaction and learning and why we are entering “a…

China The following is an overview from Accestra Consulting* of Part 2 of China’s Center for Drug Evaluation (CDE)’s 2020 reporting, including an overview of administrative drug approvals and fast track review pathways by CDE.   Abstract Despite severe challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Center for Drug Evaluation (CDE) of…

USA PhRMA’s Lori Reilly warns that, as US policymakers seek to reduce drug prices, they must avoid policies that reduce access and choice.   America is the centre of cutting-edge biopharmaceutical innovation. Not only are many of the latest treatments and cures developed in labs by researchers across the United States,…

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia has one of the highest rates of diabetes in the world – over 17 percent of the population are diabetic – making the supply of insulin products a matter of significant national interest. To this end, the recent Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between historic US diabetes leader…