biotech
How this southern state became a go-to destination for biotech
FUJIFILM Biotechnologies
The former plantation town of Holly Springs — once dubbed the “poverty pocket” of its wealthy North Carolina county — used to be something of a wasteland, according to former acting FDA commissioner Ned Sharpless, who began his medical career in the state. But now? Genentech is spending $700 million to build there; Amgen has pledged $1.5 billion to construct a manufacturing plant; and pharmaceutical contractor FUJIFILM Diosynth is in the midst of a $3 billion project that will create 1,400 jobs.
“[It] seems like every day I hear of another large pharma company building a $2 billion plant down here,” Sharpless told STAT’s Allison DeAngelis. Read Allison’s great story about how North Carolina built manufacturing boomtowns for biotech at a time when most other companies in the field are grappling with layoffs, a lack of financing, and federal pressure.
first opinion
How many Medicare plan choices is too many?
Nearly 7 in 10 Medicare beneficiaries did not compare plans when selecting their 2022 coverage, according to a KFF survey. Among those with stand-alone prescription drug plans, half did not compare options for 2024 coverage, per another study from the USC Schaeffer Institute. So maybe there are already too many options — and too few resources to help older Americans choose the best health care plan for them. That’s the argument made by two public policy experts in a new First Opinion essay.
“Policymakers could do much more to simplify beneficiaries’ plan choices — after all, that’s what beneficiaries want,” the two authors write. Read more on what might ease the pressure.
