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JPMorgan's Ozempic bet, J&J's baby powder settlement, Moderna's COVID-flu vax: Pharma news round up

JPMorgan's Ozempic bet, J&J's baby powder settlement, Moderna's COVID-flu vax: Pharma news round up

Plus, weight loss drug scams are on the rise, and a new startup hires overseas freelancers to get hard-to-find medications

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Image for article titled JPMorgan's Ozempic bet, J&J's baby powder settlement, Moderna's COVID-flu vax: Pharma news round up
Graphic: Images: Hollie Adams, Hollie Adams, Yves Herman, Hollie Adams

JPMorgan Chase’s asset management division just finished raising a $500 million biotech fund, and its managers are looking at weight loss drug investments. Johnson & Johnson agreed this week to settle a multi-state case alleging it misled consumers about the safety of its talc-based powder products. Moderna said its experimental COVID-flu combo vaccine outperformed existing, stand alone vaccines.

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Check out those stories and more pharmaceutical news highlights from this week.

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Novo Nordisk expects its sales to rise between 19% to 24% in 2024.
Novo Nordisk expects its sales to rise between 19% to 24% in 2024.
Image: Hollie Adams (Reuters)

America’s largest bank is betting in on the craze surrounding Ozempic and other GLP-1s, a class of diabetes and obesity medications known for their weight loss benefits. 

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McAfee uncovered 449 risky website and over 176, 000 phishing attempts tied to Ozempic and weight loss drugs in the first four months of 2024.
McAfee uncovered 449 risky website and over 176, 000 phishing attempts tied to Ozempic and weight loss drugs in the first four months of 2024.
Image: Hollie Adams (Reuters)

Soaring demand for Ozempic, Wegovy and other weight loss drugs has boosted business for another line of work: online scams. That’s according to a report published Wednesday by digital security company McAfee. 

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Johnson & Johnson will pay $700 million to settle a case with 42 U.S. states and the District of Columbia.
Johnson & Johnson will pay $700 million to settle a case with 42 U.S. states and the District of Columbia.
Image: Yves Herman (Reuters)

Johnson & Johnson has agreed to pay $700 million to settle a multistate case regarding the marketing of its baby powder products that contained talc and are believed to have harmed consumers. 

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Image for article titled JPMorgan's Ozempic bet, J&J's baby powder settlement, Moderna's COVID-flu vax: Pharma news round up
Image: Jonathan Nackstrand / Contributor (Getty Images)

A booming demand for weight loss drugs has turned Ozempic into a household name. By next year, the Danish pharma giant behind it, Novo Nordisk, could even surpass Lego as Denmark’s most valuable brand, according a prominent global brand consultancy. 

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The net price for Ozempic in the United States about $600 a month, according to the Senate health commitee.
The net price for Ozempic in the United States about $600 a month, according to the Senate health commitee.
Image: Hollie Adams (Reuters)

Bernie Sanders has called a vote to subpoena a Novo Nordisk executive to testify on the company’s prices for Ozempic and Wegovy. The senator announced Tuesday that the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) is set to vote Tuesday, June 18, on whether to subpoena Novo Nordisk president Doug Langa for a hearing on July 10. 

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Insisto Medfinder charges customer $50 to locate a pharmacy that has their prescription in stock.
Image: Bloomberg / Contributor (Getty Images)

A startup is working to help Americans navigate ongoing shortages of highly-coveted drugs like Adderall and Ozempic. Their solution is to outsource the detective work of finding which pharmacies have these medicines in stock to freelancers abroad. 

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The experimental combo shot could also assist Moderna offset declining demand for COVID-19 vaccines caption
The experimental combo shot could also assist Moderna offset declining demand for COVID-19 vaccines caption
Image: Dado Ruvic (Reuters)

Moderna said on Monday that its experimental combination vaccines against COVID-19 and the flu produced a higher immune response than existing, standalone vaccines in a late-stage trial. 

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CMS is set to announce the prices for the first ten drugs participating in Medicare negotiations later this year.
CMS is set to announce the prices for the first ten drugs participating in Medicare negotiations later this year.
Image: Shana Novak (Getty Images)

A key goal of the Biden administration has been to rein in healthcare costs. As the administration nears the end of its of its first term, Quartz talked to experts, industry analysts, and a government regulator to see how the industry has responded to federal policies to date — especially those aiming to drive down drug prices. 

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Generic competition helps lower drug prices by at least 39%, according to the FDA.
Generic competition helps lower drug prices by at least 39%, according to the FDA.
Image: George Frey (Reuters)

Nothing cuts a drug’s price like competition. A U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) report found that a drug’s wholesale price drops an average of 39% after one single generic drug competitor enters the market. But before generic versions of a drug can enter the market, a drug manufacturer’s patent must first expire. Here are some of the world’s best-selling drugs whose patents are expiring by 2030. 

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