Comment

We open by marking Yom Kippur and a frank discussion before pivoting to the US 'MFN' drug-pricing moves, what they could mean for Australia’s PBS, and why institutional rigidity in HTA persists and is worsening. Medical research funding rhetoric versus slow progress in PBS and health technology access, hospital funding and NDIS pressures, and the expansion of pharmacist prescribing, as well as the need for subsidised pharmacy services.

The Trump administration has established a significant incentive for companies to sign up to its 'Most Favored Nation' pharmaceutical pricing policy by linking it to faster regulatory approvals.

For outsiders to Australia’s use of health technology assessment, the endless focus on technical inputs and process is bewildering, especially given that it has delivered only greater complexity and higher hurdles. Yet when the system is observed up close, its inner logic becomes clear.

“Here in Australia and New Zealand, the impact Vertex has had in cystic fibrosis has been remarkable, and I am really excited to be joining the team as we build on that progress for patients and their families,” she said.

Race Oncology (ASX:RAC) has revealed the primary mechanism of action for its lead asset, (E,E)-bisantrene (RCDS1), in a discovery that reshapes how the drug could be developed and deployed in cancer care.

Health Minister Mark Butler has announced a $13.6 million investment to advance long-promised reforms to Australia’s health and medical research system, pledging to make the country a more attractive destination for clinical trials and to give patients faster access to new treatments.

New Zealanders living with, or at risk of, HIV could soon face fewer hurdles in accessing treatment, with Pharmac proposing significant changes to how the medicines are funded and supplied.

While the UK has agreed to negotiate higher pharmaceutical prices, Pfizer's agreement with the Trump administration suggests a willingness to compromise and limit its domestic MFN demand to some government programs.

Influenza has claimed more Australian lives in the first seven months of 2025 than during the same period in the severe flu season of 2019, prompting urgent calls for greater investment in nurse-led vaccination programs.

Executive chairman Paul Hopper authorised the announcement, noting that Radiopharm’s strategy is to develop a differentiated platform of radiopharmaceutical products across peptides, small molecules, and antibodies.

Australian motion technology company dorsaVi (ASX:DVL) has announced a technical milestone that could reshape the future of robotics and human–machine interaction.

After more than a decade of debate and indecision, the New Zealand Government has unveiled a new framework for procuring hospital medical devices, promising greater efficiency, certainty, and transparency for suppliers, clinicians, and patients.