Health Affairs January 7, 2022
This past year was filled with news in the prescription drug policy area, from the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) most controversial drug approval in many years to ongoing discussions in Congress over drug pricing reform. Through it all, the importance of responding to the COVID-19 pandemic has remained at the forefront of these challenges.
In this post, I review five key developments from the past year and offer five items to watch for in 2022.
Looking Back: 2021
The FDA’s Approval Of Aduhelm
In June, the FDA approved Biogen’s aducanumab (Aduhelm) for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. But the agency’s first approval of an Alzheimer’s drug in nearly two decades was highly controversial. The agency’s own advisory committee voted...