STAT+: Pharmalittle: We’re reading about the 340B drug pilot program, an obesity drug disappointment, and more

STAT PlusNewsletterPharmalot Pharmalittle: We’re reading about the 340B drug pilot program, an obesity drug disappointment, and more Novartis signed a licensing deal worth about $7.8 billion with Chinese biotech company Abogen Manage alerts for this article Save this story for later Share this article By Ed SilvermanOct. 2, 2026 Pharmalot Columnist, Senior Writer Ed Silverman[email protected]Ed’s stories explore prescription drug pricing, affordability and access, as well issues surrounding patents, litigation, and legislation. He is also the author of the morning Pharmalittle newsletter and the afternoon Pharmalot newsletter.

And so, another working week will soon come to a close. Not a moment too soon, yes? This is, you may recall, our treasured signal to daydream about weekend plans.

Our agenda is still taking shape, but we plan to tidy up around the castle, promenade extensively with the official mascots, and escort Mrs. Pharmalot to a roadside tavern. We also hope to have time for another listening party, where the rotation will likely include this, this, this, this, this and this.

And what about you? The world is at your fingertips, you know, so this might be a lovely time to enjoy the great outdoors as the seasons turn. If the weather fails to cooperate, you could gather with friends and play a board game — remember those?

— or put on your chef’s hat and cook a good meal. You could also plan the rest of your life, before an AI bot does it for you. Well, whatever you do, have a grand time.

But be safe. Enjoy, and see you soon. … An obesity drug from Boehringer Ingelheim and Zealand Pharma helped patients with diabetes shed as much as 13.1% of their weight, a disappointing result, Bloomberg News tells us.

Boehringer has pitched the medicine as a way to help patients lose fat while preserving muscle, but without an edge, the drug becomes just one more contender in an increasingly crowded market dominated by Eli Lilly and Novo. Boehringer pushed back at the idea that the drug might only be a niche product, saying that upcoming studies in heart and liver health will more clearly show its potential.The upcoming midterm elections are setting the stage for unusually significant changes to key Senate committees that play an important role in health care, STAT explains. Both the finance and health committees could undergo major changes, though for different reasons.

Of course, if Democrats take control of the Senate, they would get to run the committees, though the GOP membership changes could still influence the panels’ directions. Specifically, five or more of the Senate Finance Committee’s 14 Republicans are set to leave. And the outlook for the Senate’s Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, or HELP, is even more difficult to predict with the departure of chairman Bill Cassidy.Advertisement Novartis signed a licensing deal worth about $7.8 billion with Chinese biotech company Abogen to ​advance RNA-based therapy, Reuters says.

Novartis will ​gain exclusive rights to Abogen’s experimental ⁠drug, ABO2203, and options to ​license other therapies based on ​Abogen’s RNA technology. It will also have the option to license additional experimental ​medicines developed using Abogen’s RNA ​platform. The drug is ⁠designed to treat autoimmune diseases by targeting B ​cells, a type of ​immune ⁠cell that causes disease in conditions like lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.

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Subscribe Log In pharmalittle, STAT+ Submit a correction requestReprints Ed Silverman Pharmalot Columnist, Senior Writer Ed’s stories explore prescription drug pricing, affordability and access, as well issues surrounding patents, litigation, and legislation. He is also the author of the morning Pharmalittle newsletter and the afternoon Pharmalot newsletter. Newsletter Understand how science, health policy, and medicine shape the world every day Recommended Pharmalot October 1, 2026 STAT Plus: Pharmalittle: We’re reading about a plan to lower Medicare drug prices, a Lilly obesity drug, and more Pharmalot September 30, 2026 STAT Plus: Pharmalittle: We’re reading about Beam suing over IP theft, a Trump rule on importing meds, and more Advertisement Pharmalot September 29, 2026 STAT Plus: Lawmakers urge Trump to rethink new rule that could restrict imported meds from Canada and overseas Pharmalot September 29, 2026 STAT Plus: Pharmalittle: We’re reading about Novo licensing a Chinese obesity pill, Merck pulling an antibiotic, and more Pharmalot September 28, 2026 STAT Plus: Merck discontinues a crucial antibiotic despite concerns over superbug resistance Subscriber Picks