Biotech and health care - The Boston Globe

Health and biotech

Latest stories

A nation twisting with anxiety is willing to try anything. A bed of nails? Hypnosis? A cold plunge? Bring ‘em on.

The bad news is that the nation is swirling in an epidemic of nerves. The good news is that there’s an industry eager to monetize our distress.

Nurse shortages are set to get even worse with mass US visa delays
Experts estimate that at least 10,000 foreign nurses have been delayed indefinitely — a holdup that's almost certain to worsen an already dire national shortage.

RI HEALTH CARE
CVS to launch new pharmacy reimbursement model aimed at simplifying drug pricing
CVS Health Corp. plans to change how its more than 9,000 pharmacies get paid with a new reimbursement model designed to simplify drug pricing.

Mass. families watch as Supreme Court questions Sackler shield in Purdue’s opioid settlement
A provision that would shield the wealthy Sacklers from future litigation has divided families who have lost loved ones to opioid overdoses.

EyePoint data suggest time-released drug may help patients with macular degeneration
EyePoint’s stock price vaulted more than 180 percent to $18.56 a share, a gain of $11.90 on the Nasdaq exchange in mid-day trading.

INNOVATOR Q&A
Many Americans ration insulin to save money. One nonprofit is trying to make the life-saving drug more affordable.
Eric Moyal is the founder and executive director of Project Insulin, a Providence-based nonprofit working to ensure that every American has access to affordable insulin.

Featured stories

“The detective work really starts with listening very carefully to what people say and letting them tell their stories,” said Dr. Nesli Basgoz, an infectious disease specialist at MGH.

How a Boston doctor diagnosed the first US case of monkeypox

After a few days, the doctor noticed a telling change. The patient’s rash consisted of fluid-filled blisters that had a dent in the center. His rash looked like smallpox.

Vitamin D tablets and pills are displayed. More research suggests it’s time to abandon the craze over vitamin D. Taking high doses of “the sunshine vitamin” doesn't reduce the risk of broken bones in generally healthy older Americans, researchers found.

Once the ‘it’ supplement, vitamin D is losing its sparkle

Vitamin D supplements, regularly consumed by millions of Americans, have not held up to the considerable hype of warding off many common, dreaded diseases.

A pedestrian passed the Longwood Avenue exterior of Boston Children's Hospital.

Right-wing groups hit Boston Children’s with barrage of threats over trans health program

A hostile online campaign has prompted the hospital to seek help from law enforcement.

David Pepin and Dr. Patricia Donahoe are cofounders of the biotech startup Oviva Therapeutics, which aims to create drugs to prolong fertility, delay menopause, and potentially prevent other effects of aging in women.

This startup aims to delay menopause and prolong fertility with a new contraceptive

Oviva Therapeutics just raised $11.5 million to develop drugs based on the work of Mass. General researchers.

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Biotech

A patient is treated for age-related macular degeneration at Mass Eye and Ear in Boston in 2018. EyePoint Pharmaceuticals recently posted clinical data suggesting its experimental drug could extend the time between eye injections for patients with the most severe form of macular degeneration.

EyePoint data suggest time-released drug may help patients with macular degeneration

EyePoint’s stock price vaulted more than 180 percent to $18.56 a share, a gain of $11.90 on the Nasdaq exchange in mid-day trading.

Eric Moyal is the executive director of Project Insulin, a nonprofit that is raising money to soon begin manufacturing insulin that will be more affordable in New England.

INNOVATOR Q&A

Many Americans ration insulin to save money. One nonprofit is trying to make the life-saving drug more affordable.

Eric Moyal is the founder and executive director of Project Insulin, a Providence-based nonprofit working to ensure that every American has access to affordable insulin.

Rahman Oladigbolu, a filmmaker in Brockton with sickle cell disease, is among local patients interested in Casgevy, a gene-editing treatment expected to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration for people with severe cases of the disease.

FDA poised to approve first gene-editing therapy, made by local drug firms

The life-changing drug, developed by Boston-based Vertex and its Swiss partner CRISPR Therapeutics, targets sickle cell disease, an inherited blood disorder that causes crippling pain.

Lifestyle

RI HEALTH CARE

CVS to launch new pharmacy reimbursement model aimed at simplifying drug pricing

CVS Health Corp. plans to change how its more than 9,000 pharmacies get paid with a new reimbursement model designed to simplify drug pricing.

INNOVATOR Q&A

Many Americans ration insulin to save money. One nonprofit is trying to make the life-saving drug more affordable.

Eric Moyal is the founder and executive director of Project Insulin, a Providence-based nonprofit working to ensure that every American has access to affordable insulin.

Mary Greer sits with her cat Pepper in the kitchen at her home in the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston, MA on Feb. 8, 2023. She had the oven on to take the morning chill out of the air and to comfort Pepper. Mary is struggling with the rising price of home heating oil and is receiving assistance. She has other bills and medical issues including two battles with cancer.

RI NEWS

Majority of R.I. residents say cost of living is becoming harder to afford, according to survey

The availability of affordable housing, services for children, access to health care and food security, and jobs were among the key issues, according to the 2023 Rhode Island Life Index.

Spotlight

Dr. Elizabeth Nabel, then president of Brigham Health, brought a Boston delegation in April 2018 to celebrate the opening of the Boao Evergrande International Hospital in China, constructed in a new medical tourism hub.

How Brigham Health helped create a Chinese hospital for elites — and almost nobody came

In a deal worth millions with Chinese developer Evergrande, a Harvard teaching hospital risked its reputation on what would become a near-empty shell.

Boston’s hospital chiefs moonlight on corporate boards at rates far beyond the national level

Hospital chiefs and trustees defend this as boosting public-private partnerships, but critics say these board positions — some paying millions of dollars — raise troubling issues of conflict of interest and hospital priorities.

Local vets urge caution but not panic over ‘mystery’ respiratory illness found in dogs

Boston-area veterinarians said they have received a surge of calls from concerned dog owners following media reports about the “mystery illness,” which in some cases has developed into pneumonia and even led to death. 6:28 p.m.

FDA poised to approve first gene-editing therapy, made by local drug firms

The life-changing drug, developed by Boston-based Vertex and its Swiss partner CRISPR Therapeutics, targets sickle cell disease, an inherited blood disorder that causes crippling pain. 2:30 p.m.

Commuters in South Station stand in front of the train schedule board for holiday travels.

COVID levels in waste water edge up post-Thanksgiving

But the numbers remain low relative to this time last year. 7:46 a.m.

A person ran along Quincy Shore Drive in Quincy.

What’s your risk of dementia? Tool from Mass. General helps assess brain health.

New research suggests a high score on measures of physical health, lifestyle, and social life translates to a lower risk of some brain diseases. 12:00 a.m.

AbbVie is buying ImmunoGen in a deal valued at about $10.1 billion with the goal of speeding the pharmaceutical's entry into the market for ovarian cancer treatments.

AbbVie strikes deal to acquire Waltham’s ImmunoGen for more than $10 billion

It’s the largest acquisition of a Massachusetts company this year. 11:25 a.m.

An aerial view of the Kendall Square area in Cambridge. Generation Bio, a Cambridge genetic medicines startup, became the latest Massachusetts biotech to slash its payroll.

Generation Bio cuts its payroll by 40 percent in latest restructuring move

The Cambridge biotech startup is seeking to extend its cash into 2027. 4:09 p.m.

RI NEWS

Majority of R.I. residents say cost of living is becoming harder to afford, according to survey

The availability of affordable housing, services for children, access to health care and food security, and jobs were among the key issues, according to the 2023 Rhode Island Life Index. 11:00 a.m.

For the first time in nearly two decades, Miguel Pagan is sleeping in a bed in a private room with a locked door.

‘I feel reborn’: One man’s fight to overcome addiction after living at Mass. and Cass

Miguel Pagan is determined to fulfill a promise he made to his mother to get off heroin, yet the pull of his old life remains strong. 12:41 p.m.

Latest stories

A nation twisting with anxiety is willing to try anything. A bed of nails? Hypnosis? A cold plunge? Bring ‘em on.

Nurse shortages are set to get even worse with mass US visa delaysExperts estimate that at least 10,000 foreign nurses have been delayed indefinitely — a holdup that's almost certain to worsen an already dire national shortage.

RI HEALTH CARECVS to launch new pharmacy reimbursement model aimed at simplifying drug pricingCVS Health Corp. plans to change how its more than 9,000 pharmacies get paid with a new reimbursement model designed to simplify drug pricing.

Mass. families watch as Supreme Court questions Sackler shield in Purdue’s opioid settlement A provision that would shield the wealthy Sacklers from future litigation has divided families who have lost loved ones to opioid overdoses.

EyePoint data suggest time-released drug may help patients with macular degenerationEyePoint’s stock price vaulted more than 180 percent to $18.56 a share, a gain of $11.90 on the Nasdaq exchange in mid-day trading.

INNOVATOR Q&AMany Americans ration insulin to save money. One nonprofit is trying to make the life-saving drug more affordable.Eric Moyal is the founder and executive director of Project Insulin, a Providence-based nonprofit working to ensure that every American has access to affordable insulin.

Featured stories

How a Boston doctor diagnosed the first US case of monkeypox

Once the ‘it’ supplement, vitamin D is losing its sparkle

Right-wing groups hit Boston Children’s with barrage of threats over trans health program

This startup aims to delay menopause and prolong fertility with a new contraceptive

FROM OUR PARTNERS

EyePoint data suggest time-released drug may help patients with macular degeneration

Many Americans ration insulin to save money. One nonprofit is trying to make the life-saving drug more affordable.

FDA poised to approve first gene-editing therapy, made by local drug firms

CVS to launch new pharmacy reimbursement model aimed at simplifying drug pricing

Many Americans ration insulin to save money. One nonprofit is trying to make the life-saving drug more affordable.

Majority of R.I. residents say cost of living is becoming harder to afford, according to survey

How Brigham Health helped create a Chinese hospital for elites — and almost nobody came

Boston’s hospital chiefs moonlight on corporate boards at rates far beyond the national level

More biotech and health care stories

Local vets urge caution but not panic over ‘mystery’ respiratory illness found in dogs

FDA poised to approve first gene-editing therapy, made by local drug firms

COVID levels in waste water edge up post-Thanksgiving

What’s your risk of dementia? Tool from Mass. General helps assess brain health.

AbbVie strikes deal to acquire Waltham’s ImmunoGen for more than $10 billion

Generation Bio cuts its payroll by 40 percent in latest restructuring move

Majority of R.I. residents say cost of living is becoming harder to afford, according to survey

‘I feel reborn’: One man’s fight to overcome addiction after living at Mass. and Cass

Nurse shortages are set to get even worse with mass US visa delays
Experts estimate that at least 10,000 foreign nurses have been delayed indefinitely — a holdup that's almost certain to worsen an already dire national shortage.

RI HEALTH CARE
CVS to launch new pharmacy reimbursement model aimed at simplifying drug pricing
CVS Health Corp. plans to change how its more than 9,000 pharmacies get paid with a new reimbursement model designed to simplify drug pricing.

Mass. families watch as Supreme Court questions Sackler shield in Purdue’s opioid settlement
A provision that would shield the wealthy Sacklers from future litigation has divided families who have lost loved ones to opioid overdoses.

EyePoint data suggest time-released drug may help patients with macular degeneration
EyePoint’s stock price vaulted more than 180 percent to $18.56 a share, a gain of $11.90 on the Nasdaq exchange in mid-day trading.

INNOVATOR Q&A
Many Americans ration insulin to save money. One nonprofit is trying to make the life-saving drug more affordable.
Eric Moyal is the founder and executive director of Project Insulin, a Providence-based nonprofit working to ensure that every American has access to affordable insulin.