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June 04, 2020___

Today's Rundown

Featured Story

AstraZeneca unveils massive $750M deal in effort to produce billions of COVID-19 shots

British drugmaker AstraZeneca has made clear its intent to rapidly scale production of Oxford University's COVID-19 vaccine hopeful despite a dearth of clinical data to support its use. Now, with an eye-popping deal worth three-quarters of a billion dollars, AstraZeneca is putting its money where its mouth is. 

[Sponsored] Salesforce proactively helps providers re-engage patients and reschedule elective procedures and services delayed by the COVID-19 crisis

Many elective procedures were postponed due to COVID-19, but with the Salesforce Accelerate Elective Procedures solution, providers are able to re-engage patients and reschedule elective procedures.

Top Stories

FDA authorizes new Roche test for identifying high-risk COVID-19 patients

Roche received an emergency authorization from the FDA for a new type of coronavirus diagnostic test—not to confirm an active infection or previous exposure to the disease, but to help identify whether a person with COVID-19 has a high risk of developing severe complications.

Lawmakers press HHS to say when Medicaid-reliant providers will get COVID-19 relief funding

A bipartisan group of lawmakers wants answers from the Department of Health and Human Services on why Medicaid-reliant providers haven't gotten relief funding.

Study suggests hydroxychloroquine doesn't prevent COVID-19. But questions remain

President Donald Trump said in May that he was taking hydroxychloroquine to guard against COVID-19 infection. A new study in The New England Journal of Medicine suggests the antimalaria drug doesn't work that way. But experts are poking holes in the published research.

Biopharma roundup: GSK, Sanofi burned by Warp Speed picks; EU members launch COVID vax alliance

The Trump administration revealed its Operation Warp Speed finalists, mostly favoring Big Pharma. The WHO resumed trials on hydroxychloroquine in COVID patients, while the New England Journal of Medicine published disappointing results for the drug as a preventive tool. And European countries are working on their own vaccine alliance.

Healthcare roundup: Nursing home deaths rise to 32K; Majority of counties lack infectious diseases physicians

Follow along with the latest COVID-19 news straight from the FierceHealthcare team.

HHS requiring labs to report patients' race, ethnicity with COVID-19 tests in effort to combat disparities

Following outcries from lawmakers and the public about the lack of demographic data related to COVID-19 testing, the Trump administration is now requiring laboratories to collect demographic data like race, ethnicity, and sex when reporting COVID-19 test results.

BARDA taps Evidation Health to digitally monitor healthcare workers for early COVID-19 symptoms

Evidation Health is pairing up with the U.S. government’s experimental medical research arm to develop a digital means of detecting a person’s early symptoms of COVID-19.

Remdesivir stockpiling could help push COVID drug into profitable territory for Gilead: analyst

Assuming Gilead will price its COVID-19 drug remdesivir at $5,000 per course in the U.S., and governments around the world start building stockpiles next year, the company could bring in $7.6 billion in sales of the drug in 2022, with a decent profit margin, SVB Leerink predicted. There are plenty of caveats, however.

Anthem offering $2.5B in financial assistance to members, providers impacted by COVID-19 

Anthem will make $2.5 billion in financial assistance available to customers and providers as they weather the coronavirus pandemic.

Gearing up for commercial ops, Moderna recruits Amgen vet Meline as CFO

As it gears up for phase 3 studies on two vaccines—including its closely watched COVID-19 shot—Moderna is entering an important time, its CEO says. And the company is doing so with a new finance chief from Big Biotech.

For Novartis supply chain head Lang, teamwork was key in tackling COVID-19 challenges

Supply chains that span the globe. Billions of doses of medicines each year. Those are big enough challenges under normal circumstances, and the novel coronavirus pandemic blew normal to bits. Novartis had to quickly regroup to keep employees safe, supply its usual drugs—and ramp up potential COVID-19 therapies, too. Here's how they did it.

Europe mulls BARDA-style development contracts for COVID-19 vaccines: Bloomberg

Not wanting to be left behind in the COVID-19 vaccine race, Europe is stepping up its efforts to secure supplies should any immunizations prove safe and effective. Right on the heels of news that the U.S. has picked vaccine finalists to fast-track, Europe is considering negotiations with pharma companies for early access, Bloomberg reports.