Sarah Karlin-Smith

Sarah Karlin-Smith

Senior Writer

Washington, DC

Sarah specializes in the policy and politics that affect the pharmaceutical industry. She covers the US Food and Drug Administration, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Service and Congress and other parts of federal and state government. Her work explores how government policies influence how drugs are developed and approved, what diseases are prioritized by scientists, and who gets access to medicines and at what cost. Sarah has covered health care since 2011. Prior to returning to the Pink Sheet in March 2020, she covered health policy at Politico for five years. She is a regular panelist on the Kaiser Health News 'What the Health' podcast. Sarah was selected for and attended a 2018 International Women’s Media Foundation reporting fellowship in Rwanda. In 2016, she attended Harvard Medical School’s media fellowship on bioethics and, in 2014, was an Association of Health Care Journalists-National Library of Medicine Fellow.

Latest from Sarah Karlin-Smith

BIO Notebook: Policy Problems, ACIP’s Future, BI Is Popular, Makary On FDA-Industry Ties

Highlights from Day Two of the BIO International Convention include BIO officials raising concerns about Trump Administration policies, the future of ACIP, an interview with BI's head of global business development, and FDA Commissioner Martin Makary's view of the FDA-industry relationship.

BIO Notebook: Policy Problems, ACIP’s Future, BI Is Popular, Makary On FDA-Industry Ties

Highlights from Day Two of the BIO International Convention include BIO officials raising concerns about Trump Administration policies, the future of ACIP, an interview with BI's head of global business development, and FDA Commissioner Martin Makary's view of the FDA-industry relationship.

BIO Notebook: PRVs Need To Be A Priority, IPO Window Shut And Focusing On Gene Therapy Safety

Highlights from day one of the BIO convention include advice for firms hoping to go public, a call for companies to push the US Congress on rare disease priority review vouchers, and updates on next-generation gene therapies.

BIO Notebook: IPO Window Stays Shut, PRVs Need To Be A Priority, And Focusing On Gene Therapy Safety

Highlights from day one of the BIO convention include advice for firms hoping to go public, a call for companies to push the US Congress on rare disease priority review vouchers, and updates on next-generation gene therapies.

US FDA Could Miss User Fee Spending Triggers With House FY 2026 Funding

FDA employees are concerned that while the budget authority total proposed for fiscal year 2026 meets the user fee appropriations' triggers, the FDA could have trouble meeting allocation triggers without cuts to non-review work.

Anti-Vaccine Activists Among New US CDC Vaccine Advisors

HHS Secretary Kennedy's new ACIP appointments include multiple members of anti-vaccine groups and people who have spread misinformation about COVID-19 vaccines.