Pink Sheet Podcast: Laid Off US FDA Staff Called Back, Vaccine Adcomm Cancelled, Lilly’s Manufacturing Push

Reporter and editors from the Pink Sheet and Medtech Insight discuss the impact of the FDA’s decision to call back many of the employees it laid off, the decision to cancel an upcoming FDA advisory committee meeting on flu vaccines, and Eli Lilly’s plans to increase domestic manufacturing.

Pink Sheet podcast
The VRBPAC meeting cancellation generated a lot of speculation about the FDA's reason for the move. • Source: Citeline/Shutterstock

Pink Sheet Executive Editor Derrick Gingery, Senior Writer Sarah Karlin-Smith and Editor-in-Chief Nielsen Hobbs, as well as Medtech Insight Managing Editor Elizabeth Orr, discuss the US Food and Drug Administration’s decision to call back many workers that were laid off and the next steps for the Trump Administration’s effort to reduce the size of the federal government (:29), the FDA decision to cancel an upcoming Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee meeting on strain selection for the 2025-2026 flu vaccine (12:42), and the motives for Eli Lilly’s plan to increase domestic manufacturing (23:18).

More On These Topics From The Pink Sheet

This and other podcasts are available on the Pink Sheet podcast page, as well as the Citeline channel on Apple Podcasts, SoundCloud, TuneIn and Spotify Podcasts, and via smart speakers if one of these platforms has been set up as your default podcast provider.

More from Podcasts

Pink Sheet Podcast: A New Director For US FDA’s Biologics Center, Guidance Production Slowdowns

 

Pink Sheet editors discuss the appointment of Vinay Prasad as the new director of the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research and revelations that FDA layoffs now are hindering development of guidance documents.

Pink Sheet Podcast: Vaccine Review Political Interference, Missed Deadlines A Harbinger Of US FDA Problems?

Pink Sheet reporter and editors discuss FDA Commissioner Martin Makary’s decision to have one of his assistants lead negotiations for Novavax’s delayed COVID-19 vaccine review, as well as some recent missed review deadlines, which may be the result of recent FDA cuts.

How Tumult At US FDA Could Impact Merger and Acquisition Strategy

 

With review and development uncertainly increasing, "it’s going to take longer for certain targets … to progress to a place where they’ve been derisked enough that big pharma is ready to write a big check," said Andrew Goodman of Paul Hastings.

Pink Sheet Podcast: More US FDA Departures, Makary On Combined AE Database, ‘Conditional’ Approval

 

Pink Sheet reporter and editors discuss the most recent senior staff departures at the FDA and their impact on the agency, as well as Commissioner Martin Makary’s plans for a new approval pathway and a combined adverse event database as outlined in an interview with a podcast host.

More from Vaccines

Novavax’s COVID-19 Vaccine Label Narrowed After Political Officials Intervened

 

The label that Novavax's COVID-19 vaccine was slated to receive before political officials held up the approval was broader than was granted 16 May.

US FDA COVID-19 Booster Strategy May Not Be As Controversial As It Seems

 

US FDA Commissioner Martin Makary’s call for placebo-controlled trials to confirm the efficacy of COVID-19 boosters is drawing a lot of criticism, but former Commissioner Robert Califf also supported the idea.

Califf In Conversation: ‘Decimated’ US FDA Teams Endanger Innovation

 

Pink Sheet sister publication In Vivo spoke to the former FDA commissioner about the recent layoffs and their impact on vaccine and other product development.