US Pharma and Biotech Summit 2024 - AMICULUM insights

Reflecting on last week’s FT Live US Pharma and Biotech Summit 2024, we thought we’d share some of the more interesting discussion points. There were sessions touching on longevity, anti-aging, obesity, DTC distribution, consumerism, patient-centricity, pricing, innovation, investment and more.

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Common themes were the need for bold leadership to set the tone for organizations, and the value and challenges of strong decision making. Certainly not a new topic (and something we’ve covered in previous posts and blogs), but the need for building a strong business case early to support decision making was highlighted. For example, there are advantages for those who have been thinking early, say 2–4 years ahead of a licensing deal, compared with those who are late to the table. Strong decision making, using what limited information is available, remains highly valuable.

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In our highly structured industry, it was also pleasing to hear value of speculative investment being extolled – things that may take 20+ years to get anywhere but when they arrive are game changers (obesity and Alzheimer’s being two recent examples). Our industry is built on the principles of science, experimentation, and incremental learning – it was a refreshing reminder that sometimes these take time to play out.

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Other topics included the integration of Generation Alpha into the workforce, which will require a continued adaptation of ways of working to build on their desire for rapid development, adding value, and contributing to something meaningful, and US drug pricing reforms. Legacy payment systems are still struggling to catch up with innovative high-cost medicines, while the list versus net arms race continues (higher prices mean higher rebates). A system based on benefit over margin would be ideal, but there is no clear or simple path towards this. Picking gene therapy as an example, if this is to roll out for more mass market conditions such as Parkinson’s, perhaps it needs to be reframed as ‘genetic surgery’ rather than delivery of a drug or medicine (a corollary with physical surgery) and funded accordingly – an interesting idea!

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