Summary

The week’s most impactful health news stories were: 

• Biomedicine: Genome pioneer Craig Venter dies.
• Global health: AIDS returns to Zambia with force after a year of cuts in US HIV aid.
• International health policy: Germany will spend less money on healthcare and more on defense.
• National health policy: Feijóo points to Sánchez as responsible for the largest doctors’ strike in Spain’s history.
• Business: Healthcare is driving the American economy.

Biomedicine

• Genome pioneer Craig Venter, who redefined the boundaries of biology—sequencing DNA at unprecedented speed, engineering synthetic life, and mapping ocean microbes—has died.
• Long-lived immune cells show promise against cancer after a clinical trial. Blood cell cancers go into remission after being treated with T cells that behave like embryonic cells.
• Spain treats epidermolysis bullosa (butterfly skin) with gene therapy for the first time. Two patients in Andalusia have been treated with an innovative drug that is still awaiting funding from the National Health System.
• The first map of smell has been created. This fundamental sense remains largely unknown, but scientists from Harvard University have now presented this ‘olfactory atlas’ showing how the more than 1,000 receptors that allow us to smell are organized in the nose.

Global Health

• AIDS is returning to Zambia with a vengeance after a year of cuts in US HIV aid. A robust and accredited system that saved thousands of lives has begun to collapse. Trump’s disasters in the health sector with the closure of USAID are immeasurable.

International Health Policy

• Germany will spend less money on healthcare and more on defense. The Merz government is trying to allocate €133 billion to defense while simultaneously making cuts to the public healthcare system. The plan is to reduce healthcare spending by €20 billion and lower the price of medicines. A far-reaching measure. This will have an impact across Europe and, of course, in Spain.
• Obamacare enrollment is falling sharply after the price hikes. Millions of Americans are dropping their insurance coverage following the congressional agreement that raised prices.
• China is surpassing the United States in research and is on the verge of taking its technological leadership. China already surpasses the US in R&D, scientific publications, and patents, while Trump is cutting off funding for science and restricting the entry of foreign talent, jeopardizing its global leadership.
• Bukele (El Salvador) is entrusting the monitoring of chronic diseases to Gemini, Google’s AI.

National Health Policy (Spain)

• Feijóo points to Sánchez as responsible for the largest doctors’ strike in Spain’s history. The PP leader has launched an offensive in Congress amidst the ongoing medical conflict against the Framework Statute, which is experiencing its third national strike this week to demand the withdrawal of the legislation and the implementation of specific labor improvements for the medical profession. Feijóo’s proposal seems reasonable, given the seriousness of the conflict and the Ministry’s apparent inability to find a solution, although Sánchez doesn’t appear to have been very receptive to the request, at least publicly.
• The European University is bringing six more health-related degrees to Gijón, including Medicine. The Asturian government gave the green light this Monday to the arrival of the European University in Asturias through a center affiliated with the European University of Madrid. With this, Asturias is no longer one of the autonomous communities without a private university.
• Asturias creates an oncology network to guarantee equity in treatments. The Principality has launched the Astur-CCC network, a new model of cancer care involving all three health areas. This was one of the requests in the document promoted by the RIDEA (Royal Institute of Asturian Studies), entitled “For a Cutting-Edge Asturian Health System” (2025).
• Spain is the only EU country that does not require a clinical examination or supervision for foreign doctors. A report by the Spanish Medical Association (OMC) denounces the degree validation system as “purely administrative.”

Companies

• International
  • Healthcare is driving the American economy. In the last year, 43% of new jobs were in the health sector.
  • AstraZeneca restarts investment in Cambridge (UK) after reaching an agreement with the British government on drug prices. This resumes the £300 million investment, which had been paused last year.

• National News
  • The fertility industry is experiencing another year of growth, accumulating a turnover of €685 million in 2025, 5% more than the previous year.
  • Sanitas (its new CEO, Jaureguízar) is not committed to public-private partnerships in healthcare. It had previously embraced this approach, in the Manises concession (Valencian Community), and also in the administrative mutualism model (MUGEJU).

Biomedicine

• Genome pioneer Craig Venter, who redefined the boundaries of biology—sequencing DNA at unprecedented speed, engineering synthetic life, and mapping ocean microbes—has died (https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-026-01226-z).
• Long-lived immune cells show promise against cancer after a clinical trial. Blood cell cancers go into remission after being treated with T cells that behave like embryonic cells (https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-026-01398-8)
• A treatment for pre-eclampsia may be on the horizon. Blood filtration has performed well in early trials (https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2026/04/27/a-treatment-for-pre-eclampsia-may-be-on-the-horizon)
• AI is not the end of the doctor. Although some say medical schools will soon be obsolete, it appears that empathy is the doctor’s last refuge against the advances of AI (https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2026.4356)
• Recommendations for discontinuing psychotropic medications. A consensus statement from the American Society of Psychopharmacology (https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2026.0043)
• A Spanish drug has managed to correct one of the key factors in ALS and is now in human trials. The drug has begun clinical trials after successfully restoring the function of TDP-43, a protein altered in most cases of the disease, in preclinical models (https://www.elconfidencial.com/salud/2026-04-28/farmaco-espanol-corregir-claves-ela_4345787/)
• Treating a meniscus tear with surgery is more harmful than beneficial in the long run. A study has revealed that, ten years later, those who underwent surgery suffered more problems than those who did not (https://www.elespanol.com/invertia/observatorios/sanidad/20260502/tratar-rotura-menisco-cirugia-perjudicial-beneficioso-largo-plazo-mayor-riesgo-artrosis/1003744229981_0.html)
• Europe approves the first drug indicated to reduce the progression of multiple sclerosis. Tolebrutinib has reduced by 30% the progression of the disease that occurs unrelated to relapses (https://www.elespanol.com/invertia/observatorios/sanidad/20260428/europa-aprueba-primer-medicamento-indicado-reducir-progresion-esclerosis-multiple/1003744224322_0.html)
• Spain treats epidermolysis bullosa (EB) with gene therapy for the first time. Two patients have been treated in Andalusia with an innovative drug that is still awaiting funding from the National Health System (https://www.elconfidencial.com/salud/2026-04-27/espana-trata-por-primera-vez-la-piel-de-mariposa-con-terapia-genica_4345696/)
• A superclot has been designed that stops severe bleeding in five seconds. Researchers in Canada develop a technique to create biological patches 13 times stronger than natural ones using the patient’s own cells (https://www.abc.es/salud/disenan-supercoagulo-detiene-hemorragias-graves-cinco-segundos-20260429180000-nt.html)
• The first map of smell has been created. This fundamental sense remains largely unknown, but scientists from Harvard University have now presented this ‘olfactory atlas’ showing how the more than 1,000 receptors that allow us to smell are organized in the nose (https://www.elmundo.es/ciencia-y-salud/salud/2026/04/28/69f0b08721efa057788b457f.html)

Global Health

• AIDS returns to Zambia with force after a year of cuts in US HIV aid. A robust and accredited system that saved thousands of lives has begun to collapse (https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/25/health/pepfar-hiv-aids-zambia.html)

International Health Policy

• USA
  • CDC statements undermine faith in vaccines. It all stems from a November 2025 statement that did not rule out an association between vaccines and autism (https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aef5320)
  • Obamacare enrollment drops sharply after price increases. Millions of Americans are dropping their insurance after Congress passed a deal that raised prices (https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/01/business/obamacare-enrollment-decline.html)
  • A federal court has suspended the possibility of sending the abortion pill by mail after a lawsuit from the Republican state of Louisiana (https://www.lemonde.fr/international/article/2026/05/02/aux-etats-unis-une-cour-d-appel-federale-suspend-l-envoi-postal-de-la-pilule-abortive_6684757_3210.html)

• China
  • China surpasses the United States in research and is about to take its technological lead. China has already surpassed the US in R&D, scientific publications, and patents, while Trump cuts off funding for science and restricts the entry of foreign talent, jeopardizing its global leadership (https://www.elconfidencial.com/tecnologia/novaceno/2026-05-01/china-eeuu-i-d-ciencia-tecnologia-orden-mundial_4348009/)

• United Kingdom
  • Doctors are concerned after it was revealed that a private consulting firm has been awarded £700,000 to design the new Neighborhood Centres, included in England’s 10-year health plan. The contract aims to support the construction of 250 Neighborhood Centres by 2030, as announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer (https://www.bmj.com/content/393/bmj.s837)
  • England’s 10-year health plan: aligning hope with economic reality. The novelty lies not in the measures announced in the plan, but in the severity of the economic restrictions under which it will have to be implemented (https://www.bmj.com/content/393/bmj-2025-088964)
  • Healthy life expectancy trends in the UK: a time of great change. The vast majority of local areas saw a decline in this expectancy over the last decade (https://www.health.org.uk/reports-and-analysis/analysis/healthy-life-expectancy-trends-in-the-uk-a-watershed-moment)

• Germany
  • Germany will spend less money on healthcare and more on defense. The Merz government is trying to allocate €1.33 billion to defense, while simultaneously cutting public healthcare spending (https://en.ara.cat/international/cuts-to-the-welfare-state-to-invest-more-in-defense-merz-presents-the-2027-budgets_1_5722623.html)
  • Germany is considering significantly reducing the price and reimbursement of medications. Under a new law to stabilize the finances of the public health system, lower drug prices are included (https://www.globalpolicywatch.com/2026/04/germany-plans-significant-cuts-in-drug-pricing-and-reimbursement-how-would-the-gkv-beitragssatzstabilisierungsgesetz-impact-pharmaceutical-companies/)
  • The German government is considering massive cuts in healthcare, pensions, and social benefits. Health cuts will amount to €20 billion next year (https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2026/04/29/tgij-a29.html)

• El Salvador
  • Bukele entrusts the monitoring of chronic diseases to Gemini, Google’s AI (https://www.lemonde.fr/international/article/2026/04/28/au-salvador-nayib-bukele-confie-le-suivi-des-malades-chroniques-a-gemini-l-ia-de-google_6683867_3210.html)

• European Union
  • The EU is considering action against Meta for insufficient protection of children on social media. An application will make it easier for patients to get tested at certain laboratories or be seen by a specialist (https://www.ft.com/content/65e9c42b-d0ee-4511-96e7-2784a7d4e240?syn-25a6b1a6=1)

National Health Policy

• Central Administration
  • Government plan against superbugs: There will be no large boxes of antibiotics to prevent stockpiling. The misuse of antibiotics is largely one of the main causes of the growing resistance to superbugs, microscopic organisms immune to most available drugs that cause the death of some 24,000 people a year in Spain alone (https://elpais.com/expres/2026-04-29/el-plan-del-gobierno-contra-las-superbacterias-no-habra-cajas-grandes-de-antibioticos-para-evitar-el-acopio-y-su-mal-uso.html)
  • The government begins reform of the Occupational Risk Prevention Law. The Council of Ministers has approved the draft bill amending the Occupational Risk Prevention Law, the Regulation of Prevention Services, and the consolidated text of the Workers’ Statute. The Government is thus beginning the process of expanding the recognition and protection of occupational risks, including for the first time mental health and psychosocial risks (https://medicinaresponsable.com/politica-sanitaria/gobierno-reforma-prevencion-riesgos-laborales)
  • Congress approves enshrining abortion in the Constitution. The Government’s proposal to enshrine abortion in the Constitution passed its first hurdle in the Congress of Deputies this Thursday, although with criticism from its coalition partners (https://medicinaresponsable.com/politica-sanitaria/congreso-aprueba-tramitar-blindaje-aborto-constitucion-superar-vetos-pp-vox)

• Regional governments
  • The European University is bringing six more health-related degrees to Gijón, including Medicine. The Asturian government gave the green light this Monday to the arrival of the European University in Asturias through a center affiliated with the European University of Madrid (https://www.redaccionmedica.com/secciones/estudiantes/la-universidad-europea-lleva-a-gijon-medicina-y-6-grados-sanitarios-mas-8127)
  • Asturias creates an oncology network to guarantee equity in treatments. The Principality has launched the Astur-CCC network, a new model of cancer care involving all three health areas (https://www.redaccionmedica.com/autonomias/asturias/asturias-crea-una-red-oncologica-para-garantizar-la-equidad-en-tratamientos-2609)

• Doctors’ Strike and Framework Statute
  • Strike participation continues to decline, and doctors are calling for Pedro Sánchez to intervene and take responsibility for the negotiations, which show no signs of being resolved (https://elpais.com/sociedad/2026-04-27/el-seguimiento-de-la-huelga-de-medicos-continua-cayendo-y-los-sindicatos-piden-la-intervencion-de-pedro-sanchez.html)
  • Feijóo points to Sánchez as responsible for the largest doctors’ strike in Spain. The leader of the People’s Party (PP) has launched an offensive in Congress amidst the ongoing medical conflict against the Framework Statute, which is experiencing its third national strike this week to demand the withdrawal of the legislation and the implementation of specific labor improvements for the medical profession (https://www.consalud.es/politica/feijoo-apunta-a-sanchez-como-responsable-de-la-mayor-huelga-de-medicos-que-ha-habido-en-espana.html).

• Study on doctors’ salaries
  • The doctor’s salary doesn’t exist: a study on the complex system. At least seven factors (base salary, job position, career path, location, on-call shifts, productivity, and individual factors) determine the final salary (https://www.redaccionmedica.com/secciones/medicina/el-sueldo-medico-no-existe-una-foto-al-complejo-entramado-salarial-espanol-6879). Access the original article: https://www.redaccionmedica.com/contenido/images/HPP2025_15_AGLB_Estu_260429_123114.pdf

• Sick Leave
  • Hours lost due to sick leave are increasing by 10% per year, double the rate of hours worked. Temporary disability now accounts for 6% of total working hours, averaging two hours per week per employee (https://www.vozpopuli.com/economia/empleo/las-horas-perdidas-por-baja-laboral-crecen-un-10-en-un-ano-el-doble-que-las-trabajadas.html)

• Foreign Doctors
  • Spain is the only EU country that does not require a clinical examination or supervision for foreign doctors. A report by the Spanish Medical Association (OMC) denounces the system for validating medical degrees as “purely administrative” (https://www.elespanol.com/invertia/observatorios/sanidad/20260430/espana-unico-pais-ue-no-exige-examen-clinico-supervision-medicos-extranjeros/1003744229003_0.html)
  • The OMC requires an Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) for non-EU doctors with recognized qualifications. The Spanish Medical Association (OMC) proposes a clinical exam to validate non-EU doctors’ qualifications after a record 30,000 degrees were validated in 2025, and warns of a bottleneck in the MIR (Medical Residency Exam). (https://www.diariomedico.com/medicina/profesion/omc-pide-ecoe-extracomunitarios-homologados.html)

• Specialist Recertification
  • FACME requests a specialist recertification system from the LOPS (Organic Law of the Spanish Medical Professions). FACME demands that the LOPS recognize the medical act, the role of the responsible physician, and their leadership of the multidisciplinary team (https://www.diariomedico.com/medicina/profesion/facme-le-pide-lops-sistema-recertificacion-especialistas.html)

Companies

• International
  • Healthcare is driving the American economy. In the last year, 43% of new jobs were in the health sector (https://www.ft.com/content/6b1bcbab-21d4-49a3-9940-d7550f042e5d?syn-25a6b1a6=1)
  • Lilly’s profits double as sales of obesity medication rise (https://www.ft.com/content/527fb779-bc12-436d-a6cc-1ba4dfc9a5f5?syn-25a6b1a6=1)
  • Purdue, the US pharmaceutical company, faces criminal charges in the opioid crisis (https://www.lemonde.fr/international/article/2026/04/29/crise-des-opioides-le-laboratoire-americain-purdue-pharma-condamne-au-penal_6684068_3210.html)
  • AstraZeneca restarts investment in Cambridge (UK) after agreement with the British government on drug prices. This restarts the £300 million investment, which had been paused last year (https://www.ft.com/content/dd3b8baa-e7fd-40fa-a015-567164f23e30?syn-25a6b1a6=1)
  • This is an interesting strategic shift by CVS Pharmacy, one of the world’s largest pharmacy chains, which is focusing on healthcare services, based on the fact that around 80% of patients prefer in-person pharmaceutical care, and 84% consider pharmacies to be trusted healthcare spaces. The new format eliminates mass-market activity and assumes a more healthcare-focused role (https://matrixbcg.com/blogs/growth-strategy/cvshealth)

• National News
  • The fertility business continues its growth for another year, accumulating a turnover of 685 million euros in 2025, 5% more than the previous year (https://www.elespanol.com/invertia/observatorios/sanidad/20260502/negocio-fertilidad-encadena-ano-crecimiento-empresas-dominantes/1003744229340_0.html)
  • Sanitas Valdebebas obtains accreditation as a university center. In 2026, Sanitas will offer 24 MIR (Medical Residency) positions in its accredited university hospitals (https://www.redaccionmedica.com/secciones/privada/sanitas-valdebebas-obtiene-la-acreditacion-como-centro-de-formacion-mir-4129)
  • Sanitas (its new CEO, Jaureguízar) is not committed to public/private partnerships in healthcare (https://elpais.com/economia/2026-05-02/jauerguizar-sanitas-la-colaboracion-publico-privada-en-sanidad-es-complejisima-y-por-eso-hemos-renunciado.html)
  • Esteve is reinforcing its highly specialized strategy with five drugs. The company achieved revenues of €828 million in 2025, representing double-digit growth, and expects to reach €950 million this year (https://www.diariomedico.com/farmacia/empresas/esteve-refuerza-5-farmacos-estrategia-alta-especializacion.html)
  • FAES Farma boosts its sales by 31% due to acquisitions. The strong quarterly results are attributed to the launch of its ophthalmology division, made possible by the acquisition of Edol and Sifi last year (https://www.expansion.com/pais-vasco/2026/04/30/69f36532468aeb92638b4574.html)

This post is also available in: Spanish