Summary

The week’s most impactful health news stories were:

• Biomedicine: Individual well-being indicators identified.
• Global health: 25 million deaths could be expected if the US cuts off funding for global health.
• International health policy: France considers regulations for mandatory medical placement in medical deserts.
• National health policy: Doctors will have a specific chapter in the Framework Statute.
• Business: An article in The Lancet attacks corporate corruption in healthcare.

Biomedicine

• Individual well-being advocates identified. An international project describes the keys to a full life based on more than 40 indicators. The study analyzed more than 200,000 people worldwide: close friends, life balance, being married, and participating in communities and religious services were among the most beneficial factors. Statistics on employment, life expectancy, or GDP are considered to capture key aspects of the well-being of nations, but they are poor predictors of the well-being of individuals.
• The Ozempic universe, apart from treating diabetes and obesity, also serves to treat advanced stages of fatty liver disease. Semaglutide, Ozempic, and Wegovy could reverse common liver disease.

Global Health

• 25 million deaths could occur if the US halts global health funding. Article in Nature: 25 million deaths could occur if the United States halts global health funding. The US, the world’s largest donor to health initiatives in poor countries, spent approximately $12 billion on global health in 2024. Without this annual spending, around 25 million people could die in the next 15 years.
• Editorial in The Lancet: The global pandemic treaty is a milestone, but concerns remain. After more than three years of intense negotiations, a Pandemic Treaty was approved, praised by the WHO Director-General as a success of multilateralism. The Treaty codifies key approaches to prevention, preparedness, and response, including One Health. However, the agreement has some limitations: the 20% limit on vaccine sharing from previous drafts remains in place; there is no funding to advance the initiative; and the issue of liability is worrisome, since, if a pandemic is declared, the Conference of the Parties could only make non-binding recommendations.
• Editorial in Nature: The end of AIDS is in sight, let’s not abandon PEPFAR now. Among Trump’s first initiatives was to disband USAID, which was ultimately responsible for PEPFAR (the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief), which is in jeopardy. Thanks to this plan, the world would see 90% fewer AIDS deaths in 2030 than in 2010.

International Health Policy

• Trump cuts the CDC’s prevention-focused budget, as part of a 50% budget cut and the layoff of 2,400 employees. The largest reduction is in prevention.
• Calls are being made in France to regulate the deployment of doctors in medical deserts. The text provides, under certain circumstances, that certain doctors must be required to deploy in these medical deserts. Several thousand people have marched in France against the text.
• Representatives approve in France a bill in committee on “the end of life,” which provides that every terminally ill patient may have this right and request “aid in dying” (euthanasia or assisted suicide).

National Health Policy (Spain)

• The Ministry of Health publishes the funding criteria for 18 new medications, which had been approved since October 2024.
• The Ministry intends to approve a care model at the next Interterritorial Council. It aims to be a reference model for the development of care professions and is organized into five strategic lines.
• The massive power outage is straining the Spanish healthcare system, with saturated emergency rooms and canceled surgeries. Scheduled surgeries are delayed; primary care clinics are closed; ambulance services are affected; and home patients are waiting for electrical devices, experiencing problems.
• The Strike Committee successfully persuades the Ministry to accept a specific chapter for doctors in the Framework Statute. Although the strike is scheduled for May 23, the Committee has achieved this from the Ministry, which they consider a success.

Companies

• International
  • An article in The Lancet denounces the corruption of certain healthcare corporations. Some corporate activities, such as spreading misleading narratives or lobbying to delay legislation, may be legal but ethically questionable. It is not always easy to prove the harm caused by these actions. However, there are clearly harmful corporations, such as the tobacco and ultra-processed food industries.

• National
  • The pharmaceutical sector is racing against time to prepare its objections to the drug law. There will be unanimous rejection of the “selected” pricing system.

Biomedicine

• Histosonics (a developer supported by J&J) is developing a “sonic beam” to attack tumors. The developer of noninvasive ultrasound therapy is supported by J&J, Medtronic, and GE HealthCare. The therapy uses sonic beams to destroy tumor tissue (https://www.ft.com/content/cb1c5bf1-ddf8-4c8b-b62d-99c081bce8c6)
• Immunotherapy allows cancer patients to avoid surgery and aggressive therapies. For a limited group of solid tumors of the stomach, rectum, esophagus, and other organs, trials of immunosuppressants offer surprising results (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/27/health/cancer-immunotherapy-solid-tumors.html)
• An international project describes the keys to a full life across more than 40 indicators. The study analyzed more than 200,000 people worldwide: close friends, life balance, being married, and participating in communities and religious services were among the most beneficial factors. Statistics on employment, life expectancy, or GDP are considered to capture key aspects of the well-being of nations, but they are poor predictors of the well-being of individuals (https://elpais.com/salud-y-bienestar/2025-04-30/que-significa-vivir-bien-un-proyecto-internacional-describe-las-claves-de-la-vida-plena-en-mas-de-40-indicadores.html). Access the original article in Nature Mental Health: https://www.nature.com/articles/s44220-025-00423-5
• A universal antidote to poisons has been achieved by a man who was bitten hundreds of times by poisonous snakes. One person, Tim Friede, allowed himself to be bitten by 16 species of poisonous snakes. After this, according to Cell, antibodies capable of neutralizing the venom of multiple snake species were identified (a kind of universal antivenom). More than 600 species of venomous snakes bite at least 2.7 million people each year, killing an estimated 120,000 and injuring 400,000 (https://elpais.com/salud-y-bienestar/2025-05-03/el-hombre-que-se-dejo-morder-cientos-de-veces-por-serpientes-venenosas-abre-el-camino-hacia-un-antidoto-universal.html). Access the original article in Cell: https://www.cell.com/cell/fulltext/S0092-8674(25)00402-7
• Semaglutide, ozempic, and wegovy could reverse common liver disease. The Ozempic universe, in addition to treating diabetes and obesity, is also used to treat advanced stages of fatty liver (https://www.abc.es/salud/enfermedades/ozempic-mejora-enfermedad-hepatica-pacientes-20250430123631-nt.html). Access the original article in the New England Journal of Medicine: https://www.nejm.org/doi/10.1056/NEJMoa2413258
• Using brain-dead people for medical experiments: The new debate on the frontiers of bioethics. This approach is proposed by four renowned scientists (https://elpais.com/salud-y-bienestar/2025-05-01/utilizar-personas-en-muerte-cerebral-para-hacer-experimentos-medicos-el-nuevo-debate-en-la-frontera-de-la-bioetica.html)

Global Health

• Article in Nature: 25 million deaths could be reached if the United States halts global health funding. The United States, the world’s largest donor of health initiatives in poor countries, spent approximately $12 billion on global health in 2024. Without this annual spending, around 25 million people could die in the next 15 years. (https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-01191-z)
• Editorial in The Lancet: The global pandemic treaty is a milestone, but concerns remain. After more than three years of intense negotiations, a Pandemic Treaty was approved, praised by the WHO Director-General as a success of multilateralism. The Treaty codifies key approaches to prevention, preparedness, and response, including One Health. However, the agreement has some limitations: the 20% limit on vaccine sharing from previous drafts remains in place; There is no funding to promote the initiative; and the issue of accountability is worrying, since, if a pandemic is declared, the Conference of the Parties could only make non-binding recommendations (https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)00868-2/fulltext)
• Editorial in Nature: The end of AIDS is in sight, let’s not abandon PEPFAR now. Among Trump’s first initiatives was to dissolve USAID, which was ultimately responsible for PEPFAR (the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief), which is in danger. Thanks to this plan, the world would experience 90% fewer AIDS deaths by 2030 than in 2010 (https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-01308-4)
• A killer fungus is spreading as the climate warms. High temperatures are increasing the prevalence of deadly fungal infections, especially of the Aspergillus species (https://www.ft.com/content/506f5a03-8520-40e1-aee3-a6e6427f68c0
• Household plastics caused more than 356,000 cardiac deaths in 2018. Exposure to phthalates, which are used to produce plastic products used in the home, triggers an immune response in the heart arteries, which is associated with an increased risk of heart attack or stroke, according to Lancet eBiomedicine (https://www.abc.es/salud/enfermedades/plasticos-domesticos-causaron-356000-muertes-cardiacas-2018-20250429141741-nt.html)
• Strokes are now the leading cause of heart attack and stroke. death in seven African countries, although the disease is underdiagnosed on the continent (https://elpais.com/planeta-futuro/2025-04-28/los-infartos-cerebrales-son-ya-la-primera-causa-de-muerte-en-siete-paises-de-africa.html)

International Health Policy

• USA
  • Trump cuts the CDC’s prevention-focused budget, as part of a 50% budget cut and the layoff of 2,400 employees. The largest reduction is in prevention (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/02/health/trump-budget-cdc-chronic-conditions.html)
  • Kennedy warns new parents to do “their own research” on vaccines. Kennedy made these two statements on a televised program: that parents should do their own research before vaccinating their children and that the measles vaccine is not safe (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/29/us/politics/kennedy-vaccines-research.html)
  • Scientists urge the Trump Administration to combat the threat of the avian flu pandemic. The US should make a greater effort to fight the H5N1 pandemic, warns an international group of virologists (https://www.ft.com/content/6152e13c-bec7-4719-8a10-91f5f49fbdb6)
  • Measles: The urgency of global immunization. Since 2005, measles has increased in the US, with 607 infections across multiple states. Ninety-seven percent of these cases are in unvaccinated people. Measles had been declared extinct in the USA in 2000. Therefore, increasing immunization is critical (https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)00675-0/abstract)

• United Kingdom and the National Health Service
  • The British Treasury says there will be no more money for healthcare professionals and educators (https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/apr/28/no-extra-money-for-pay-rises-for-nhs-staff-and-teachers-in-england-ministers-told)

• France
  • They call for regulation of the establishment of doctors in medical deserts. The text provides, under certain circumstances, that certain doctors must be required to establish themselves in these medical deserts. Several thousand people marched in France against the text (https://www.lemonde.fr/societe/article/2025/05/04/deserts-medicaux-plus-de-1-500-elus-locaux-appellent-les-deputes-a-voter-pour-la-regulation-de-l-installation-des-medecins_6602709_3224.html)
  • Members of Parliament approved a bill on “the end of life” in committee, which provides that all terminally ill patients may have this right and request “help in dying” (euthanasia or assisted suicide). (https://www.lemonde.fr/societe/article/2025/05/03/fin-de-vie-les-deputes-adoptent-en-commission-une-proposition-de-loi-creant-un-droit-a-l-aide-a-mourir_6602567_3224.html)

• Australia
  • Primary Care, a central issue in the Australian elections. The campaign has been characterized by the promise to increase funding for health insurance, Medicare, as well as improvements in Primary Care (https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)00865-7/abstract)

• European Union
  • The EU warns countries of the risk of measles and polio due to low vaccination coverage (https://elpais.com/sociedad/2025-04-30/la-ue-alerta-a-los-paises-del-riesgo-del-sarampion-y-la-polio-por-las-bajas-coberturas-vacunales.html)
  • The European Union offers 27 million flu vaccines in the event of a possible pandemic (https://gacetamedica.com/politica/union-europea-vacunas-gripe-pandemia/)
  • Experts criticize the EU’s approval of the The Alzheimer’s drug Lecanemab (Eisai). Experts and patient representatives have criticized this decision, which was rejected in July 2024 (https://www.bmj.com/content/389/bmj.r796).

National Health Policy

• Central Government Initiatives
  • The Ministry of Health publishes the funding criteria for 18 new drugs, which had been approved since October 2024 (https://www.sanidad.gob.es/gabinete/notasPrensa.do?id=6660)
  • Brussels postpones Mónica García’s “decree” against tobacco for another three months. Six countries (Romania, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Greece, Italy, and Sweden) issued a reasoned opinion against the TRIS procedure. This suspension delays the controversial regulation that sought to restrict the presence of flavors in e-cigarettes and aims to limit the concentration of nicotine in nicotine pouches, among other aspects (https://theobjective.com/economia/2025-05-04/bruselas-frena-decretazo-monica-garcia-tabaco-tres-meses/)
  • The selection process for MIR (Resident Residents’ Internship) positions begins (https://www.elconfidencial.com/bienestar/2025-05-04/que-dias-se-eligen-plaza-mir-2025-y-donde_4118913/)
  • The Ministry intends to approve a healthcare model at the next Interterritorial Council. It aims to be a reference model for the development of care professions and is organized into five strategic lines (https://www.consalud.es/politica/este-es-marco-estrategico-cuidados-en-salud-sanidad-espera-aprobar-en-proximo-cisns_157570_102.html)

• Initiatives by autonomous communities
  • Catalonia launches four health centers with a new model (https://www.redaccionmedica.com/autonomias/cataluna/cataluna-ultima-la-puesta-en-marcha-de-nuevos-modelos-de-atencion-primaria-8907)
  • 22% of family doctors in Catalonia do not have an approved specialty (https://theobjective.com/sanidad/2025-04-29/medicos-familia-cataluna-especialidad-homologada/)

• Impact of the “blackout” in Healthcare
  • Spanish hospitals maintain basic services thanks to generators (https://elpais.com/economia/2025-04-28/los-hospitales-espanoles-mantienen-su-actividad-con-mas-o-menos-normalidad-gracias-a-los-equipos-electrogenos.html)
  • Blackout: What are the damages and who can claim them from? In theory, claims could be made for a significant deterioration in health due to delays in care and loss of earnings (https://www.diariomedico.com/medicina/politica/apagon-son-danos-sanidad-quien-reclamarlos.html)
  • The massive blackout is straining the Spanish healthcare system/overcrowded emergency rooms and canceled surgeries. Scheduled surgeries are delayed; primary care clinics are closed; ambulance services are affected; and home patients waiting for electrical devices, with problems (https://www.consalud.es/pacientes/gran-apagon-sanidad-sistema-sanitario-espanol_157499_102.html)

• Framework Statute
  • The Strike Committee successfully persuades the Ministry to accept a specific chapter for doctors in the Framework Statute. Although the strike is scheduled for May 23, the Committee has achieved this from the Ministry, which they consider a success (https://www.diariomedico.com/medicina/profesion/comite-huelga-logra-sanidad-admita-capitulo-especifico-medicos-estatuto-marco.html)

• MUFACE agreement signed
  • The Government signs the new MUFACE agreement with Adeslas and Asisa for 2025-2028. The total contract amount is €4.808 billion. Entities must submit to MUFACE a detailed, externally audited report on the effective annual cost of the service derived from the agreement (https://elpais.com/economia/2025-04-30/el-gobierno-firma-el-nuevo-convenio-de-muface-con-adeslas-y-asisa-y-pone-fin-al-culebron.html)

• Bone marrow transplants
  • Bone marrow transplants reach historic highs. 748 from unrelated donors. A 42% increase since 2012 (https://www.elmundo.es/ciencia-y-salud/salud/2025/05/01/68124e22e9cf4a1b468b45a7.html)

Companies

• International News
  • The Lancet article: Corporate Corruption in Healthcare. Some corporate activities, such as spreading misleading narratives or lobbying to delay legislation, may be legal but ethically questionable. It’s not always easy to prove the harm caused by such actions. However, there are clearly harmful corporations, such as the tobacco and ultra-processed food industries (https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)00520-3/abstract)
  • AstraZeneca committed to US manufacturing as profits rise (https://www.ft.com/content/b29430f1-3ad1-477f-946d-73f9168fa67c)
  • Germany’s Merck willing to buy biotech company SpringWorks for $3.9 billion (https://www.ft.com/content/940a9556-4875-40cb-ab19-26069b6afd8e)
  • GSK turning to AI to offset the impact of tariffs (https://www.ft.com/content/d8958a0f-0016-47ab-9282-fed70432b398)
  • Tirzepatide now accounts for 50% of Lilly’s revenue (https://diariomedico.com/farmacia/industria/tirzepatida-acapara-50-facturacion-lilly.html)
  • NovoNordisk seeks to revive its stock market dream with new alliances (https://cincodias.elpais.com/companias/2025-05-02/novo-nordisk-el-dueno-de-ozempic-quiere-revivir-su-sueno-en-bolsa-con-nuevas-alianzas.html)
  • Sanofi closes the sale of half of Opella to the CD&R fund for 10 billion (https://www.eleconomista.es/salud-bienestar/noticias/13343457/05/25/sanofi-cierra-la-venta-de-la-mitad-de-opella-con-el-fondo-cdr-por-10000-millones.html)

• National
  • The pharmaceutical sector is racing to prepare its objections to the drug law. There will be a unanimous rejection of the “selected” pricing system (https://www.eleconomista.es/salud-bienestar/noticias/13342067/04/25/el-sector-prepara-a-contrarreloj-sus-alegaciones-a-la-ley-del-medicamento.html)

Summary

The most impactful health news of the week were:

• Biomedicine: Lilly successfully tests an anti-obesity pill that will compete with previous injection therapies.
• Global Health: WHO members, without the US, reach an agreement on the Pandemic Treaty.
• International Health Policy: Trump promises drug price cuts, but disrupts the price negotiation process with Medicare, which could lead to increased pharmaceutical spending.
• National Health Policy: Illa meets with pharmaceutical companies to analyze the impact of Trump’s tariff measures and offer assistance.
• Companies: Johnson & Johnson, Roche, and AstraZeneca, leaders in drugs for rare diseases.

Biomedicine

• Lily’s weight-loss pill. Lilly has shown promising results with an anti-obesity pill, with essentially the same results as the popular injections for treating obesity and diabetes.
• Chinese patients are swapping human doctors for clones of famous doctors. A Chinese company (Ant Group, a subsidiary of Alibaba) is making clones of the country’s top 100 doctors available, who can answer questions 24 hours a day.
• They are creating “glasses” that use AI to guide blind people. A new visual aid makes it possible to interpret external information and guide blind people.

Global Health

• WHO members, without the US, reach an agreement on the Pandemic Treaty. Member states approved the Treaty, without US participation, following Trump’s announcement of his withdrawal from the WHO. The US is also not expected to ratify the Treaty. The approved Treaty is more limited in scope than the one previously presented.
• The US withdrawal from the WHO. NEJM article: How President Trump is weakening global health. The decision will have catastrophic effects on domestic and global health.

International Health Policy

• Trump takes the first step toward imposing tariffs on chips and pharmaceuticals, goods that had been exempt from the tariffs approved on April 2. In the case of medicines, Trump has argued that the tariffs should be applied to strengthen American drug production.
• Trump intends to lower drug prices through Medicare and some imports. What he proposes is to make it easier for states to import drugs from Canada. But the executive order overrides all regulations governing drug price negotiations with Medicare, passed during the Biden Administration. It is estimated that this could lead to a significant increase in drug prices.
• The British Supreme Court answers the question of what constitutes a woman. According to the Court, for the purposes of the Equality Act, which covers discrimination in employment, education, and public services, the term “woman” refers to a biological woman. This overrides legislation that allowed a person to be declared “female” with sex dysphoria or by declaration of two doctors.

National Health Policy (Spain)

• Illa meets with representatives of the pharmaceutical industry and offers support against Trump’s tariffs. The meeting, which was also attended by the Regional Minister of Health, Olga Pané, was attended by representatives of the pharmaceutical companies Boehringer Ingelheim Spain, Sandoz, Amgen, Menarini, Almirall, Ferrer, Esteve, Grifols, Reig Jofre, Chiesi Spain, Kern Pharma, Merck Sharp and Dohme Spain, Farmaindustria, and Biosim. Illa informed them that the Responem Plan promoted by the Catalan government establishes monitoring mechanisms to be able to “react effectively.”
• Olga Pané’s roadmap for reforming Catalan healthcare. The healthcare measures are included in the Government Plan for the 15th Legislature and consist of six objectives and 63 measures.
• Pané will reform the critical patient care model. A governance model is established for the entire critical care system in Catalonia.

Companies

• International
  • Johnson & Johnson, Roche, and AstraZeneca will lead the way in treatments for rare diseases by 2030. In that year, medications for rare diseases will represent a fifth of prescription drug sales, according to Evaluate.

• National
  • If current trends continue, the hospital pharmaceutical market will surpass the prescription market in five years, according to the FEFE Drug Observatory.

Biomedicine

• Nature editorial: Let’s not rush into promising stem cell therapies. It’s important that these therapies, including others for Parkinson’s, not reach the clinic too quickly until we are assured of the highest standards of safety and efficacy (https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-01176-y)
• What to know about Lilly’s weight-loss pill. Lilly has shown promising results with an anti-obesity pill, with essentially the same results as popular injections for treating obesity and diabetes (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/17/health/weight-loss-pill-eli-lilly.html)
• The race to transform brain waves into intelligible language. Neuroscientists are fighting to give voice to brain waves (https://www.ft.com/content/9c21afa6-bd1e-4edb-867d-e6c3067ae486)
• A new weapon against gonorrhea, after 30 years without new therapeutic alternatives. An antibiotic discovered to treat urinary tract infections could also be useful for treating gonorrhea (https://www.elmundo.es/ciencia-y-salud/salud/2025/04/14/67fa87c8e4d4d84b4a8b45b1.html)
• A key mechanism in the aggressiveness of pancreatic cancer has been identified. Pancreatic cancer appears to build a wall around itself, helping it hide from the immune system and continue to grow unabated (https://elpais.com/salud-y-bienestar/2025-04-15/identificado-un-mecanismo-clave-en-la-agresividad-del-cancer-de-pancreas.html). Access the original article: https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2424051122
• Chinese patients are swapping human doctors for clones of famous doctors. A Chinese company (Ant Group, a subsidiary of Alibaba) is making clones of the country’s top 100 doctors available, who can answer questions 24 hours a day (https://www.elconfidencial.com/tecnologia/novaceno/2025-04-20/china-medicos-inteligencia-artificial-famosos_4110118/).
• LSD to treat schizophrenia. An analogue of this drug is being developed, but without hallucinogenic potential (https://www.abc.es/salud/enfermedades/lsd-tratar-esquizofrenia-20250415111947-nt.html).
• Initial success of two stem cell transplants against Parkinson’s disease (https://elpais.com/ciencia/2025-04-16/exito-inicial-de-dos-trasplantes-de-celulas-madre-contra-el-parkinson.html). Access the original article in Nature: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-08700-0
• The blood test that warns if melanoma recurs (https://www.abc.es/salud/enfermedades/test-sangre-avisa-reaparece-melanoma-20250416003300-nt.html)
• They create “glasses” that use AI to guide blind people. A new visual aid allows interpreting external information and guiding blind people (https://www.elmundo.es/ciencia-y-salud/salud/2025/04/14/67fb9d6dfdddff0b438b4588.html)

Global Health

• NEJM article: The US withdrawal from the WHO. How President Trump is weakening global health. The decision will have catastrophic effects on domestic and global health (https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp2501790
• Microplastics have not yet earned their bad reputation. Although there are some worrying results, we still do not know the full impact of microplastics (https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2025/04/16/microplastics-have-not-yet-earned-their-bad-reputation)
• Nature editorial: Now is the time to track drug-resistant fungal infections. Research efforts must be made to combat fungal pathogens (https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-01177-x)
• WHO members reach agreement on the Pandemic Treaty. Member states approved the Treaty, without the participation of The United States, following Trump’s announcement of its withdrawal from the WHO, is also not expected to ratify the Treaty. The approved Treaty is more limited in scope than the one previously presented. “It shows that with or without the United States, the world recognizes that pandemics require global solidarity,” said Nina Schwalbe, an international consultant involved in the approval (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/16/health/pandemic-treaty-who.html).
• Measles outbreaks in Canada and Mexico carry a poor prognosis (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/17/health/measles-texas-mexico-canada.html).
• The UN is working to protect the rights of older persons with an international convention. The idea is to launch an instrument that prevents discrimination based on age, such as access to healthcare (https://elpais.com/sociedad/2025-04-17/la-onu-trabaja-para-proteger-los-derechos-de-las-personas-mayores-con-una-convencion-internacional.html)

International Health Policy

• Trump’s Trade War and Its Impact on Healthcare
  • Trump takes the first step toward imposing tariffs on chips and pharmaceuticals, goods that had been exempt from the tariffs approved on April 2. In the case of medications, Trump has argued that tariffs should be applied to strengthen American drug production (https://elpais.com/internacional/2025-04-14/trump-da-el-primer-paso-para-imponer-aranceles-a-los-chips-y-los-productos-farmaceuticos.html)

• USA
  • Trump intends to lower drug prices through Medicare and some imports. What he proposes is to make it easier for states to import medications from Canada. But the executive order overrides all regulations for drug price negotiations with Medicare, approved during the Biden administration. It is estimated that this could mean a significant increase in drug prices (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/15/health/trump-executive-order-prescription-drug-pricing.html)
  • Trump declares on his website that the origin of COVID was a laboratory leak (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/18/science/trump-covid-website-lab-leak.html)
  • The Trump Administration proposes severe cuts to the Department of Health. The cuts would total $40 billion and would defund dozens of programs, including those for autism, teen pregnancy, lead poisoning, opioid recovery, and rural hospitals. The cuts initially spare Medicare and Medicaid (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/17/us/politics/trump-administration-proposes-health-department-cuts.html)
  • Just as fentanyl deaths decline, meth is coming from Maine. This powerful stimulant keeps users sleepless for days and can trigger psychosis and violence (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/16/health/meth-maine-fentanyl.html)

• United Kingdom and the National Health Service
  • The British Supreme Court answers the question of what constitutes a woman. According to the Court, for the purposes of the Equality Act, which covers discrimination in employment, education, and public services, the term “woman” refers to a biological woman. This overturns legislation that allowed a person to be declared a “woman” with gender dysphoria or by declaration by two doctors (https://www.economist.com/britain/2025/04/16/what-is-a-woman-britains-supreme-court-gives-its-answer)
  • Chinese researchers revealed to have access to half a million medical records of British primary care physicians (GPs) (https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/apr/15/revealed-chinese-researchers-access-half-a-million-uk-gp-records)
  • British hospitals introduce heart failure treatments that reduce mortality by 62%. The treatment consists of higher doses of drugs at the beginning of treatment (https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/apr/16/hospitals-britain-heart-failure-treatment)

• European Union
  • Europe approves the first drug that slows Alzheimer’s disease. The active ingredient, lecanemab, was initially rejected. It has now been approved with very strict indications. Negotiations for its approval in Spain are now underway (https://www.elespanol.com/ciencia/salud/20250415/europa-aprueba-fin-primer-medicamento-demostrado-ralentizar-progresion-alzheimer/1003743716676_0.html).

National Health Policy

• Central Administration Initiatives
  • Prohibition of serving sugary foods and pastries in school cafeterias. This is the announcement of a law, which will have to be approved (https://www.elmundo.es/ciencia-y-salud/salud/2025/04/15/67fe4edfe4d4d87d778b45bc-video.html)
  • The Ministry has several open fronts: from the Drug Law to the Framework Statute, with the strong opposition of the pharmaceutical sector and medical groups (https://www.elespanol.com/invertia/observatorios/sanidad/20250419/frentes-abiertos-sanidad-ley-medicamento-estatuto-marco/1003743716001_0.html)
  • The Ministry expects the Public Health Agency to be completed in a month and a half (https://gacetamedica.com/politica/agencia-salud-publica-hecha-congreso-padilla/)

• Autonomous community initiatives
  • La Rioja manages to retain 84% of its population their family MIRs (https://www.consalud.es/autonomias/la-rioja/rioja-logra-retener-84-sus-mir-en-medicina-familiar-comunitaria-plan-funciona_157153_102.html)
  • The surgical wait time at the SACYL: the best figure in the last five years (https://www.consalud.es/autonomias/castilla-y-leon/espera-quirurgica-en-sacyl-presenta-mejor-cifra-ultimos-cinco-anos-81dias_157191_102.html)
  • Implementation of the Unified Medical Record Viewer in the Canary Islands (https://www.redaccionmedica.com/autonomias/canarias/canarias-concluye-la-implantacion-del-visor-de-historia-clinica-unificada-6355)
  • Illa receives representatives of the pharmaceutical sector and offers support against Trump’s tariffs. The meeting, which also included the Regional Minister of Health, Olga Pané, was attended by representatives from the pharmaceutical companies Boehringer Ingelheim Spain, Sandoz, Amgen, Menarini, Almirall, Ferrer, Esteve, Grifols, Reig Jofre, Chiesi Spain, Kern Pharma, Merck Sharp and Dohme Spain, Farmaindustria, and Biosim. Illa informed them that the Responem Plan promoted by the Catalan government establishes monitoring mechanisms to be able to “react effectively.” (https://diariomedico.com/medicina/politica/illa-recibe-representantes-sector-farmaceutico-ofrece-apoyos-frente-aranceles-trump.html)
  • Olga Pané’s roadmap for reforming the Catalan healthcare system. The healthcare measures are included in the Government Plan for the 15th Legislature and consist of six objectives and 63 measures (https://www.redaccionmedica.com/autonomias/cataluna/los-6-objetivos-y-63-medidas-de-pane-para-reformar-la-sanidad-catalana-3145). Government Plan: https://govern.cat/govern/docs/Seguiment_Pladegovern.pdf
  • Pané will reform the critical patient care model. A governance model is established for the entire critical care system in Catalonia (https://diariomedico.com/medicina/politica/cataluna-pane-reformara-modelo-atencion-paciente-critico.html)

• “Not to do” policies
  • 23 hospitals join forces to implement ineffective or harmful measures. The initiative has managed to reduce blood transfusions and preoperative examinations by half (https://elpais.com/sociedad/2025-04-16/23-hospitales-se-unen-para-dejar-de-hacer-cosas-ineficaces-o-que-pueden-perjudicar-al-paciente.html)

• Healthcare, the second most pressing issue
  • According to the CIS (National Institute of Statistics and Census), healthcare is the second most pressing issue for Spaniards, surpassing housing. The report highlights that citizens perceive the National Health System to be deficient. Many frequent patient complaints tend to include a lack of staff in primary care, waiting times, or access to specialists. All of these problems seem to generate increasing distrust and a general feeling of insecurity regarding the quality and accessibility of healthcare, a factor that directly affects the population’s well-being. (https://gacetamedica.com/politica/cis-sanidad-segundo-problema-afecta-espanoles/)

• Healthcare spending falls
  • Healthcare spending falls to 6.5% of GDP and the share of pharmaceuticals reaches a historic low (https://diariofarma.com/2025/04/15/el-gasto-sanitario-baja-al-65-del-pib-y-el-peso-de-farmacia-marca-un-minimo-historico)

Companies

• International News
  • UnitedHealth shares fall 20% after insurers’ profit forecasts (https://www.ft.com/content/a8ab05e8-515f-4f43-9a82-a258bc0073d5)
  • Pfizer halts development of its obesity drug (https://www.ft.com/content/159502e7-0c4b-4024-8b77-33dbcf01fea2)
  • Johnson & Johnson warns that drug tariffs could lead to shortages (https://www.ft.com/content/3d1cebdd-3670-4e8d-9bfc-2a6398ede14b)
  • New drugs expected from the EMA for 2025, from Alzheimer’s to cancer drugs (https://www.elmundo.es/ciencia-y-salud/salud/2025/04/17/6800d8cdfc6c83ae548b45ad.html)
  • Johnson & Johnson, Roche, and AstraZeneca will lead the treatment of rare diseases by 2030. In that year, drugs for rare diseases will represent a fifth of prescription drug sales, according to Evaluate (https://www.elespanol.com/invertia/observatorios/sanidad/20250417/johnson-astrazeneca-roche-lideraran-mercado-terapias-enfermedades-raras/1003743715267_0.html)

• National
  • If current trends continue, the hospital pharmaceutical market will surpass the prescription market in five years, according to the FEFE Drug Observatory. (https://elglobalfarma.com/farmacia/si-continuan-las-tendencias-de-crecimiento-actuales-el-mercado-hospitalario-superara-al-de-recetas-en-cinco-anos/)
  • The Ministry of Health will force down prices on neurological therapies, statins, and antacids (https://www.eleconomista.es/salud-bienestar/noticias/13322478/04/25/sanidad-forzara-precios-a-la-baja-en-terapias-neurologicas-estatinas-o-antiacidos.html)
  • Cinfa increases its sales by 10% and consolidates its leadership in the pharmacy channel (https://www.eleconomista.es/salud-bienestar/noticias/13315995/04/25/cinfa-sube-sus-ventas-un-10-en-2024-y-consolida-su-liderazgo-en-el-canal-farmacia.html)

Summary

The week’s most impactful health news stories were:

• Biomedicine: Mitochondrial transplants could cure diseases and prolong life.
• Global health: The need to reduce mortality from postpartum hemorrhage.
• International health policy: Trump’s executive order on tariffs. According to Section 3 (Implementation), b 4, medications (but not medical technologies) are excluded from the tariff.
• National health policy. The Ministry and communities reach an agreement on the 2025-2027 Mental Health Plan, which includes $39 million in funding with eight strategic lines.
• Companies: Keytruda, the drug that bills as much as Zara.

Biomedicine

• Mitochondrial transplants could cure diseases and prolong life. Although organ transplants are well known, transplants of cellular organelles, such as mitochondria, are much less so. James McCully of Harvard Medical School has published the results of premature infants who underwent this type of transplant, as their mitochondria were damaged. Other preliminary results have also been published. This approach is being tested for many other diseases, as well as as a way to prolong life.
• Vaccination against shingles may reduce the risk of dementia. A population-based study shows that the shingles vaccine reduces the chance of dementia by 20%.

Global Health

• Reduction in mortality from postpartum hemorrhage. Globally, there are more than 300,000 deaths among women due to pregnancy and childbirth. Bleeding due to postpartum hemorrhage is the leading cause of death, with 70,000 deaths each year, predominantly in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. This is an event that can be prevented with early diagnosis.

International Health Policy

• Medicines excluded from Trump’s tariffs. Trump’s trade war threatens to disrupt global distribution chains for medicines and healthcare products. We have already experienced the consequences of supply chain disruption during COVID-19, with limitations on obtaining protective equipment, vaccines, and medications. Many of the medications, drug ingredients, and medical devices used in the US are imported, mainly from China and India. Europe calls the tariff increase “chaos” and warns that it will “make medicines more expensive.”
• More Americans cannot afford healthcare, according to Gallup. Eleven percent of the population cannot afford access to medicines and healthcare.
• Only one in five UK citizens (21%) is satisfied with NHS services, according to a joint study by the King’s Fund and the Nuffield Trust.

National Health Policy (Spain)

• The Ministry and regional governments reach an agreement on the 2025-2027 Mental Health Plan, which entails funding of 39 million euros. Eight strategic lines: 1. Strengthening human resources in mental health; 2. Community mental health; 3. A human rights-oriented model; 4. Rational use of psychotropic drugs and improved prescribing; 5. Addressing the most vulnerable contexts and groups; 6. Perinatal, childhood, and adolescent mental health; 7. Strengthening mental health information systems; 8. Mental health and work.
• The draft of Cantabria’s Digital Health Law will be ready this month. Guaranteed access to data is announced as the law’s central focus.
• Catalonia creates a 30 million euro fund to attract scientists who emigrate due to Trump. The strategy already has a name: it will be called Catalonia Talent Bridge and seeks to “offer opportunities to researchers whose academic freedom and professional future may be threatened in the United States.”
• Doctors are mobilizing against the government’s drafting of the Framework Statute. The points of contention: a specific statute for doctors, whether on-call work is paid as overtime, and issues related to public/private exclusivity.
• Silicosis is resurfacing strongly, increasing by more than 1,400% between 2015 and 2019. This is an incurable respiratory disease caused by the inhalation of crystalline silica dust. Although historically considered a disease of the past associated with mining, cases have increased in recent decades, affecting new industrial sectors such as the handling of quartz agglomerates used in kitchen and bathroom countertops.
• Comments on the AIREF report. The report goes from detecting certain problems to directly eliminating them, by not hiring new employees, based on the “uniformity” of the model and the precedents in certain countries.

Companies

• International
  • Keytruda, the drug that bills as much as Zara. It is a monoclonal antibody from MSD, which is used against 15 types of cancer.

• National
  • Brookfield resumes contact with Grifols to launch another takeover bid for 7 billion.

Biomedicine

• Mitochondrial transplants could cure diseases and prolong life. Although organ transplants are well known, transplants of cellular organelles, such as mitochondria, are much less so. James McCully of Harvard Medical School has published the results of premature infants who underwent this type of transplant, as their mitochondria were damaged. Other preliminary results have also been published. This approach is being tested for many other diseases, as well as as a way to prolong life (https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2025/03/31/mitochondria-transplants-could-cure-diseases-and-lengthen-lives)
• The harm of smartphones and social media. The Netflix series “Adolescence” has been widely disseminated. Many of us viewed smartphones and social media as forces for good. We believed the benefits outweighed the potential drawbacks. However, this access can cause harm, making mental illness more common in children and adolescents. Adults can control access, but children and adolescents are more exposed, with negative consequences (https://www.bmj.com/content/389/bmj.r658).
• Getting vaccinated against shingles may reduce the risk of dementia. A population study shows that the herpes vaccine reduces the risk of dementia by 20% (https://elpais.com/salud-y-bienestar/2025-04-02/vacunarse-contra-el-herpes-zoster-podria-reducir-el-riesgo-de-sufrir-demencia.html). Access the original article in Nature: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-08800-x
• A drug could revolutionize the treatment of cocaine addiction. It is a gene therapy developed by Novartis (https://www.abc.es/salud/enfermedades/farmaco-revolucionar-tratamiento-adiccion-cocaina-20250404102300-nt.html). Access the original article: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/scitranslmed.adi4505
• The pacemaker of the future, as small as a grain of rice and activated by light (https://www.abc.es/salud/enfermedades/marcapasos-futuro-pequeno-grano-arroz-activado-luz-20250402170000-nt.html)

Global Health

• Reducing mortality from postpartum hemorrhage. Globally, there are more than 300,000 women who die from pregnancy and childbirth. Bleeding due to postpartum hemorrhage is the leading cause of death, accounting for 70,000 deaths each year, predominantly in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. This event can be prevented with early diagnosis (https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)00671-3/fulltext).

International Health Policy

• Trump’s trade war and its impact on healthcare
  • Trump’s executive order on tariffs. According to Section 3 (Implementation), b 4, medicines are excluded from the tariff (https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/04/regulating-imports-with-a-reciprocal-tariff-to-rectify-trade-practices-that-contribute-to-large-and-persistent-annual-united-states-goods-trade-deficits/)
  • Annex I of the executive order, which establishes tariffs for individual countries: European Union, 20%; Japan, 24%; China, 34%; etc. Russia, Cuba, and North Korea are not on the list (https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Annex-I.pdf)
  • Trump’s trade war threatens to disrupt global supply chains for medicines and healthcare products. We have already experienced the consequences of supply chain disruption during COVID-19, with limitations on obtaining protective gear, vaccines, and medications. Many of the medications, drug ingredients, and medical devices used in the US are imported, primarily from China and India. Globalization has made China and India powerhouses in the production of APIs (raw materials for medicines) (https://www.bmj.com/content/389/bmj.r648)
  • For the industry, on edge due to Trump’s tariffs, the key lies in drug manufacturing. Although medicines and vaccines are explicitly excluded from the tariffs, it is unknown how this will impact other components necessary for drug manufacturing. Sources at Farmaindustria say that 24% of the inputs for drug production in Europe come from the USA (https://elglobalfarma.com/industria/la-industria-aranceles-trump-fabricacion-medicamentos/).
  • Europe describes the tariff increase as “chaos” and warns that it will “make medicines more expensive” (https://diariofarma.com/2025/04/03/europa-califica-de-caos-la-subida-arancelaria-y-advierte-que-encarecera-los-medicamentos).
  • FENIN requests that healthcare technologies be exempt from any tariffs. The announced tariffs could jeopardize patient access to healthcare technology. Medtech Europe and COCIR have also expressed their concern to the EU (https://www.diariomedico.com/medicina/empresas/fenin-pide-tecnologias-sanitarias-queden-exentas-arancel.html)

• USA
  • CDC cuts threaten US healthcare. The cuts will weaken the agency, which has been a model for the entire world (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/02/health/cdc-layoffs-kennedy.html)
  • FDA cuts threaten to raise drug costs and erode food safety. Initially, the cuts were intended to be administrative, but they also affect scientific staff (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/03/health/fda-layoffs-food-and-drug-safety-rfk-jr.html)
  • More Americans cannot afford healthcare, according to Gallup. 11% of the population cannot afford access to medications and healthcare (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/02/health/health-care-costs-gallup.html). Access the Gallup poll: https://news.gallup.com/poll/658148/inability-pay-care-medicine-hits-new-high.aspx

• UK and the National Health Service
  • King’s Fund comments on an NHS satisfaction survey: only 1 in 5 citizens (21%) say they are satisfied with the NHS: https://www.kingsfund.org.uk/insight-and-analysis/reports/public-satisfaction-nhs-social-care-in-2024-bsa, Nuffield Trust comments on the same survey: https://www.nuffieldtrust.org.uk/research/public-satisfaction-with-the-NHS-and-social-care-in-2024-Results-from-the-British-Social-Attitudes-survey. Access to the original document: https://www.nuffieldtrust.org.uk/sites/default/files/2025-04/Public%20satisfaction%20with%20the%20NHS%20and%20social%20care%20in%202024_WEB%20%284%29.pdf

• OECD
  • OECD Diagnostic errors account for 17.5% of healthcare spending (https://www.redaccionmedica.com/secciones/sanidad-hoy/los-fallos-diagnosticos-suponen-un-17-5-del-gasto-sanitario-en-la-ocde-5009)

National Health Policy

• Central Administration Initiatives
  • The Ministry and the regional governments reach an agreement on the 2025-2027 Mental Health Plan, which entails funding of 39 million euros. Eight strategic lines: 1. Strengthening human resources in mental health; 2. Community mental health; 3. A human rights-oriented model; 4. Rational use of psychotropic drugs and improved prescribing; 5. Addressing the most vulnerable contexts and groups; 6. Perinatal, childhood, and adolescent mental health; 7. Strengthening mental health information systems; 8. Mental Health and Work (https://www.alimente.elconfidencial.com/bienestar/2025-04-04/aprueban-plan-salud-mental-sanidad-ccaa_4102136/)
  • The draft of the Medicines Law will go to the next Council of Ministers, then go to a public hearing, and is expected to reach Congress as a bill by the end of 2025 (https://diariofarma.com/2025/04/02/el-anteproyecto-de-ley-de-los-medicamentos-ira-al-proximo-consejo-de-ministros)
  • The government aims to turn Spain into a medicines hub through eight measures (https://elglobalfarma.com/politica/hub-farmaceutico-gobierno-aemps-espana/)

• Initiatives and news from the autonomous communities
  • The draft of the Digital Health Law Cantabria will be ready this month. Guaranteed access to data is announced as the cornerstone of the law (https://www.consalud.es/autonomias/cantabria/anteproyecto-ley-salud-digital-cantabria-estara-listo-este-mismo-mes-abril_156580_102.html)
  • Galicia, the first region to purchase vaccines through risk-sharing agreements (https://diariofarma.com/2025/03/31/galicia-primera-comunidad-que-comprara-vacunas-con-de-acuerdos-de-riesgo-compartido)
  • The Community of Madrid will soon put out to tender the construction of the Ciudad de la Salud (Health City), comprising the La Paz Hospital and the Faculty of Medicine of the Autonomous University of Madrid. (https://www.eldebate.com/espana/madrid/20250403/madrid-licitara-proximamente-primeras-obras-ciudad-salud_285155.html)
  • Catalonia creates a 30 million fund to attract scientists who emigrate because of Trump. The strategy already has a name: it will be called Catalonia Talent Bridge and seeks to “offer opportunities to research staff whose academic freedom and professional future in the United States may be threatened” (https://www.expansion.com/catalunya/2025/03/31/67ea8400468aebc4488b4584.html)
  • Andalusians take to the streets for the sixth time over the deterioration of public healthcare under the Moreno government (https://elpais.com/espana/andalucia/2025-04-05/los-andaluces-salen-a-la-calle-por-sexta-vez-contra-el-deterioro-de-la-sanidad-pubica-por-el-gobierno-de-moreno.html)

• Problems with the Framework Statute and, specifically, with the inclusion of doctors continue
  • Doctors mobilize against the drafting of the Framework Statute The government is planning. The issues of contention: a specific statute for doctors, the requirement that on-call work be paid as overtime, and issues related to public/private exclusivity (https://elpais.com/sociedad/2025-04-05/los-medicos-se-movilizan-contra-la-reforma-de-su-estatuto-que-planea-el-gobino-la-indignacion-es-enorme.html)

• Silicosis
  • Silicosis is making a strong comeback, having increased by more than 1,400% between 2015 and 2019. This is an incurable respiratory disease caused by the inhalation of crystalline silica dust. Although historically considered a disease of the past associated with mining, cases have increased in recent decades, affecting new industrial sectors such as the handling of quartz agglomerates used in kitchen and bathroom countertops (https://www.elmundo.es/ciencia-y-salud/salud/2025/04/03/67ee460ffdddff875f8b45a5.html). Ministry of Health report on the topic: https://www.sanidad.gob.es/fr/areas/saludLaboral/enfermedadesProf/docs/REMERGENCIA_SILICOSIS._Accesible.pdf

• MUFACE
  • Comments on the AIREF report. The report goes from detecting certain problems to outright discontinuation, by not hiring new employees, based on the “uniformity” of the model and the precedents in certain countries (https://elpais.com/sociedad/2025-04-04/las-seis-incognitas-sobre-muface-que-se-han-desvelado-despues-de-renovarse-el-convenio.html)
  • Private hospitals are threatening to abandon MUFACE due to low insurance rates. ASPE urges the government to intervene (https://www.elperiodico.com/es/sanidad/20250401/muface-hospitales-privados-barajan-abandonar-bajas-tarifas-nuevo-concierto-115923543)
  • MUFACE awards the agreement to Adeslas and Asisa, which is expected to be signed by the end of April (https://theobjective.com/economia/2025-04-03/muface-adeslas-asisa-concierto-sanitario/)

Companies

• International News
  • Biotech M&A expected to return (https://www.ft.com/content/a4cad400-ae56-434a-94bd-080152263d90)
  • BectonDickinson in talks to divest from health sciences (https://www.ft.com/content/a5a94445-9185-4c26-be6a-ae3303838d81)
  • Drug discovery company Isomorphic Labs, a spin-off of Google’s DeepMind, raises $600 million (https://www.ft.com/content/14d93672-dce7-482d-9b32-fa3553b37273)
  • Keytruda, the drug with the same revenue as Zara. It is a monoclonal antibody from Merck, which is used against 15 types of cancer (https://elpais.com/sociedad/2025-04-02/keytruda-el-medicamento-que-factura-tanto-como-zara-y-genera-debate-sobre-la-duracion-de-las-patentes.html)

• National
  • Brookfield resumes contacts with Grifols to launch another takeover bid for 7 billion (https://www.elconfidencial.com/empresas/2025-04-02/brookfield-retoma-contactos-grifols-opa_4099616/)

Summary

The week’s most impactful health news stories were:

• Biomedicine: How to improve humans, an activity that should not be left to eccentrics.
• Global Health: A story of “geopolitical vandalism,” the freezing of USAID activities.
• International Health Policy: American universities warn of the danger to innovation in the US as a result of cuts.
• National Health Policy: The State Public Health Agency rejected by Congress.
• Business: Microsoft continues its efforts to have AI simulate brain reasoning.

Biomedicine

• How to improve humans. Finding ways to live longer should not be left to eccentrics. The idea that medicine should be involved in improving the body, not just curing diseases, is gaining ground. This requires regulatory changes to guide clinical trials in this direction.
• Do viruses trigger Alzheimer’s? Until now, it was believed that Alzheimer’s was caused by amyloid plaques in the brain. But several studies are demonstrating a possible relationship between Alzheimer’s and the herpes virus. The viral theory offers promise for treatment.
• Psychotropic drugs: 50 years of stagnation? While treatments for cancer and heart disease have advanced, psychiatry continues to use, with some variations, the same mechanisms of action discovered more than half a century ago with antipsychotics and antidepressants.

Global Healthecare

• The closure of USAID: “political vandalism.” After USAID, what will happen in Africa? The closure of this agency means the end of 90% of the 6,300 projects and can be considered a form of “geopolitical vandalism,” since the decision was made overnight and without consultation with African governments, non-governmental organizations, or the millions of people who depend on USAID. This forces Africa to take the lead in public health actions.
• Malaria mapping: progress and challenges. The recent WHO annual report on malaria estimates that there were 263 million cases and 597,000 deaths from malaria in 2023. Cases have increased by 11 million compared to 2022, but deaths have stabilized. Ninety-five percent of deaths occurred in the African region, and three-quarters of them were in children. The recent Global Burden of Malaria study analyzes the period from 2000 to 2022 and presents high-resolution maps on the evolution of malaria. Malaria remains a serious public health problem and is a preventable and avoidable morbidity and mortality issue.

International Health Policy

• Universities warn of the danger to innovation in the US as a result of cuts.. This threatens one of the US’s clearest competitive advantages: with 4% of the population, it has 25% of the world’s GDP and 62% of the most prestigious universities according to recognized rankings.
• Trump and Elon Musk’s DOGE reform of the Veterans Administration have thrown the mental health system into chaos. A disastrous restructuring threatens to degrade services for veterans of wars such as Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan.
• Starmer unveils drastic cuts to benefits for the disabled, despite opposition from the Labour Party itself and economists. The measures could affect people who need help with personal hygiene, meal preparation, or who have forgotten how to use the toilet. The government doesn’t link this to the economic crisis, but rather says it’s a “moral obligation” to tweak these benefits.

National Health Policy (Spain)

• Congress rejects the State Agency for Public Health. Although the corresponding complaints and calls for responsibility have been heard in recent days, there are objective reasons that must be analyzed for the rejection of this law: the government’s lack of a stable parliamentary majority; the reluctance of the pro-independence parties, always opposed to a state structure of this nature; Minister Garcia’s regrettable and incendiary speech and the lack of trust in the government regarding respect for independent bodies. The minister’s actions with the former spokesperson during COVID, Fernando Simón, didn’t help either. Nothing irreparable, but the fact that five years after COVID and following the recommendations of the Opinion of the Commission for Social and Economic Reconstruction, we don’t have a prestigious and independent State Public Health Agency is a serious failure of the government.
• Catalonia: 27 primary care teams will be “Comprehensive Reference Health Centers” and will have greater autonomy and management capacity. These centers will be launched as a pilot project and participation will be voluntary.
• Catalonia plans its Secondary Data Access Office.

Companies

• International
  • Microsoft continues its efforts to enable AI to simulate brain reasoning, partnering with a Swiss startup with experience in research.

• National
  • Investment in nursing homes is increasing, reaching 317 million in 2024 and expected to exceed this figure in 2025.

Biomedicine

• How to enhance humans. Finding ways to live longer should not be left to the eccentric. The idea that medicine should be involved in improving the body, not just curing diseases, is gaining ground. This requires regulatory changes to guide clinical trials in this direction. https://www.economist.com/leaders/2025/03/20/how-to-enhance-humans
• Do viruses trigger Alzheimer’s? Until now, it was believed that Alzheimer’s was caused by amyloid plaques in the brain. But several studies are demonstrating a possible relationship between Alzheimer’s and the herpes virus. Viral theory offers promise for treatment https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2025/03/17/do-viruses-trigger-alzheimers
• Vaccines save lives. Leaders must protect them. Measles had been declared extinct by the WHO in 82 countries. Now it is making a comeback and is on the rise worldwide. In 2023, 57 countries experienced outbreaks, coinciding with a decline in vaccination. These are why Robert J. Kennedy Jr.’s misleading messages are serious when he recommends cod liver oil or vitamin A as useful supplements to treat the disease, while hindering vaccine research. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-00789-7
• Type 2 diabetes increases the risk of liver and pancreatic cancer. https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/mar/22/type-2-diabetes-increases-risk-of-liver-and-pancreatic-cancers-study-shows
• Dementia may not have always been the great threat it is today. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/22/health/dementia-rates-elderly.html
• The polypill is back: could everyone over 50 be given a pill to prevent cardiovascular disease? Some recommend it for those over 50, saying it would save many lives and would be similar to vaccination, others are more skeptical https://elpais.com/salud-y-bienestar/2025-03-18/vuelve-la-polipildora-se-podria-dar-una-pastilla-a-todos-los-mayores-de-50-anos-para-prevenir-las-enfermedades-cardiovasculares.html, Access the BMJ article: https://www.bmj.com/content/388/bmj.r208
• Psychotropic drugs: 50 years of stagnation? While treatments for cancer and heart disease have advanced, the same mechanisms of action discovered more than half a century ago with antipsychotics and antidepressants continue to be used in psychiatry, with some variations. https://elpais.com/salud-y-bienestar/2025-03-21/psicofarmacos-cincuenta-anos-de-estancamiento.html, Original article in The Lancet Psychiatry: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39952266/

Global Health

• Malaria mapping: progress and challenges. The recent WHO annual report on malaria estimates that there were 263 million cases and 597,000 deaths from malaria in 2023. Cases have increased by 11 million compared to 2022, but deaths have stabilized. Ninety-five percent of deaths were in the African region, and three-quarters were in children. The recent Global Burden of Malaria study analyzes the period from 2000 to 2022 and presents high-resolution maps of the evolution of malaria. Malaria remains a serious public health problem and is a preventable and avoidable morbidity and mortality issue. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)00418-0/abstract?rss=yes. Access the base article: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)00038-8/fulltext?rss=yes
• After USAID, what will happen in Africa? The closure of this agency means the end of 90% of the 6,300 projects and can be considered a form of “geopolitical vandalism,” since the decision was made overnight and without consultation with African governments, non-governmental organizations, or the millions of people who depend on USAID. This forces Africa to take the lead in public health actions https://www.bmj.com/content/388/bmj.r479
• COP 30: Brazilian policies must change. The 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference will take place in the Brazilian Amazon in November 2025. A success of this policy would be to curb deforestation and reduce fossil fuel consumption. However, all of Brazil’s policies currently aim to increase consumption of these fuels https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adu9113
• The WHO warns that “measles is back,” as the virus spreads in Europe, America, and Afghanistan https://www.bmj.com/content/388/bmj.r528

International Health Policy

• USA
  • Trump and Elon Musk’s DOGE are throwing the Veterans Administration’s mental health system into chaos. A disastrous restructuring threatens to degrade services for veterans of wars like Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/22/us/politics/veterans-affairs-mental-health-doge.html
  • Universities warn of the danger to innovation in the US as a result of the cuts. This threatens one of the USA’s clearest competitive advantages: with 4% of the population, it has 25% of the world’s GDP and 62% of the most prestigious universities, according to renowned rankings. https://www.ft.com/content/e5ae9e28-3823-4429-a144-af70c38f4bcb
  • How hospitals inflate the already gigantic American healthcare bill. Although drug spending and insurance companies are often blamed for the high cost of American healthcare, a third of total healthcare spending is on hospitals, which is three times as much as spending on drugs. Poorly designed incentives are at the root of this. Most hospitals charge on a fee-for-service basis, with opaque rates, and consolidation has made the situation worse. The presence of private equity firms as hospital owners is also seen as negative. There are signs that the Trump administration wants to address this problem: https://www.economist.com/business/2025/03/20/how-hospitals-inflate-americas-giant-health-care-bill
  • Five reasons why Republicans won’t cut Medicaid (too much): Medicaid is popular; it’s efficient; it improves health; it’s relatively cheap; and it helps all kinds of people https://www.healthaffairs.org/content/forefront/five-reasons-republicans-won-t-cut-medicaid-much

• United Kingdom and the National Health Service
  • The closure of NHS England, which is met with great skepticism, despite acknowledging that the NHS needed reforms. Let’s see what the “10-year plan” holds, which will appear in May. Analysis by The Lancet: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)00550-1/abstract?rss=yes; analysis by the BMJ: https://www.bmj.com/content/388/bmj.r555;
  • The NHS finally agrees to share primary care clinical data for research. Clinical information will be placed on an OpenSAFELY platform, allowing researchers to analyze the data without seeing any patient-identifying information. https://www.bmj.com/content/388/bmj.r501
  • Research reveals UK dependence on doctors from “red list” countries, as well as drug shortages. https://www.nuffieldtrust.org.uk/news-item/research-reveals-nhs-overreliance-on-doctors-from-red-list-countries-and-renewed-signs-of-widespread-medicines-shortages
  • Brexit is a major factor driving drug shortages in the UK, according to a report by the Nuffield Trust, with drugs for epilepsy and cystic fibrosis among them. https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/mar/22/brexit-key-factor-worst-uk-drug-shortages-in-four-years
  • Starmer unveils drastic cuts to disability benefits, despite opposition from the Labour Party itself and economists. The measures could affect people who need help with personal hygiene, meal preparation, or who forget how to use the toilet. The government doesn’t link this to the economic crisis, but says it’s a moral obligation to tweak these benefits https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/mar/17/keir-starmer-to-unveil-drastic-disability-benefit-cuts-despite-opposition
  • Post-Brexit dependence on “red list” countries is unethical, according to the British health secretary. 9% of doctors working in the NHS are from “red list” countries (classified by the WHO as having a shortage of professionals, such as Nigeria, https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/mar/21/post-brexit-reliance-on-nhs-staff-from-red-list-countries-is-unethical-streeting-says

• France
  • Five years after Covid-19, teleworking has become a common practice; one in five private sector employees in France were using teleworking in 2024, https://www.lemonde.fr/economie/article/2025/03/20/cinq-ans-apres-le-covid-19-campings-locations-de-maisons-et-toujours-plus-de-touristes-etrangers-le-nouveau-visage-du-tourisme_6583823_3234.html

• Greece
  • Quality and Patient Safety Plan, 2025-2030, https://eurohealthobservatory.who.int/monitors/health-systems-monitor/updates/hspm/greece-2017/national-strategy-for-quality-of-care-and-patient-safety-2025-2030

• European Union
  • Europe urges countries to increase coverage after measles outbreaks, https://www.elmundo.es/ciencia-y-salud/salud/2025/03/22/67dd9e54e9cf4ac9558b4586.html
  • Europe in the fight against cancer: encouraging signs, but disparities between countries persist, https://diariofarma.com/2025/03/19/europa-ante-el-cancer-indicios-alentadores-pero-persiste-la-disparidad-entre-paises
  • The EU law on critical medicines focuses on shortages of essential drugs, https://www.consalud.es/industria/ley-medicamentos-criticos-ue-se-centra-en-desabastecimiento-farmacos-esenciales_155985_102.html

National health policy

• Central administration
  • State Agency for Public Health: García’s intervention and the government’s weak parliamentary support led to the rejection of this initiative, https://diariofarma.com/2025/03/20/aesap-garcia’s-intervention-led-the-pp-to-reject-the-dictamen-que-aprobo-en-comision
  • The government is considering ways to bring the AESP back to Congress, https://www.consalud.es/politica/volvera-llevar-sanidad-agencia-estatal-salud-publica-congreso_156187_102.html
  • The Commonwealth law is still pending; the delay is due to the non-submission of the 2024 Budget Law, https://www.consalud.es/politica/ley-ela-sigue-pendiente-incapacidad-gobierno-sacar-adelante-presupuestos_156174_102.html

• Initiatives and news from the autonomous communities
  • Catalonia: 27 Primary Care teams will be “Comprehensive Reference Health Centers,” with greater autonomy and management capacity. These centers will be launched as a pilot experience in voluntarily participating centers. https://www.diariomedico.com/medicina/politica/cataluna-27-equipos-ap-seran-centros-salud-integral-referencia.html
  • Catalonia: The government begins updating the Health Plan, https://diariomedico.com/medicina/politica/gobierno-catalan-inicia-actualizacion-plan-salud.html
  • Catalonia plans its Secondary Use Data Access Office, https://www.diariomedico.com/medicina/politica/cataluna-proyecta-oficina-acceso-datos-secundario.html
  • The SERMAS OPE (Service for the Promotion of Primary Care) will have a total of 6,757 places. https://www.redaccionmedica.com/autonomias/madrid/la-ope-2025-del-sermas-contara-con-6-757-plazas-en-total-2046

• Private healthcare
  • Doctors are satisfied with their experience in private practice. 69% of doctors and 55% of nurses in private healthcare have rated their experience working in these centers with more than seven out of ten points. https://www.abc.es/salud/mayoria-medicos-valoran-positivamente-experiencia-trabajo-sanidad-20250320163351-nt.html. Access the original document from the IDIS Foundation: https://www.medicosypacientes.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Informe_EX_profesional_sanitario-c.pdf

• Sick Leave
  • Spending on sick leave grows by 186% in a dark decade for absenteeism. https://www.abc.es/economia/gasto-bajas-crece-186-decada-negra-absentismo-20250317182259-nt.html

Companies

• International News
  • Abu Dhabi seeks to turn its DNA gold mine into a big business, https://www.ft.com/content/8eb374aa-1777-4940-a383-36de8dac7fd7
  • AstraZeneca to invest $2.5 billion in China, https://www.ft.com/content/3f1a9c29-2f69-4490-94d1-a990605a7b41
  • Microsoft continues its efforts to use AI to simulate brain reasoning, partnering with a Swiss startup with experience in neuroscience research https://www.ft.com/content/37e44758-04a6-450b-abe3-f51f1d7d972a
  • Temasek and Warburg Pincus intend to offer $5 billion for the healthcare company GHX, https://www.ft.com/content/2adc0736-98cc-4017-a870-83bcd9be63ab
  • These are the 10 best-sellers that will lose their American patent in 2025, https://www.diariomedico.com/medicina/empresas/son-10-farmacos-superventas-pierden-patente-estadounidense-2025.html
  • Pfizer sells its stake in Haleon and ceases to be its main shareholder, https://www.consalud.es/salud35/internacional/pfizer-vende-su-participacion-en-haleon-por-2974-millones-deja-ser-su-mayor-accionista_156056_102.html

• National
  • The nursing home business, investment reached 317 million in 2024 and is expected to exceed this figure in 2025, https://www.elespanol.com/invertia/observatorios/sanidad/20250317/negocio-residencias-mayores-inversion-alcanzo-millones-preve-superar-cifra/931156972_0.html
  • DKV prepares its new strategy after the exit of the MUFACE insurance, which means the loss of 200,000 policyholders https://www.expansion.com/empresas/seguros/2025/03/21/67dc8a62e5fdea3a7e8b4595.html
  • Reig Jofré will launch its first biosimilar within two years, https://www.eleconomista.es/salud-bienestar/medicamentos/noticias/13272294/03/25/ignasi-biosca-reig-jofre-nuestro-primer-medicamento-biosimilar-aterrizara-en-el-mercado-dentro-de-dos-anos.html