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7 days in healthcare (October 23rd-29th, 2023)

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Summary

From the point of view of Biomedicine, Nature magazine analyzes the great impact of Artificial Intelligence in medicine. Interesting article from the New York Times about the possible addictive nature of social networks.

Regarding Global Health, the WHO adds 6.9 million deaths from covid, although warning that the global figure could triple. Major humanitarian and health crisis in Gaza, which is the subject of WHO concern.

In terms of International Health Policy, the NEJM wonders if the introduction of the American government’s law that requires negotiating the price of drugs for Medicare will delay the appearance of new cancer drugs. The conclusion is that, although pharmaceutical companies will look for ways to maintain their profits, delaying the appearance of medications does not seem to be the best strategy, due to the ethical, reputational and financial considerations inherent to the operation. The Economist analyzes how it seems that healthcare has ceased to be the bottomless pit for public accounts, as it was for many years, in which, year after year, its relative weight in the countries’ GDP increased. Although health expenditure increased its share of GDP in the years 20-21, due to the joint effect of health expenditure due to the pandemic and the decline in GDP, it has since fallen to reach 2008 levels. In the United Kingdom, It seems highly unlikely that Prime Minister Sunak will deliver on his promises on NHS waiting lists.

If we talk about National Health Policy (Spain), given the evolution of the negotiations for the investiture and the possible continuity of Sánchez in the government, the national news of the week is the publication of the document “Spain advances”, which contains the agreements of the PSOE with SUMAR on different topics. The general tone of the document is more about promises than progress in certain necessary reforms and this same philosophy permeates the health part. On the other hand, the document does not cover all the topics (it does not talk about Defense, very little about foreign policy or other relevant issues). It gives the impression that this is the part in which SUMAR would intervene. From this point of view, as the health part is developed in some detail, it is assumed that a strong intervention by SUMAR in health is expected, regardless of whether the Ministry of Health is handed over to it. In summary, what is promised is to continue the processing of the Equity Law (which establishes direct public management as the preferred form of management in the SNS), a law is proposed with maximum times for waiting lists and there is talk of new benefits in mental health, oral health (although it seems to limit it to children and adolescents) and visual health. We consider the emphasis on the preferential nature of direct public management negative (there is multiple evidence of the good results of public companies and foundations or health concessions) and regarding the law on the waiting list it will surely not be the best way to solve this problem. We have already seen laws and regulations in some communities that had no effect. Both the PP, in the political sphere, and ASPE and ACES, in the world of health representation, have been against these measures.

In the field of Companies, on an international level, Amazon is torn between promises and realities in healthcare. Although large technology platforms will surely have an increasing role in healthcare (as in the financial world), it seems that they are finding it difficult to enter. Roche reaches an agreement to buy Telavant. At the national level, Ribera reaches an agreement with Microsoft to promote innovation and AI in healthcare. It seems that Grifols is making progress in its therapy against Alzheimer’s.

Biomedicine

Global Health

International health policy

National health policy

Companies

7 days in healthcare (March 27th-April 2nd, 2023)

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Summary

From the point of view of Biomedicine, the latest issue of The Lancet dedicates a special article and an editorial to chronic pain, which affects millions of people daily; For its part, the New England Journal of Medicine publishes a review and an editorial on Artificial Intelligence in medicine. It seems that humanity will soon break historical records in terms of longevity. It is also worth highlighting the advances that are being announced in regenerative medicine (xenotransplant, 3D organ printing and stem cells).

With regard to Global Health, the most important thing is the WHO’s warning to governments in dedicating efforts to health professionals, since many of them are close to retirement and the needs are increasing for many reasons.

Regarding International Health Policy, in the United States, the FDA authorizes the free sale of Narcan, a nasal spray against opioid overdose, which represents life or death for many people. In the United Kingdom, the popularity of the NHS is the lowest it has been for 40 years, when this type of study began.

If we talk about National Health Policy (Spain), a new replacement in the Ministry of Health. Some consider that this Ministry has become the electoral launching pad for its incumbents (Illa, for Catalonia; Darias, for Las Palmas, and, apparently, Miñones, for Galicia). This approach, together with the short duration of the ministers, is one of the causes that contribute to the loss of prestige, leadership and role of the Ministry of Health, which has a policy of contingency management, but without a true project of transformation of the system, to propose to the different agents. The Minister of Health of Catalonia seems to have a plan to reinforce and retain professionals, something very necessary. I hope this plan works. The EMA has given the green light to the Spanish vaccine against the HIPRA covid, although only as a booster dose to the mRNA vaccines. Important social debate around surrogacy, as a result of the use of this procedure by a “celebrity”. Very different positions on the subject. Perhaps the most correct approach, as a quoted writer does, is to see who this procedure harms, if the parents, the unborn child, or the woman who lends her uterus. If the conclusion is that no one has been harmed, the most reasonable thing to do would be to approve this practice in our country, as it is in so many others.

In the field of Companies, internationally, BioNTech’s sales forecasts plummet, as a result of the lower demand for covid vaccines. At the national level, perhaps the most far-reaching news is the purchase by Viamed (Macquarie) of the Fátima hospital in Seville, after stiff competition with many other interested parties, including Vithas and Sanitas. Hospitales Parque (CASER) is set to grow at the rate of one hospital per year in the next three years.

Biomedicine

Global Health

International Health Policy

  • COVID
    • Data from Gisaid, the global repository of covid genomic data, increases the chances of discovering the origin of covid. Three years into the pandemic, it is still not certain whether the virus arose accidentally from a laboratory or was transmitted through an animal host (https://www.ft.com/content/f0733683-cb6d-4578-915a-aa60d7ba4c1d)

National Health Policy

Companies