It is time for In Vivo's 11th annual Deals of the Year contest. We've selected 18 nominees in three categories – Top Alliance, Top Financing and Top M&A – and you get to pick the winners. (It's free.)

It is time for In Vivo's 11th annual Deals of the Year contest. We've selected 18 nominees in three categories – Top Alliance, Top Financing and Top M&A – and you get to pick the winners. (It's free.)

It is time for In Vivo's 11th annual Deals of the Year contest. We've selected 18 nominees in three categories – Top Alliance, Top Financing and Top M&A – and you get to pick the winners. (It's free.)

Catenion, a biopharma-focused R&D strategy consulting firm, has analyzed the performance of the top-30 biopharma companies in 2018 and outlined major concerns for the future of innovation in drug development. 

The clinical trial embodies the hope and the hassle of biopharma’s mission to develop new drugs for patients. It is an endlessly imperfect process: C-suite calls for more efficiency and speed at lower cost has been the story for decades. But an In Vivo conversation with a leading expert on trial management pinpoints three key trends that suggest better days are ahead for this central pillar of the innovation imperative.

An interactive look at recent executive-level company changes and promotions in the biopharma, medical device and diagnostics industries.

Consolidation of hospital networks and professionalization of purchasing teams are putting pressure on medtech prices, and they are just two of the factors that are encouraging medtech leaders to renew their focus on spending visibility and accountability. Zero-based budgeting is a tool that could help them deliver a triple win, Patrick O’Hagan and Jason Evers of Bain & Company suggest.

Patient access, regenerative medicine and immuno-oncology feature heavily in a list of the Top 10 most read In Vivo features from 2018, highlighting the issues and disease areas that are top of mind for biopharma and medtech leaders.

Payers cannot control the pricing of new products by biopharmaceutical companies, but their goal is to deliver quality health care in a cost-effective manner. Several payer medical directors representing over 100 million commercially insured members have shared their insights for managing the challenging US market – revealing their thoughts on drug pricing currently, and steps they plan to take in the next 3 to 5 years to better control rising costs.

In view of the political and regulatory threats and opportunities likely to emerge in 2019, for those in the medtech industry, it pays to be vigilant, advises ZS' Brian Chapman. And while some new tech entrants appear to represent a threat to established medtech players, their emergence in general promises significant opportunities for savings and innovation in health care. At the same time, there will likely be a short-term return to both old medtech industry values, and to major M&A.  

Scott Gottlieb's FDA continues to push out policy reforms and experiments at a rapid pace, with special focus on digital and AI technologies. In parallel, US Medicare officials are more publicly signaling plans to roll out policies for a quicker path to reimbursement for new devices. However, public scrutiny of whether device regulations properly protect patient safety is growing, and it could have an impact. 

Derived from Strategic Transactions, Informa’s premium source for tracking life sciences deal activity, the Dealmaking column is a survey of recent health care transactions listed by relevant industry segment – In Vitro Diagnostics, Medical Devices, and Pharmaceuticals – and then categorized by type – Acquisition, Alliance, or Financing. This month’s column covers deals announced in December 2018.

Even though 2018 did not feature the big influx of biopharma M&A that was expected, there were still encouraging signs that major advancements and breakthroughs in the biotech industry attract buy-outs. Cancer-focused companies and oncology assets again drove volume in alliances and financing transactions.

A company’s contracts of today drive its income of tomorrow – but also its disputes. Dorothee Schramm, a partner at Sidley Austin who specializes in international commercial disputes, provides tips on how to avoid partnership conflicts.