Slowly but surely – and just in time for the State of the Union – the full picture of the Trump Administration’s Most-Favoured Nations drug pricing policy is coming into focus. At the end of last year, CMS published the draft guidance for its GLOBE and GUARD pricing models, which establish MFN pricing in Medicare Part B and Part D, respectively. And earlier this month TrumpRx – the government’s promised patient-facing discount portal – finally went live.

On today’s podcast, Jonah Comstock is joined by Alice Valder Curran, a partner at Hogan Lovells and a healthcare policy expert, to break down what we know and what we still don’t know about each of these developments.

Among other things, Valder Curran breaks down how the two CMS pilot programmes will work, what statutory authority CMS is leaning on (and whether that authority is likely to be challenged), and how the industry is responding. Comstock and Valder Curran also discuss TrumpRx and how impactful it’s shaping up to be, at least based on what’s been revealed so far. And how do those negotiated MFN deals fit in to all this?

We can’t give you the answers to all your questions about MFN – too much is still up in the air. But this podcast will at least give you an idea of what those open questions are and how they’re likely to play out.

You can listen to episode 246 of the pharmaphorum podcast in the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.

Following his return from San Francisco and the JP Morgan Healthcare conference last month, editor-in-chief Jonah Comstock sat down with pharmaphorum web editor Nicole Raleigh to discuss what he heard and learned on the ground in California.

2026 marked the 44th year of the annual meeting: Comstock shares his top insights, goes into the details from the panel he moderated at the Informa Biotech Showcase, and suggests his key takeaway from this year’s conference.

You can listen to episode 245 of the pharmaphorum podcast in the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.

The rising cost of drugs in 2025 was driven by several factors, including inflation, supply chain issues, and the demand for specialty drugs – straining already overburdened health systems.

In a new pharmaphorum podcast, web editor Nicole Raleigh speaks with Jeff Harper, head of product at IntelliGuard, about these pressing issues and what hospitals can expect as we progress further into 2026.

The conversation also explores the role digital health technologies like RFID and predictive analytics could play in addressing drug waste and ensuring access, as well as why hospital CFOs and pharmacy leaders are reframing medication management as a strategic priority, not just an operational one

You can listen to episode 244 of the pharmaphorum podcast in the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.

The term "omnichannel engagement" has become embedded in today’s healthcare conversations. Yet the biopharmaceutical industry often approaches it superficially – treating it as a trendy buzzword instead of a meaningful strategy for connecting with the sector's two most vital audiences: patients and healthcare providers (HCPs).

In this episode of the pharmaphorum podcast, developed in partnership with Reverba Global, editor-in-chief Jonah Comstock sits down with Cheryl Lubbert, co-founder and CEO of Reverba Global, and Carolyn Whiting, SVP of clinical and medical client services, to discuss how a thoughtfully executed omnichannel strategy can empower scientific experts to become effective communicators.

Today's patients actively seek scientifically robust, yet accessible, information about their health conditions, and a well-integrated medical affairs strategy can help deliver that knowledge through the HCPs they trust most.

However, bringing this vision to life requires forward-thinking strategies that build authentic connections, challenge conventional approaches, and dismantle the communication silos that frequently exist in healthcare organisations.

Throughout the episode, Lubbert and Whiting share Reverba Global's methodology for authentic omnichannel engagement with patients and physicians, offering real-world examples and practical perspectives on navigating obstacles and establishing this evolved model.

You can listen to this episode of the pharmaphorum podcast using the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.

Outdated training and behaviours impact patient outcomes and can lead to patient risk.

In a new pharmaphorum podcast, web editor Nicole Raleigh speaks with Lisa Sims, executive director of learning strategy & operations at Novartis, for a conversation on modern training for pharma and how AI and data – quality data – can help personalise learning at scale.

You can listen to episode 243 of the pharmaphorum podcast in the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.

At the JP Morgan Healthcare conference this year, a lot of the discourse around AI drug discovery focused on making the leap from purely in silico drug discovery operations to real-world operations that are able to incorporate wet lab data in an iterative way.

This is easily said, but to do it requires innovating new processes and infrastructures. On the sidelines of the show, pharmaphorum’s Jonah Comstock caught up with Yann Gaston-Mathe, founder and CEO of Iktos, an AI drug discovery company that just signed a billion euro deal with Servier to put this technology into action.

In this quick dispatch from JPM (and we apologise for the shaky audio), Gaston-Mathe describes this shift in AI drug discovery, why it needs to happen, and what it takes, as well as giving some insights on why Servier and Iktos are a good fit as partners.

“You need to think about how effective you are in the transition between the in vitro world and the in silico world,” Gaston-Mathe says. “Building on the data which is available is not enough.”

You can listen to episode 242 of the pharmaphorum podcast in the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.

The global impact of digital transformation in the last few decades cannot be understated. And now, of course, artificial intelligence (or AI) is making headlines for its potential to transform lives.

In a new pharmaphorum podcast, Deep Dive editor Eloise McLennan speaks with Mohit Manrao, SVP, head of US oncology at AstraZeneca, and president of the AstraZeneca Foundation.

The conversation explores the application of AI in cancer care, some of the most promising potential applications of AI in the life sciences setting generally, as well as AZ’s multi-year partnership with Pangaea Data, focused on advancing precision healthcare with multimodal AI.

Additionally, Manrao discusses how equity gaps in oncology can be minimized, but also the importance of maintaining the human touch when it comes to applying AI in the cancer setting.

You can listen to episode 241 of the pharmaphorum podcast in the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.

On-site on the sidelines of JP Morgan Healthcare conference in San Francisco this year, pharmaphorum editor-in-chief Jonah Comstock sat down with Andrew Beck, co-founder and CEO at PathAI.

The conversation covers what PathAI has been up to lately in AI within diagnostics in pathology, explores what’s been discussed on the ground at the conference, and also touches upon equality and access to precision diagnostics. Additionally, Beck notes the company’s work in prospective clinical trials in life sciences, as well as co-partnering with pharma.

Having seen an over 10 x growth of adoption of their technology in 2025, Beck also discusses advances in the MASH field.

Listen to this and other conversations from JPM2026 here.

You can listen to episode 240 of the pharmaphorum podcast in the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.

An increasing prevalence of immunodeficiency and autoimmune disorders has led to increasing demand for plasma-derived immunoglobulin therapies and a need for scalable and sustainable treatment solutions.

In a new pharmaphorum podcast, web editor Nicole Raleigh speaks with Dr Jörg Schüttrumpf, MD, PhD, Chief Scientific Innovation Officer of Grifols and Chief Executive Officer at Biotest, a Grifols company. The conversation explores advancing immunoglobulin (or IG) treatment for immune disorders, looking broadly at the field and current innovation that is working towards redefining how these therapies are delivered, accessed, and optimised for a growing and diverse patient population.

Dr Schüttrumpf also discusses emerging platforms such as recombinant polyclonal therapeutics, as well as the integration of Real World Evidence (RWE) and artificial intelligence (AI) in shaping the future of immunodeficiency care.

You can listen to episode 239 of the pharmaphorum podcast in the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.

A liquid biopsy is a blood test that detects signs of cancerous tumors, including tumour cells and cancer cell DNA.

In a new pharmaphorum podcast, web editor Nicole Raleigh speaks with Andrew Newland, CEO of ANGLE, about why live cell liquid biopsies should become standard in oncology.

Newland explains how current US FDA-approved tests can detect some types of advanced cancers, predict prognosis, and help healthcare providers make treatment decisions. And importantly, Newland describes how live cell liquid biopsies are a UK-developed technology that aligns with national efforts to modernise cancer diagnostics, as well as potentially reduce healthcare costs by minimising ineffective treatments.

You can listen to episode 238 of the pharmaphorum podcast in the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.