1. President Obama is expected to sign new legislation that would provide financial incentives to companies to develop treatments that treat the Zika virus. (Reuters)
2. Sanofi is reportedly interested in acquiring Medivation, unnamed sources told Bloomberg. The drugmaker has not ruled out a hostile bid. Medivation is known for its oncology portfolio. (Bloomberg)
3. Napster co-founder and billionaire Sean Parker is funding a $250 million institute aimed at improving the development of effective cancer treatments. The Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy will be comprised of 40 laboratories and more than 300 researchers from key cancer centers. (Reuters)
4. The National Institutes of Health signaled that it’s unlikely it would use its “march-in” rights as a way to reduce the cost of prescription drugs. The agency can issue patent licences on its own, ignoring exclusivity rights,” if it believes “reasonable terms are not being met on drug pricing” for drugs that it helped fund. (Bloomberg)
5. The FDA will review Merck’s application for an experimental biologic, MK-8237, which treats allergies from dust mites.
