Axios

Novo Nordisk on Tuesday said it's lowering the list price for its blockbuster weight-loss and diabetes drugs by as much as half starting next year, to $675 per month.

Why it matters: The move could help lower out-of-pocket costs for certain patients whose insurance plans can leave them exposed.

The Food and Drug Administration on Monday laid out a new pathway aimed at spurring novel individualized treatments targeting rare diseases.

Why it matters: Officials said the draft rules would make it easier for industry to develop more types of promising new treatments for rare diseases, including with CRISPR gene-editing technology.

As the White House gears up its election-year pitch taking credit for lowering prescription drug prices, it faces a key unknown: Will voters notice any difference?

Why it matters: One of President Trump's primary answers to concerns about affordability may fall on deaf ears if patients don't see results — and policy experts have warned many won't.

The U.S. State Department is urging American citizens in several parts of Mexico to shelter in place following an operation that led to the death of the country's most-wanted drug lord.

The big picture: Violence erupted across Mexico following the cartel leader's death, affecting flights and business operations.

The punches keep coming for Novo Nordisk in its bout with Eli Lilly for weight-loss drug supremacy.

Why it matters: Novo was the early GLP-1 leader — so dominant that its diabetes drug Ozempic became shorthand for the class — but Lilly has pulled ahead in what has quickly become one of pharma's richest battlegrounds.

Ralph Abraham is stepping down as the second highest-ranking official at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, continuing the churn within the top ranks of the Trump administration's health team.

Why it matters: The former Louisiana surgeon general had been on the job less than three months, gaining notice for downplaying the possible loss of the U.S.'s measles elimination status and calling it "the cost of doing business."

The Trump administration is doubling down on efforts to revamp the federal discount drug program — a major flashpoint between Big Pharma and hospitals.

Why it matters: The so-called 340B program has been mired in litigation, most recently over administration efforts to let drugmakers carry out price reductions through rebates instead of cutting prices at the front end.

Mexican security forces killed Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, the country's most-wanted drug lord, following information from the U.S. that assisted in Sunday's operation, the Trump administration and Mexico's defense ministry said.

Why it matters: President Trump has for months pressed Mexican officials to target drug cartels and the U.S. had offered a reward of up to $15 million for information leading to the arrest of Oseguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho," who led the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) — a designated terrorist organization in the United States.

U.S. intelligence provided "support to the Mexican government" to assist in an operation in the country Sunday that resulted in the death of the drug lord known as "El Mencho," White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said on X.

The big picture: Leavitt noted in her Sunday statement that "'El Mencho," the 59-year-old leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), was "a top target for the Mexican and United States government as one of the top traffickers of fentanyl into our homeland."