Makary’s departure and Cassidy’s tenuous Senate seat

Adam Feuerstein is a senior writer and biotech columnist, reporting on the crossroads of drug development, business, Wall Street, and biotechnology. He is also a co-host of the weekly biotech podcast The Readout Loud and author of the newsletter Adam’s Biotech Scorecard. You can reach Adam on Signal at stataf.54.This week’s episode of “The Readout LOUD” is all about health politics. We bring on FDA reporter Lizzy Lawrence to discuss Makary’s departure — why he is leaving, which of his policies will stick, and what we know about his acting replacement, Kyle Diamantas. Washington correspondent Chelsea Cirruzzo also joins us to discuss a closely tracked Republican Senate primary election this weekend. Bill Cassidy, chair of the Senate health committee, is up against two upstart rivals, including a Trump-backed candidate. The outcome of the primary could have far reaching implications for Trump’s health care agenda. For more on Makary’s departure, go here; to read more on what the Trump administration wants to see in the next commissioner, go here. For more on Cassidy’s primary race, go here. To read more on Biogen’s Alzheimer’s readout, go here; and to learn more about Regenxbio’s latest data on its gene therapy for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, go here. Be sure to sign up for “The Readout LOUD” on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.