The head of Operation Warp Speed told us about his day that starts at 2:30 a.m. and shared his timeline for a coronavirus vaccine in an exclusive interview
Hello,
Welcome to Dispensed, Business Insider's healthcare newsletter.
It's been a big week for the healthcare team, and I somehow managed to keep everything on track as our fearless leader Zach Tracer took a much-deserved week off.
I'm especially proud of some of the big exclusive interviews the team got this week.
This week alone we published:
- Andrew Dunn's conversation with Moncef Slaoui, the chief adviser to Operation Warp Speed.
- Kimberly Leonard's close look at a top Biden health policy adviser who's helping him prepare for a White House victory.
- Blake Dodge's conversation with Dr. Karen DeSalvo, Google's chief health officer.
In coronavirus news, this week brought some promising news around long-term immunity for those who have already had COVID-19.
As Aylin Woodward reports, we now have the best evidence yet that everyone develops long-term coronavirus immunity after infection.
It's not just about the antibodies — a new study found evidence that people who were infected with COVID-19 developed virus-specific T cells, which can go after the virus should it return.
You can read the full story here>>
A quick reminder: You can now get our newsletter every day. Subscribe here for your daily dose of healthcare news from the Business Insider team.
We had an exclusive chat with the head of Operation Warp Speed
The fate of the US plan to get vaccines to Americans rests in the hands of a man who starts his day at 2:30 a.m.
Yes, that sounds way too early to me, too.
It's one of a number of topics Andrew Dunn covered in his conversation with Moncef Slaoui, the former pharmaceutical exec who's charged with bringing hundreds of millions of doses of coronavirus vaccines to Americans via the secretive Operation Warp Speed.
In the course of the rare phone interview, Slaoui shared with Andrew:
- His best timeline on the race for a COVID-19 vaccine and the return to normal
- His thoughts on the biotechs that he says 'misled their shareholders' and 'frustrated the hell' out of him by playing up connections to the secretive government program
- The process Operation Warp Speed used to decide which 6 vaccine candidates to back with massive multibillion-dollar deals.
To be sure, President Donald Trump has an ambitious goal to get a coronavirus vaccine by January.
And as a reminder, we're still going to need effective ways to treat the novel coronavirus, even if we get a vaccine.
Andrew and Aria Bendix teamed up on this incredibly helpful chart of the 9 most promising COVID-19 treatments.
Want to dive deeper into the conversation between Andrew and Slaoui?
You can read the full transcript here>>
We spoke to Trump's coronavirus vaccine czar about when he anticipates getting a coronavirus vaccine, the secrecy around Operation Warp Speed, and his typical day that starts at 2:30 a.m.
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The doctor you need to know who's helping Biden get ready for a win in November
Now that the Democratic ticket is firmed up, we've got the list of the most powerful people advising Joe Biden and Kamala Harris who could shape the future of healthcare if their campaign succeeds.
On that list is Dr. Lisa Fitzpatrick, one of five healthcare policy co-chairs advising Biden.
In July, Kimberly Leonard spent an afternoon shadowing Fitzpatrick as she answered healthcare questions posed by residents of one of DC's poorest neighborhoods.
Through the course of her reporting, Kimberly got the inside story of how Fitzpatrick caught the attention of the Biden campaign, and what that might mean for the future of healthcare policy under a Biden administration.
You can read the full story here>>
This doctor is helping Biden prepare for a White House victory. Her focus on a $238 billion problem could shape healthcare's future.
Meet the 18 people leading Google's push into healthcare
Blake Dodge and Hugh Langley teamed up to find the 18 leaders at Google Health who are shaping how the company breaks into the $3.6 trillion healthcare industry.
One of those folks was Dr. Karen DeSalvo, one of Google's top doctors.
Blake chatted with DeSalvo, and she explained how Google's coronavirus response is feeding into its long-term plans to reinvent how people get health information.
You can read the full story here>>
Blake and Hugh also have a lil scoop on Google's sister company Verily, which once expressed interest in virtual-trials startup Science 37.
With that, I'll leave you with the full list of the people you need to know within Google Health.
Read the full story here>>
POWER PLAYERS: The 18 leaders at Google Health shaping the tech giant's secretive healthcare business
Healthcare companies are looking to go public in any way they can
It's a weird time for the public markets.
For biotech companies, it's already a record year for initial public offerings, with companies going public much earlier than usual.
Top biotech venture capital investors told Andrew how they're taking advantage of the market.
Meanwhile, healthcare companies are eyeing alternatives to IPOs in their bids to become publicly traded companies.
Megan Hernbroth has the story on the promises and the pitfalls of SPACs, or special purpose acquisition companies — blank-check companies that have also caught the eye of former House Speaker Paul Ryan.
Read the full story here>>
Investors are cautioning against the unstoppable rise of an IPO alternative that has already won over some healthcare startups
We've only got one more full week left in August! What are y'all doing to soak up the last few weeks of summer?
Let me know, and be sure to drop me any scoops/tips you might have! I'm at lramsey@businessinsider.com, and you can reach the whole healthcare team at healthcare@businessinsider.com.
- Lydia