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Thermo Fisher has 64 manufacturing sites in the US, including the one pictured here in San Diego, California. Credit: JHVEPhoto / Shutterstock

Thermo Fisher has outlaid $2bn to expand manufacturing and development in the US, joining the long list of companies directing resources to domestic operations as ongoing US tariffs risk destabilising global trade.

The life sciences giant, which provides products and services to biopharma companies manufacturing drugs, said the $2bn will be invested over the next four years.

Thermo Fisher said $1.5bn in capital expenditure would go towards enhancing and expanding US manufacturing operations, whilst the remaining $500m would be directed towards research & development (R&D).

There are 64 manufacturing sites operated by Thermo Fisher in the US that provide contract development and manufacturing services for pharmaceutical innovators. Facilities also make analytical instruments, specialty diagnostics and other solutions in the life sciences space.

Efforts to shore up US manufacturing capabilities come at a time when tariffs announced by US President Donald Trump have made importing into the country less attractive. The government has also threatened tariffs on pharmaceutical imports, an area that previously escaped the blanket levies.

Roche is set to invest $50bn in pharmaceuticals and diagnostics in the US over the next five years to bolster the company’s presence in the country.

The commitment includes 15 research and development (R&D) and 13 manufacturing sites across its pharmaceutical and diagnostics divisions. The investment is projected to generate more than 12,000 new employment opportunities, encompassing around 6,500 jobs in construction and 1,000 in the company’s latest and expanded facilities. According to Roche, the expansion will enhance its current workforce of over 25,000 employees across 24 sites in eight states.

The investment will focus on several key areas, comprising enhancement and upgrading of manufacturing and distribution offerings in the US for the company’s medicines and diagnostics portfolio in California, Indiana, Kentucky, New Jersey and Oregon.

A US judge has rejected efforts by a compounded drugs industry group to keep making an alternative version of Novo Nordisk’s popular drug semaglutide, opening the door for the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to take enforcement action.

US District Judge Mark Pittman in Texas denied a preliminary injunction bid by the Outsourcing Facilities Association (OFA), which argued against the FDA’s conclusion that the semaglutide shortage was resolved in mid-February, as per court records reported by Reuters.

Steve Benz, Novo Nordisk’s legal and US general counsel corporate vice president, said the “extensive nationwide legal actions we have taken to protect Americans from the health risks posed by illegitimate ‘semaglutide’ drugs are working”, adding that the company “will continue driving these actions forward and escalate our efforts as necessary, while closely engaging with regulators and law enforcement.”

Member states of the World Health Organization (WHO) have reached an agreement on how to tackle future pandemics courtesy of a new treaty that will facilitate international collaboration and shared response efforts.

The draft agreement, which will be put forth at an upcoming World Health Assembly in May, comes after three years of negotiations between governments. It is considered a global health victory amid funding uncertainty from the US government and anti-WHO rhetoric voiced by President Donald Trump.

“In reaching consensus on the Pandemic Agreement, not only did [nations] put in place a generational accord to make the world safer, they have also demonstrated that multilateralism is alive and well, and that in our divided world, nations can still work together to find common ground, and a shared response to shared threats,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General.

AstraZeneca, Tempus and Pathos AI have signed a multi-year agreement to develop a large-scale multimodal deep learning model designed to accelerate cancer drug discovery.

The companies say the foundation model will be used to extract biological and clinical insights, identify novel drug targets, and support the development of new cancer therapies.

Under the terms of the deal, Tempus will receive $200m in data licencing and model development fees. The company will contribute its large library of de-identified oncology data to help build the model, which will be shared by all three parties once completed.

The partnership builds on an existing relationship between Tempus and AstraZeneca. The two companies first teamed up in 2021, announcing an AI-driven oncology R&D alliance.