Policy and regulatory uncertainty continues to weigh on the healthcare sector, former Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar told investors at RBC Capital’s Global Healthcare Conference.
RBC Capital hosted Azar as a keynote speaker and noted that while the industry faces multiple overhangs, “stories with clear differentiation strategies, strong fundamentals, and good commercial opportunities should continue to rise above the downward pressure.”
RBC explained that Azar said recent executive orders and reforms, such as on Medicare drug pricing and FDA approval pathways, are likely to remain fluid and politically charged.
“The Republican Party has clearly moved away from its historically more industry-friendly stance, and biopharma has far fewer advocates now,” he said, presenting a challenge for companies seeking to shape drug pricing policy.
RBC echoed Azar’s view that “broad MFN implementation may have challenges,” with the former secretary adding that many proposals “are relatively vague” and that a return to a Medicare Part B version of MFN pricing might be more feasible than sweeping commercial reform.
Azar is also said to have expressed skepticism that cuts to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) would materialize, calling them unlikely due to bipartisan congressional support.
“This is a net-positive for government and academic customers of life science tools & diagnostics,” RBC noted.
On the FDA’s regulatory direction, Azar flagged inconsistent signals, warning that “poor morale among review teams could create near-term transitional risk around drug approval timelines.” However, he saw potential for faster paths for high-need and rare disease drugs.
Despite the uncertainty, Azar described the current period as a “Golden Age” for biopharma innovation but cautioned that “a lack of advocacy” and better reimbursement models could allow China to eventually outpace U.S. leadership in the sector.
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