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Healthcare & Life Sciences Insights

Discover Latham’s latest insights into the commercial, regulatory, and legal developments shaping the global healthcare and life sciences landscape.

Latham’s cross-disciplinary team delivers insightful, practical guidance and sophisticated representation to a full spectrum of healthcare and life sciences companies across the globe, on every type of transaction or dispute a company may face.

Podcasts & Webcasts

Alex Kelly and Paul Kukish
January 16, 2026

Latham & Watkins M&A Leaders on the ‘Year of the Mega Deal’

Latham partners Alex Kelly and Paul Kukish, Global Co-Chairs of the firm’s M&A and Private Equity Practice, discuss the surge in global mega deal activity that propelled Latham to the top spot in 2025 M&A and private equity league tables and what’s shaping the deal landscape for 2026.

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June 06, 2025

Drug Pricing: Takeaways From the MDMA Annual Meeting

One of the country’s largest medical innovation and policy conferences recently concluded in Washington, D.C. Join the Latham team to discuss takeaways from the meeting, including regulatory changes and compliance hot topics.

Shiny transparent capsule filled with colorful spheres
March 12, 2025

Drug Pricing: FDA in the Age of Executive Orders and DOGE

The Department of Government Efficiency, Trump executive orders, and a recent Office of Management and Budget memorandum are making drastic changes at FDA. The Latham team discusses the potential impacts on FDA approval and enforcement activities, including with respect to novel tobacco and nicotine products.

Recognition

Pay for Delay

patent settlement agreements (commercial agreements to settle patent-related disputes between originator and generic companies) that result in delayed market entry of generic medicine in exchange for benefits transferred from the originator to the generic company. The U.S. Supreme Court decided in FTC v. Actavis (2013) that a payment from an originator to a generic company to resolve patent-related disputes should be analysed considering the rule of reason test. The European Commission Directorate General for Competition has imposed several fines on pharmaceutical companies for delaying market entry of generic products. See Reverse Payment.

Word of the Day®

Scientific Exchange

the exchange of information about an investigational Drug or Device by the product developer that is not considered by the FDA to be promotion due to the independent scientific or medical circumstances of the exchange. Generally speaking, information shared in the context of Scientific Exchange must be non-promotional, shared by science professionals and in a forum meant for scientific discussion. The FDA has been criticized, however, for its failure to provide specific guidance on what constitutes Scientific Exchange.

Word of the Day®

Endogenous

produced within, or originating from within, the body or one of its parts.

Word of the Day®

Excipient

an inactive ingredient intentionally added to a therapeutic or diagnostic product that is not intended to exert a therapeutic effect (though it may improve product delivery, such as by enhancing absorption or controlling Drug substance release). According to the FDA, Excipients may include fillers, extenders, diluents, wetting agents, solvents, emulsifiers, preservatives, flavors, absorption enhancers, sustained-release matrices and coloring agents, but do not include process- or product-related impurities such as degradation products, leachates or residual solvents or extraneous contaminants.

Word of the Day®

Local Coverage Determination (LCD)

Coverage determination by a Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC) regarding whether a particular service or item is reasonable and necessary under Medicare within such MAC’s geographical jurisdiction. MACs publish LCDs to provide guidance to the public and medical community within the MAC’s jurisdictions on the terms and conditions of Coverage for services and items. Contractors develop LCDs by considering medical literature, the advice of local medical societies and medical consultants, public comments, and comments from the provider community.

Word of the Day®