US midterms and beyond: the outlook for pharma

The outcome of the recent midterm elections in the USA surprised many by returning a Democrat-led Senate, preventing Republicans from gaining control of the next Congress.Analysts, having expected a stronger showing for Republicans, put some of the blame on former president Donald Trump, whose endorsements and active involvement in campaigning were said to frighten off moderates.In this week’s episode of The Pharma Letter Podcast, we are joined by Stephanie Kennan, senior VP for federal public affairs at McGuireWoods Consulting, for a discussion on the possible implications.We’ll consider the likely course of future life sciences legislation, in particular the additional provisions which were omitted from the pared back, so-called “skinny” user fee reauthorization in September.We'll also take a quick look ahead to 2024. As Florida’s Ron DeSantis basks in the triumph of his gubernatorial campaign, a run at the presidency now looks inevitable, and bookmakers are putting him above Mr Trump as favorite to win power - albeit with a long way to go until polling day.We’ll discuss what a DeSantis White House might look like for the life sciences industry.