The ‘electric vehicles’ of pharma, Illumina’s boondoggle, & a Theranos sentencing

Who gets dibs on in-demand medicines? Can you get a refund on an $8 billion buy? And what happens when sweetheart deals go bad?

We cover all that and more this week on “The Readout LOUD,” STAT’s biotech podcast. STAT’s Elaine Chen joins us to explain how the escalating demand for a potent diabetes drug is putting patients with obesity in a difficult situation. We also discuss a curious trend in biotech investing, the future of Illumina, and another sentencing in the Theranos saga.

For more on what we cover, here’s the story on Mounjaro; here’s more on Gossamer Bio; here’s where you can find episodes of Color Code; and here’s where you can subscribe to the First Opinion Podcast.

Be sure to sign up on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play, or wherever you get your podcasts.

And if you have any feedback for us — topics to cover, guests to invite, vocal tics to cease — you can email [email protected].