I Will Never Trust R.F.K. Jr. But I Want to Trust Public Health.
When Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fired all 17 members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices on June 9, I was devastated but not surprised. He is a longtime vaccine critic, and it was clear to me that he was gunning for the panel, which gives recommendations to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on vaccines.
Though there has been public mistrust of new vaccines, this is not a group that has historically been politicized. In fact, this is the first time that a health and human services secretary has dismissed the full panel. The voting members of the advisory committee are highly vetted experts who typically meet three times a year, and they consider the safety and effectiveness of vaccines, as well as the feasibility of their recommendations. There's a legitimate fear that if the committee stops recommending certain vaccines, they won't be covered by insurance, and Americans will have to pay out of pocket to get them.
On June 10, Kennedy posted on X that he was going to handpick the new panel and that 'none of these individuals will be ideological anti-vaxxers.' He then appointed eight members to the committee, one of whom posted this month, 'The term 'anti-vaxer' it is not a slur, but a compliment. Embrace it. Own it. and be proud to be a part of this fight.' Oy.
As I was processing this information with new horror, I had a possibly perverse response: the urge to listen to a four-hour-and-27-minute 'Huberman Lab' podcast interview with Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, the director of the National Institutes of Health, because the episode was called 'Improving Science & Restoring Trust in Public Health' and was recorded before the advisory committee overhaul.
Bhattacharya, who was a professor of health policy at Stanford University and has an M.D. and a Ph.D., was one of the creators of the Great Barrington Declaration in October 2020, which argued that 'current lockdown policies are producing devastating effects on short- and long-term public health.' His skepticism of mainstream public health during the Biden administration undoubtedly helped Bhattacharya get his current job.
From what I know of Andrew Huberman, he can communicate some scientific concepts quite well, but I am suspicious about his supplement recommendations, his coziness with advertisers and his softball interviews with people like Casey Means. Still, neither Huberman nor Bhattacharya is a vaccine ideologue like Kennedy, and they both have expertise.
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Novo Nordisk advances early-stage obesity medication, amycretin, to phase 3 clinical development based on early-phase clinical trial results in people with obesity or excess weight, published in The Lancet
Both subcutaneous and oral formulations will advance straight to phase 3 development based on completed clinical studies and feedback received from regulatory authorities1,2 PLAINSBORO, N.J., June 20, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, results from two early-phase clinical trials evaluating Novo Nordisk's amycretin, an innovative investigational obesity treatment designed to target appetite regulation, were published in The Lancet.1 In a phase 1b/2a clinical trial of 125 adults with overweight or obesity, once-weekly subcutaneous amycretin appeared to be safe and tolerable in trial participants, who also achieved significantly greater weight loss across the full range of doses investigated versus placebo.1 A related phase 1 trial of once-daily oral amycretin in adults with obesity or overweight also showed that treatment was safe and tolerable with an observed reduction in body weight compared to placebo.2 No weight loss plateau was observed in either trial at the end of the respective treatment durations.1,2 Data on subcutaneous amycretin is scheduled to be presented on Sunday, June 22nd, during a late-breaking poster session at the American Diabetes Association's® (ADA) 85th Scientific Sessions.1 "We are pleased with the promising results of amycretin and the feedback from regulatory authorities and are excited to advance both subcutaneous and oral versions of this molecule into phase 3 development for weight management. At Novo Nordisk, we understand that addressing obesity is a complex challenge that many patients face. These results reflect our robust pipeline in obesity, our focus on progressing scientific innovation and expanding the range of options available to patients and healthcare professionals," said Martin Holst Lange, executive vice president for Development at Novo Nordisk. "We remain steadfast in our mission to discover and develop therapies that can have a meaningful impact in the lives of those affected by obesity." Results from the phase 1b/2a trial of subcutaneous amycretin showed treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) were mild or moderate in severity and increased in frequency in a dose-dependent manner. The most frequent reported TEAEs were gastrointestinal in nature. Compared to placebo, participants receiving amycretin observed greater weight loss across the full range of doses investigated.1 Subcutaneous amycretin at multiple doses demonstrated greater weight reduction than placebo at the end of the trial. Participants who received the highest doses (up to 60 mg) reported body weight reductions of up to 24.3% versus 1.1% with placebo after 36 weeks of treatment. Results from this first-in-human phase 1b/2a study support further investigation of potential weight-loss efficacy of amycretin. Results from the published phase 1 trial of oral amycretin showed that the most common TEAEs were related to gastrointestinal symptoms (mainly nausea and vomiting) and decreased appetite; these were most frequent for the higher doses. Trial participants receiving the study treatment demonstrated significantly greater weight loss across the full range of doses investigated versus the placebo group.2 Exploratory results showed participants taking 100 mg per day of oral amycretin achieved a mean weight loss of 13.1% versus 1.2% with placebo after 12 weeks.2 Based on these phase 1 results, longer evaluation with more participants is warranted to substantiate the full efficacy findings of oral amycretin on body weight reductions and changes in metabolic parameters. Novo Nordisk will advance both subcutaneous and oral amycretin formulations straight to phase 3 development for weight management based on these and other completed clinical studies, as well as feedback received from regulatory authorities. About amycretinAmycretin is a unimolecular long-acting GLP-1 and amylin receptor agonist under development by Novo Nordisk, to provide a treatment for adults with overweight or obesity and as a treatment for adults with type 2 diabetes. Amycretin is under investigation for oral and subcutaneous administration, and is not approved in the US for weight loss. About the phase 1b/2a subcutaneous amycretin trialThe phase 1b/2a trial was a randomized, placebo-controlled, single-center, double-blinded study of 125 participants assessing the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, and effects on body weight after subcutaneous administration of amycretin in people with overweight or obesity.1 Adults with a body mass index of 27-39.9kg/m2 and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) <6.5% were eligible for the trial.1 The trial was conducted in 5 parts: a single ascending dose (Part A) for determination of pharmacokinetics and starting dose for the first multiple dose cohort in which the safety and tolerability were explored using dose escalation until 36 weeks of total treatment duration (Part B).1 Lastly, in the multiple ascending dose – dose response parts, body weight loss was explored for up to 36 weeks of dosing by escalating to dose levels of 1.25 mg, 5 mg, and 20 mg, respectively, dosed for 12 weeks (Part E, D and C).1 About the phase 1 oral amycretin trial The phase 1 single-center, randomized, placebo-controlled study evaluated the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics of single ascending doses (Part A) and multiple ascending doses (Part B, 10 days of treatment; Part C/D, 12 weeks of treatment) of 144 adult participants with overweight or obesity.2 The primary endpoint was the number of treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) observed in the trial. The trial evaluated the single-ascending dose and multiple ascending doses for oral amycretin, up to 2 times 50 mg, in people with overweight or obesity, with a total treatment duration of up to 12 weeks.2 About obesityObesity is a serious chronic, progressive, and complex disease that requires long-term management.3-5 One key misunderstanding is that this is a disease of just lack of willpower, when in fact there is underlying biology that may impede people with obesity from losing weight and keeping it off.3,5 Obesity is influenced by a variety of factors, including genetics, social determinants of health, and the environment.6,7 The prevalence of overweight and obesity is a public health issue that has severe cost implications to healthcare systems.8,9 In the US, about 40% of adults live with obesity.10 About Novo NordiskNovo Nordisk is a leading global healthcare company that's been making innovative medicines to help people with diabetes lead longer, healthier lives for more than 100 years. This heritage has given us experience and capabilities that also enable us to drive change to help people defeat other serious chronic diseases such as obesity, rare blood, and endocrine disorders. We remain steadfast in our conviction that the formula for lasting success is to stay focused, think long-term, and do business in a financially, socially, and environmentally responsible way. With a US presence spanning 40 years, Novo Nordisk US is headquartered in New Jersey and employs over 10,000 people throughout the country across 12 manufacturing, R&D and corporate locations in eight states plus Washington DC. For more information, visit Facebook, Instagram, and X. Novo Nordisk is committed to the responsible use of our semaglutide-containing medicines which represent distinct products with different indications, dosages, prescribing information, titration schedules, and delivery forms. These products are not interchangeable and should not be used outside of their approved indications. Learn more at Contacts for further information Media:Liz Skrbkova (US)+1 609 917 0632USMediaRelations@ Ambre James-Brown (Global)+45 3079 9289Globalmedia@ Investors:Frederik Taylor Pitter (US)+1 609 613 0568fptr@ Jacob Martin Wiborg Rode (Global)+45 3075 5956jrde@ Sina Meyer (Global)+45 3079 6656 azey@ Ida Schaap Melvold (Global)+45 3077 5649 idmg@ Max Ung (Global)+45 3077 6414mxun@ References Dahl K, Toubro S, Dey S, et al. Amycretin, a novel, unimolecular GLP-1 and amylin receptor agonist administered subcutaneously: Results of a randomised, controlled, phase 1b/2a study. The Lancet. Published online: June 20, 2025. Gasiorek A, Heydorn A, Gabery S, et al. Safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics of the first-in-class GLP-1 and amylin receptor agonist, amycretin: a first-in-human, phase 1, randomised, placebo-controlled study. The Lancet. Published online: June 20, 2025. Kaplan LM, Golden A, Jinnett K, et al. Perceptions of barriers to effective obesity care: results from the national action study. Obesity. 2018;26(1):61-69. Bray GA, Kim KK, Wilding JPH; World Obesity Federation. Obesity: a chronic relapsing progressive disease process. A position statement of the World Obesity Federation. Rev. 2017;18(7):715-723. Garvey WT, Mechanick JI, Brett EM, et al. American association of clinical endocrinologists and American College of Endocrinology comprehensive clinical practice guidelines for medical care of patients with obesity. Endocr Pract. 2016;22 (Suppl 3):1-203. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Adult obesity facts. Last accessed: June 2025. Available at: World Obesity Federation. World Obesity Atlas 2023. Last accessed: June 2025. Available at: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Risk Factors for Obesity. Last accessed: June 2025. Available at: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Why it matters. Last accessed: June 2025. Available at: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Obesity and Severe Obesity Prevalence in Adults: United States, August 2021–August 2023. Last accessed June 2025. Available at: © 2025 Novo Nordisk All rights reserved. US25SEMO01477 June 2025 View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE NOVO NORDISK INC.
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