The Food And Drug Administration reviews new drugs for approval much faster than it used to, but changes in the agency's standards have drawn questions. Michael J. Ermarth/FDA hide caption
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Drug development
Astrocyte cells like these from the brain of a mouse may differ subtly from those in a human brain. David Robertson, ICR/Science Photo Library/Science Source hide caption
Subtle Differences In Brain Cells Hint at Why Many Drugs Help Mice But Not People
A study of chemotherapy medicines produced by 10 companies found that, on average, each drug produced seven times as much revenue for its manufacturer as it cost in research and development. BrianAJackson/iStockphoto/Getty Images hide caption
R&D Costs For Cancer Drugs Are Likely Much Less Than Industry Claims, Study Finds
French pharmaceutical group Sanofi is expected to receive an exclusive license to market a new Zika vaccine. AFP/AFP/Getty Images hide caption
States Fear Price Of New Zika Vaccine Will Be More Than They Can Pay
Gilead Sciences Inc. makes the two leading drugs that can quickly cure hepatitis C infections. But most patients can't afford the expensive drugs, and states restrict their use among Medicaid patients. David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images hide caption
Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas, is promoting a campaign to get the National Institutes of Health to exercise the patent rights it already owns in regards to certain drugs to bring down their price. Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc. hide caption
One Way To Force Down Drug Prices: Have The U.S. Exercise Its Patent Rights
Medicare accounts for about 29 percent of all spending on prescription medicines in the U.S. each year. stevecoleimages/iStockphoto/Getty Images hide caption
Medicare Should Leverage Buying Power To Pull Down Drug Prices, White House Says
The skin of the golden poison dart frog, Phyllobates terribilis, secretes a deadly poison that might lead to a better understanding of how to treat malfunctions of the human nervous system. Tambako the Jaguar/Getty Images hide caption
Biotrial, a French company that runs clinical studies, has opened a facility in Newark, N.J. Chris Cooper/Biotrial hide caption
U.S. funding for medical research by source, 1994-2012. (Data were adjusted to 2012 dollars using the Biomedical Research and Development Price Index.) American Medical Association hide caption
This experimental Ebola vaccine, developed by the U.S. government, is just one of several undergoing small-scale, preliminary testing. University of Maryland School of Medicine/AP hide caption
Dr. Bruce Ribner, medical director of Emory University Hospital's infectious disease unit, embraces Dr. Kent Brantly (left) who was treated with an experimental Ebola medicine and released from the Atlanta hospital Thursday. John Bazemore/AP hide caption