The participation of Emma Walmsley, CEO of GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), in the FT Live Global Pharma and Biotech Summit coincided with the outcome of the American elections and the historic win by Republican Donald Trump. “When it comes to elections we work with governments of all stripes everywhere,” Walmsley assured. With anti-vax organizations gaining traction in the US and prominent vaccine sceptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr tipped to assume a top role in US healthcare, GSK may have cause for concern as the world’s leading vaccine producer. However, Walmsley stressed her belief in building trust around such a vital healthcare tool.

 

Growing Scepticism around Vaccines

Fear and scepticism emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly for the new vaccines that were brought forward at record speed, and that suspicion has not subsided in the United States. Measles cases have been on the rise in the country as misinformation has fueled a lack of trust in what until not very long ago were considered routine jabs. Not only that, well-known anti-vax proponent Robert F. Kennedy Jr, who heads up the anti-vaccine organization Children’s Health Defense, has purportedly been promised a post in the new government’s public health agencies.

Walmsley, apparently unfazed, said she worked successfully with Donald Trump during the COVID-19 pandemic and that the former president’s new term is “going to be about working constructively with the government going forward.” However, GSK’s chief recognized an increasing mistrust of science and innovation in healthcare in the United States. “Trust is declining in all institutions, and it is particularly sensitive in healthcare.”

For the pharma leader, much of these misgivings stem from “a fundamental misunderstanding about the economic role of the industry.” Walmsley insisted that by keeping people out of hospital with vaccines and intervening earlier, in cancer cases for example, pharma innovators can have an impact on the overall economy.

 

Countering Mistrust

GSK’s CEO asserted that inequity and access are not just issues for emerging economies and cited the decreasing level of vaccination in the US as an example. “I think 38 states in America have a lower rate of vaccination today than in 2019. That’s serious,” she warned, leading to an upswing in diseases, like measles, for which solutions have long existed.

When asked about how to address growing scepticism, Walmsley affirmed that it is a question of transparency and reaching patients with the facts. “You have to be absolutely transparent about the benefits and the risks and you have to go to patients in the community, and bring the facts forward,” she maintained, concluding by saying: “I hope that science will prevail.”

 

New GSK Vaccines, Lower-than-Expected Sales

Although Walmsley reminded the audience that “vaccines are not the biggest part of our business,” the Britain-headquartered pharma has done its share of vaccine trailblazing. GSK’s Arexvy was the first vaccine for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), to be FDA-approved in 2023 and soon became a blockbuster with over GBP 1 billion in revenue within its first year, grabbing two-thirds of the market share among the elderly in the United States.

The company was expecting an FDA nod for broader use of RSV vaccines, which turned out not to be the case and the demand for Arexvy has since waned, with sales diving 72 percent in the third quarter of 2024 as compared to last year, however. Additionally, sales of Shingrix, the firm’s shingles vaccine, have also dropped by 7 percent.

Another recent blow for GSK was the USD 2.2 billion settlement agreement of US court actions over its former heartburn medicine, Zantac, for allegedly causing cancer.

 

Image Source: GSK