Bepirovirsen: Breakthrough Hepatitis B Functional Cure Potential
- In the pivotal phase 3 global, multi-center, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled B-Well 1 (NCT05630807) and B-Well 2 (NCT05630820), bepirovirsen (GSK) demonstrated a statistically significant and clinically meaningful functional cure...
- "Bepirovirsen has the potential too transform treatment goals for people living with CHB by achieving significant functional cure rates-a first for the disease.
- Hepatitis B is a serious liver infection caused by the hepatitis B virus (HBV).
In the pivotal phase 3 global, multi-center, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled B-Well 1 (NCT05630807) and B-Well 2 (NCT05630820), bepirovirsen (GSK) demonstrated a statistically significant and clinically meaningful functional cure rate for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B (CHB).
“Bepirovirsen has the potential too transform treatment goals for people living with CHB by achieving significant functional cure rates-a first for the disease. CHB affects more than 250 million people and leads to approximately 56% of liver cancer cases worldwide,” Tony Wood, chief scientific officer from GSK, said in a news release.
What is CHB?
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Hepatitis B is a serious liver infection caused by the hepatitis B virus (HBV). It can be acute and last less than 6 months or chronic and last longer, with chronic infection increasing the risk of liver failure, liver cancer, and cirrhosis.
For acute hepatitis B, symptoms can range from mild to severe and usually appear 1 to 14 months after infection, though they may occur as early as 2 weeks. Some individuals, especially young children, may not present symptoms, while others could experience abdominal pain, dark urine, fever, joint pain, loss of appetite, nausea and vomiting, extreme tiredness, and jaundice. CHB can go undetected for many years and may only be discovered when an individual becomes seriously ill from liver disease.
The current standard treatment for CHB uses nucleos(t)ide analogues, which often require lifelong therapy and have low functional cure rates of about 1%. A functional cure rate means the virus is no longer detectable in
https://www.gsk.com/en-gb/media/press-releases/gsk-announces-positive-results-from-b-well-1-and-b-well-2-phase-iii-trials-for-bepirovirsen-a-potential-first-in-class-treatment-for-chronic-hepatitis-b/
2. Study of Bepirovirsen in Nucleos(t)Ide Analogue-treated Participants With Chronic Hepatitis B (B-Well 1) (B-Well 1). ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT05630807. Updated December 15, 2025. Accessed January 9, 2026. The Inflation Reduction act of 2022: A Complete Overview
Signed into law on August 16, 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) is a landmark united States federal law aimed at lowering healthcare costs, addressing climate change, and increasing tax revenue. The act represents a significant investment in clean energy and is projected to reduce the federal deficit.
What is the Inflation Reduction Act?
The Inflation Reduction Act is a comprehensive law encompassing provisions related to healthcare, climate, and tax policy, designed to address key economic challenges facing the United States.
The legislation’s primary goals include lowering prescription drug costs for seniors on Medicare, investing in clean energy technologies to combat climate change, and reducing the federal deficit by increasing tax revenue from large corporations. It achieves these goals through a combination of tax credits, rebates, and investments.
Example: The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that the IRA would reduce the federal deficit by $300 billion over the 2022-2031 period. CBO Report
Key Provisions: Healthcare
The Inflation Reduction Act directly addresses healthcare costs, notably for seniors.
A central component of the IRA allows Medicare to negotiate the prices of certain prescription drugs, a change previously prohibited by law. This negotiation process is phased in over several years, starting with a limited number of drugs.The law also caps out-of-pocket prescription drug costs for Medicare beneficiaries at $2,000 per year, beginning in 2025.
Example: The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced the first 10 drugs selected for Medicare price negotiation in February 2023,effective in 2026. CMS Press release
Key Provisions: Climate Change
The IRA represents the largest investment in climate action in U.S. history.
The act provides significant tax credits and incentives for clean energy technologies, including solar, wind, and electric vehicles. These incentives aim to accelerate the transition to a clean energy economy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Funding is also allocated for climate resilience measures and environmental justice initiatives.
Example: The IRA extends the Investment Tax Credit (ITC) for solar energy projects and the Production Tax Credit (PTC) for wind energy projects for ten years, providing long-term certainty for renewable energy developers. Department of Energy IRA Summary
Key Provisions: Tax Policy
The Inflation Reduction Act modifies the U.S. tax code to increase revenue and address corporate tax avoidance.
The law imposes a 15% minimum tax on corporations with over $1 billion in annual profits, aiming to ensure that large, profitable companies pay a fair share of taxes. It also increases funding for the Internal Revenue service (IRS) to improve tax enforcement and compliance. These measures are projected to generate significant revenue to offset the costs of the healthcare and climate provisions.
example: The Joint Committee on Taxation estimated that the corporate minimum tax would generate approximately $250 billion in revenue over ten years. Joint Committee on Taxation Analysis
- The White House: official White House Statement
- United States Congress: H.R.5376 – Inflation Reduction Act of 2022
- Internal Revenue Service (IRS): IRS Details on the Inflation Reduction Act
- Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS): CMS Information on the inflation Reduction Act
- Congressional Budget Office (CBO): CBO Reports on Environmental and Economic Impacts
Signed into law on August 16, 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) is a landmark united States federal law aimed at lowering healthcare costs, addressing climate change, and increasing tax revenue. The act represents a significant investment in clean energy and is projected to reduce the federal deficit.
What is the Inflation Reduction Act?
The Inflation Reduction Act is a comprehensive law encompassing provisions related to healthcare, climate, and tax policy, designed to address key economic challenges facing the United States.
The legislation’s primary goals include lowering prescription drug costs for seniors on Medicare, investing in clean energy technologies to combat climate change, and reducing the federal deficit by increasing tax revenue from large corporations. It achieves these goals through a combination of tax credits, rebates, and investments.
Example: The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that the IRA would reduce the federal deficit by $300 billion over the 2022-2031 period. CBO Report
Key Provisions: Healthcare
The Inflation Reduction Act directly addresses healthcare costs, notably for seniors.
A central component of the IRA allows Medicare to negotiate the prices of certain prescription drugs, a change previously prohibited by law. This negotiation process is phased in over several years, starting with a limited number of drugs.The law also caps out-of-pocket prescription drug costs for Medicare beneficiaries at $2,000 per year, beginning in 2025.
Example: The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced the first 10 drugs selected for Medicare price negotiation in February 2023,effective in 2026. CMS Press release
Key Provisions: Climate Change
The IRA represents the largest investment in climate action in U.S. history.
The act provides significant tax credits and incentives for clean energy technologies, including solar, wind, and electric vehicles. These incentives aim to accelerate the transition to a clean energy economy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Funding is also allocated for climate resilience measures and environmental justice initiatives.
Example: The IRA extends the Investment Tax Credit (ITC) for solar energy projects and the Production Tax Credit (PTC) for wind energy projects for ten years, providing long-term certainty for renewable energy developers. Department of Energy IRA Summary
Key Provisions: Tax Policy
The Inflation Reduction Act modifies the U.S. tax code to increase revenue and address corporate tax avoidance.
The law imposes a 15% minimum tax on corporations with over $1 billion in annual profits, aiming to ensure that large, profitable companies pay a fair share of taxes. It also increases funding for the Internal Revenue service (IRS) to improve tax enforcement and compliance. These measures are projected to generate significant revenue to offset the costs of the healthcare and climate provisions.
example: The Joint Committee on Taxation estimated that the corporate minimum tax would generate approximately $250 billion in revenue over ten years. Joint Committee on Taxation Analysis
- The White House: official White House Statement
- United States Congress: H.R.5376 – Inflation Reduction Act of 2022
- Internal Revenue Service (IRS): IRS Details on the Inflation Reduction Act
- Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS): CMS Information on the inflation Reduction Act
- Congressional Budget Office (CBO): CBO Reports on Environmental and Economic Impacts