RealPharma: Conversations with Pharma Pathfinders

Episode Summary
In this episode of Real Pharma, hosts Na-Ri Oh and Ian Wendt sit down with Kristiaan Rawlings, Executive Director at EPM Scientific, to unpack what is really happening in the biopharma talent market right now. From the surprising resurgence of market access hiring to the growing influence of AI in recruiting and candidate preparation, this conversation explores the forces reshaping commercial talent strategy in 2026. The group also digs into salary inflation, title compression, M&A-driven hiring shifts, hybrid work expectations, and why communication skills and executive presence may matter more than ever.

What We Cover

Why market access has re-emerged as one of the hottest hiring areas in biopharma

How companies are responding to policy shifts, competition, and launch pressure

What the current K-shaped hiring market means for candidates in high-demand vs. lower-demand functions

Why specialists in forecasting, analytics, and insights may need to broaden their skill sets

How AI is affecting interviews, candidate prep, and recruiting workflows

The continued importance of presentation skills, executive presence, and storytelling

How M&A activity is influencing hiring, retention packages, and future job movement

What’s happening with salary growth, especially at the director, senior director, and VP levels

Why hybrid work is still the norm and fully remote roles remain limited

What candidates should know before making a move in 2026

Key Takeaways
Biopharma hiring is not following a single trend. Some functions are seeing intense demand and rising compensation, while others are consolidating under broader roles. Kristiaan explains that market access, select commercial operations roles, and experience in competitive therapeutic areas are commanding a premium right now. At the same time, he notes that professionals who can combine technical skill with strong communication and leadership presence are consistently outperforming others in the interview process.

The episode also highlights a more nuanced view of AI: it is not simply replacing jobs, but it is changing how work gets done. Used well, AI can improve recruiting efficiency, candidate prep, and search precision. Used poorly, it can make candidates sound generic, underprepared, or overly scripted.

🧠 Episode Summary
What if we’ve been thinking about cancer all wrong?

In this deeply personal and paradigm-shifting episode of RealPharma, hosts Dr. Na-Ri Oh and Ian Wendt sit down with Dr. Christopher Gregg—neuroscientist, entrepreneur, and stage 4 cancer patient—to explore a bold new vision for cancer care.

Dr. Gregg shares how his own diagnosis sparked a radical rethink of oncology: moving away from the “war on cancer” mindset toward managing it as a chronic, controllable condition. Drawing inspiration from agriculture, AI, and evolutionary biology, he introduces the concept of “algorithms as drugs”—dynamic, data-driven treatment strategies designed to outmaneuver resistance.

This conversation blends cutting-edge science with raw human experience, offering a hopeful and pragmatic roadmap for the future of precision medicine.

🔑 Key Topics Covered

Why curing cancer may not always be the best goal—and what to aim for instead

The concept of adaptive therapy and managing cancer like a chronic disease

What elephants, farmers, and pests can teach us about treatment resistance

The limitations of today’s drug development and clinical trial systems

“Algorithms as drugs” and the future of programmable medicine

How AI, smartphones, and behavioral data can unlock scalable precision care

The role of value-based care models in accelerating innovation

Dr. Gregg’s personal journey living 7+ years with stage 4 cancer

Building Storyline Health, Primordial AI, and Uncharted Health

The importance of patient agency—and the risks of unguided experimentation

 

 
🚀 Why This Episode Matters
Cancer care is at an inflection point. While billions are spent developing new drugs, Dr. Gregg argues that the real breakthrough may come from how we use the drugs we already have.

By combining AI, real-time patient data, and systems thinking, this approach could dramatically extend lives, reduce costs, and make care more human-centered.

🔗 Learn More

Explore Dr. Gregg’s free masterclass: Uncharted Health

Follow developments from Storyline Health and Primordial AI

Stay tuned for upcoming clinical applications of algorithm-driven care

🎧 About the Guest
Dr. Christopher Gregg is a Professor of Neurobiology and Human Genetics at the University of Utah, a leading researcher in genomics and brain science, and a biotech entrepreneur. His work spans neuroscience, AI, and precision medicine—and is deeply informed by his personal experience living with metastatic cancer.

The Opioid Reckoning (Part 2): Litigation, Accountability, and the Fight for Justice with Paul T. Farrell Jr.

In Part 2 of our deep dive into the opioid crisis, hosts Dr. Na-Ri Oh and Ian Wendt continue their conversation with Paul T. Farrell Jr., the West Virginia attorney who helped lead the historic national opioid litigation.

This episode moves beyond the legal strategy discussed in Part 1 and explores the human toll, the documentary that captured the battle, the controversial trial outcome, and the surprising legal reversal years later. It’s a story of perseverance, public health accountability, and the long arc of justice.

🎬 From Courtroom to Documentary
Paul shares the unexpected origin story behind the PBS documentary The Bitter Pill, directed by Clay Tweel. What began as a filmmaker casually attending a hearing soon turned into a seven-year chronicle of the opioid litigation, capturing the rise of a local lawsuit in Huntington, West Virginia into a nationwide legal movement.

The documentary highlights not only the legal fight but also the devastating real-world impact of the opioid epidemic on families, healthcare workers, and communities.

⚖️ The Trial That Shook the Case
A major focus of the episode is the Cabell County trial, the first major test of the legal strategy that ultimately helped drive national settlements.

Paul explains how:

The case became the bellwether trial for thousands of similar lawsuits.

A national settlement framework complicated the ability to settle locally.

The federal judge ultimately ruled against the plaintiffs on legal grounds—even as similar arguments succeeded in other jurisdictions.

For Paul and his team, the ruling felt like a devastating setback after years of work.

💰 The $50 Billion National Settlement
Despite the loss in the bellwether trial, the broader litigation resulted in nearly $50 billion in settlements with pharmaceutical manufacturers, distributors, and pharmacies.

Paul explains the goals behind the settlement:

Transparency around how opioid pills were distributed across the U.S.

Accountability for the systemic failures that fueled the epidemic

Funding for opioid abatement programs, rather than compensation for individual claims

In West Virginia, settlement funds were allocated through a unique structure that created the West Virginia First Foundation, a statewide public-private trust designed to ensure funds are used specifically to combat addiction and support recovery programs.

🔄 A Stunning Legal Reversal
The documentary originally ends on a bleak note after the Cabell County loss. But the story didn’t end there.

In October 2025, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the trial court’s decision, reopening the case and giving Cabell County another opportunity to argue its claims.

For Paul, the decision brought a sense of vindication after years of uncertainty and reignited the fight for accountability.

🧠 Has the System Changed?
The episode closes with a broader discussion about whether the opioid crisis could happen again.

Paul reflects on changes across the healthcare ecosystem:

Greater scrutiny and transparency in medical research and publishing

Stronger safeguards for pharmacists and prescription monitoring

Increased attention to controlled substance distribution practices

But he also warns that the incentives in healthcare and pharmaceuticals remain powerful—and vigilance will be essential.

💡 Final Reflections
When asked what sustains him through years of litigation, setbacks, and public scrutiny, Paul points to faith, community, and the people who show up along the journey at the right moments.

It’s a fitting close to a story that began with one lawsuit in a small Appalachian city—and grew into one of the largest public health litigations in U.S. history.

🎧 In This Episode

The origin and filming of The Bitter Pill documentary

Inside the Cabell County bellwether trial

Why the national opioid settlement unfolded the way it did

The structure and purpose of opioid abatement funding

The 2025 appellate reversal that revived the case

Whether the healthcare system has truly changed

👥 Guest
Paul T. Farrell Jr.
Attorney and lead counsel in the Cabell County opioid litigation, which helped catalyze the nationwide opioid settlements.

The Opioid Reckoning (Part 1): Paul Farrell Jr. on Litigation, Accountability, and the System That Failed

West Virginia has had the highest drug overdose death rate in the United States for over a decade. In a state with fewer than 2 million people, 780 million prescription opioids were distributed in just six years.

For Paul Farrell Jr., a Huntington, West Virginia native and mass tort attorney, those numbers weren’t abstract statistics. They were neighbors. Friends. Family members.

In Part 1 of this two-part episode, hosts Na-Ri Oh and Ian Wendt sit down with Paul to unpack how the largest civil litigation in American history — the opioid multidistrict litigation (MDL 2804) — came together, and how it reshaped the conversation around corporate accountability in the pharmaceutical supply chain.

This is not just a legal story. It’s a story about systems failure — across manufacturers, distributors, regulators, policymakers, and healthcare stakeholders — and what happens when transparency finally forces a reckoning.

In This Episode

Growing up in Huntington, WV as the opioid crisis escalated

The investigative journalism that exposed 780 million pills — and the moment Paul decided to act

What “public nuisance” law is — and why it became the legal breakthrough strategy

The role of distributors as the “choke point” in the opioid supply chain

How 3,000+ cases consolidated into the largest MDL in U.S. history

Why abatement — not just financial damages — became central to the settlement strategy

Internal company communications that revealed troubling attitudes toward affected communities

The intersection of regulation, enforcement, and corporate responsibility

How transparency and subpoena power changed the trajectory of the crisis

Why This Conversation Matters
For those working in pharma, healthcare, commercialization, policy, compliance, or distribution, this episode challenges us to examine difficult questions:

Where does responsibility truly lie in a complex healthcare ecosystem?

What happens when financial incentives distort oversight?

And how do we prevent the next Pandora’s box from opening?

This episode sets the foundation for a deeper conversation about accountability, culture, regulation, and reform.

Coming Next Week: Part 2
There was simply too much to cover in one episode.

In Part 2, we’ll explore:

The evolution of the litigation and key tipping points

The role of state attorneys general and settlement frameworks

The ongoing PBM litigation

The documentary The Bitter Pill

And what lasting change should look like for the industry

Make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss it.

Ending the Diagnostic Odyssey: Rare Disease, Employers & Reimagining Health Plans
Hosts: Na-Ri Oh & Ian Wendt
Guest: Joshua Resnikoff, Founder & CEO, Sunstone Health

Episode Overview
What if the biggest innovation in rare disease wasn’t a new drug—but a new way to navigate the system?

In this episode, Na-Ri and Ian sit down with Joshua Resnikoff, biomedical engineer turned founder of Sunstone Health, to explore how employers can fundamentally rethink healthcare spending—while dramatically improving outcomes for families facing rare diseases.

Josh’s journey into healthcare reform wasn’t academic—it was personal. After years navigating the healthcare system to diagnose his son’s rare periodic fever syndrome, Josh experienced firsthand the emotional, financial, and systemic toll of what’s known as the diagnostic odyssey. That experience sparked a mission: compress a seven-year diagnostic journey into just 12 weeks.

This conversation dives into rare disease, employer-sponsored health plans, insurance mechanics, and why aligning incentives might be the key to transforming care.

🔬 From Scientist to System Builder

Josh’s background as a biomedical engineer at Harvard’s Wyss Institute

The rare disease journey that reshaped his career

Why getting a diagnosis—even without treatment—changes everything

The emotional and economic cost of delayed diagnosis

🧬 The 7-Year Diagnostic Odyssey
On average, it takes:

7 years from first symptom to effective treatment for rare disease patients

Countless ER visits, specialist referrals, medication trials, and escalating costs

Significant emotional strain—rare disease families face dramatically higher stress and divorce rates

Sunstone’s model reduces that timeline to approximately 12 weeks using:

Whole genome sequencing

AI-powered clinical interpretation

Expert clinician review (human-in-the-loop model)

Direct coordination with local care teams

The result?
Earlier intervention. Reduced healthcare utilization. Better outcomes.

💼 Why Employers Are the Key
Josh explains why self-funded employers—not traditional commercial insurers—are uniquely positioned to drive change.

Key insights:

~2/3 of Americans receive insurance through employers

Many large employers are self-funded, meaning they pay claims directly

Employers think in long-term employee retention (not 12-month insurance cycles)

Better healthcare = healthier employees = higher retention & productivity

Sunstone’s innovative model:

No per-employee-per-month subscription fees

Employers only pay when a family receives actionable results

High ROI through reduced ER visits, unnecessary treatments, and delayed care

🛡 Insurance 101 (Made Understandable)
The episode breaks down:

Fully insured vs. self-funded plans

Third-party administrators (TPAs)

Stop-loss / reinsurance

How high-cost cases (like $2M gene therapies) are financially managed

The takeaway:
When diagnoses happen earlier, total system costs often decrease—even when advanced therapies are involved.

🤝 Mission-Driven Innovation
A powerful theme throughout the conversation:

Many leaders in the rare disease ecosystem—including Josh—entered the field because of their own children.

That lived experience shapes:

Sunstone’s patient-first data ownership model

Continuous reanalysis of patient data

Clinical trial matching

Ethical alignment with families

As Josh says:

“Even if this whole thing went belly up, we will have helped hundreds of families—and I’d feel good about that for the rest of my life.”

🚀 Recent Milestones

Successfully raised Series A funding

800+ community investors via WeFunder

Integration with Broad Clinical Labs

Expanded epilepsy and autism-focused programs

Rapidly growing employer pipeline

🔗 Learn More

🌐 Sunstone Health: https://sunstonehealth.com

💼 Connect with Josh on LinkedIn