Drugmakers’ ‘Predatory’ Pricing Model Slammed In Congressional Committee Report
The report from the Senate Aging Committee presents four case studies and identifies what are described as five “essential elements” of the business models used by drugmakers to exploit the market for their medicines: price gouging, a sole-source supply, the "gold standard," a small market and a closed distribution system.
Los Angeles Times:
How 4 Drug Companies Rapidly Raised Prices On Life-Saving Drugs
U.S. Senate committee detailed in an investigative report Wednesday how drug companies were exploiting the market by acquiring decades-old crucial medicines and suddenly raising their prices astronomically. “We must work to stop the bad actors who are driving up the prices of drugs that they did nothing to develop at the expense of patients just because, as one executive essentially said, ‘because I can,’ ” said Sen. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican, who chairs the Senate Aging Committee. (Petersen, 12/21)
Stat:
Senate Report Suggests Ways To Blunt Impact Of Drug Prices
In the wake of mounting anger over prescription drug costs, a new report by a Senate committee recommends several steps — such as accelerating regulatory review for generics and temporarily allowing imports — to blunt the financial impact that sudden price hikes are having on Americans. The report from the Senate Special Committee on Aging follows a year-long probe into several well-publicized instances in which drug makers — notably, Valeant Pharmaceuticals and Turing Pharmaceuticals, which was run by Martin Shkreli — used controversial tactics to acquire older brand-name medicines and undermine competition after jacking up the prices to sky-high levels. (12/21)