Welcome to the Week in Review.

Pharma’s Mid-Year Money Grab

Despite one in three Americans being unable to afford their prescription drugs, pharma companies raised prices in July on over 150 brand-name medications as part of their mid-year price hikes. The majority of hikes were increases above the rate of inflation. A few lowlights: Novartis raised the price of its spinal muscular atrophy gene therapy, Zolgensma, by $119,585, the highest singular price increase on an already wildly expensive drug sold at over $2.5 million. And the largest percentage was for the osteoporosis drug Ibandronate Sodium, which was increased by 359% for three tablets. This is business as usual for Pharma: hiking prices and squeezing patients, regardless of the crushing financial burden they face.

Trump Administration Re-Ups MFN with New Letters to Pharma

On Thursday, President Trump sent letters to 17 major pharmaceutical companies ratcheting up his Most Favored Nation (MFN) drug pricing strategy. Americans shouldn’t be paying between four and eight times what other high-income nations pay for the very same brand-name drugs, and the president is recognizing that drug companies gaming the system are to blame. However, the letters still leave far too much room for the industry to protect its profits by raising prices for patients abroad — in line with their track record of exploiting even the most well-intentioned plans to maintain its monopolies at the expense of patients. It’s critical that any MFN plan contains safeguards to prevent pharmaceutical companies from simply raising prices in other countries instead of lowering them in the U.S., in addition to clearly defined ways for the administration to monitor and enforce compliance. — [White House, P4AD, NYT, POLITICO, Reuters, Inside Health Policy, Axios, The Hill, STAT News, CNBC, Bloomberg Law]

Tariffs Will Devastate Patients

Sunday’s EU trade deal will set a 15% tariff on imported pharmaceuticals from Europe, affecting a wide range of drugs, including blockbusters Ozempic and Keytruda. With Wall Street analysts predicting that the deal will cost the pharma industry $19 billion, P4AD is once again sounding the alarm that manufacturers will pass any new costs onto patients, raising prices and increasing drug shortages. Even if companies invest in reshoring, new price hikes will likely hit long before any potential benefits, harming the most vulnerable patients already struggling to afford their prescription drugs. — [White House, Reuters, Bloomberg, NYT, Axios, Endpoints, STAT News, Inside Health Policy]

Pharma Executives Push For Yet Another Handout

The Maintaining Investments in New Innovation Act, or MINI, is back in the news, with the CEO of Alnylam Pharmaceuticals penning an op-ed in support of this harmful bill. MINI would extend the exclusivity period for genetically targeted technologies (GTTs) to 11 years, further restricting them from negotiation and ensuring manufacturers can price-gouge patients for longer while increasing costs for taxpayers. If a drug company CEO is lobbying for a bill like MINI, you can bet it’s bad for patients. We urge Congress to put patients above industry interests — particularly after the industry was already handed a $5 billion handout with the ORPHAN Cures Act last month. — [Congress, STAT News, P4ADNow]

*Introducing a new weekly patient advocate spotlight. These advocates are the heart of our movement and courageously share their stories to drive change. 

Patient Advocate Spotlight: Steven Hadfield, 73, North Carolina

Condition: Rare Blood Cancer and Type 2 Diabetes

Drugs: Brukinsa ($15,744), Januvia ($527), Dupixent ($7,987), Metformin, Gabapentin, and Repaglinide, totalling roughly $24,221/month. Thankfully, Steven met the IRA’s $2,000 out-of-pocket cap this year. 

This week, Steven participated in a press conference urging the repeal of the ORPHAN Cures Act. Here’s some of what Steven had to say:

“I used to take Imbruvica — a cancer drug priced at nearly $17,000 a month. I had to get grants to pay for it because it was simply unaffordable. Now, because it’s part of Medicare negotiation, in January that price will be cut by 40 percent — but if the ORPHAN Cures Act had been passed into law earlier, Imbruvica would not have been eligible for negotiation, leaving thousands of patients paying a higher price indefinitely… Patients like me fought hard to win Medicare negotiation. We cannot let Pharma gut that victory. It’s time to repeal the Orphan Cures Act and stand with patients — not Big Pharma’s profits.” 

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