Moderna has promised not to enforce patent rights on its developing COVID-19 vaccine “while the pandemic continues” and is “willing” to license rights afterward, meaning other drug companies could produce vaccines based on the same technology. Good. But remember, taxpayers 100 percent funded the vaccine candidate. It should already belong to the people. — (The Wall Street Journal)
2. Do Better, America
On average, Americans pay about 11 times more for insulin than people with diabetes living in peer countries, according to a study from the RAND Corporation. Big Pharma is going to continue charging what it can get away with for this vital, life-saving medication until our elected leaders make lasting, meaningful reform. — (Axios)
3.Big Pharma Scam
Pfizer has sued the federal government in an attempt to weaken federal policies prohibiting direct copay assistance for Medicare beneficiaries. The company claims it’s just sticking up for patients who need a $225,000 Pfizer drug to treat a rare and potentially fatal cardiac condition. But all is not as it seems. Copay assistance is a Big Pharma scam. These programs blunt patient sensitivity to drug costs, putting taxpayers on the hook to pick up outrageous price tags. Instead of copay scams, we need comprehensive drug pricing reform to bring down the prices pharmaceutical companies set in the first place. — (Barron’s)
Welcome to the Week in Review.
1.Pharma Exposed
The House Committee on Oversight and Reform released reports on five pharmaceutical manufacturers’ abusive pricing practices this week. The reports, part of an 18-month investigation led by the committee, revealed internal company documents that expose a disturbing pattern of abusive pricing practices, anti-competitive behavior, and manipulative marketing campaigns. The documents exposed that pharma’s favorite talking points are nothing more than smoke and mirrors. — (Bloomberg, FiercePharma)
2. Debate Dishonesty
During Tuesday’s presidential debate, President Trump claimed that he has drastically lowered the prices of prescription drugs, including insulin, which he claimed is “so cheap, it’s like water.” Our verdict? False. Many insulin-dependent patients still pay hundreds of dollars each month, and pharma companies have actually hiked drug prices during the pandemic. The president has spent nearly four years in office talking about lowering drug prices, but we’ve yet to see meaningful action. — (STAT)
3.Life or Death
Drug pricing is emerging as a top issue this election year, with candidates from both parties fighting to claim it as their own. But at the heart of the issue are patients like Travis, who is forced to seek lower insulin prices from other countries, and Jacquie, who worries about what she would do if her insurance stopped covering her drug. Lowering drug prices should be more than a talking point for politicians — for many Americans, it’s a matter of life or death. — (Center for Health Journalism)
1. “I live, battle, and conquer sickle cell”
A new Patients For Affordable Drugs Action ad features Floridian Clayton “DJ” Martin, who shares his worries about high drug prices and urges voters to support candidates who will take action to lower prices. The ad is part of a 15-state campaign to elevate the issue of drug prices across the country. We are grateful to DJ and all patient advocates for their tireless work to stand up to Big Pharma. — (Florida Politics)
2. Called to the Stand
Six pharma executives representing some of the biggest names in the drug industry are testifying in front of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform next week. The committee’s probe on unethical and anti-competitive drug pricing practices continues the important work of its late chairman, Rep. Elijah Cummings. We’ll be watching the hearings, and we look forward to getting some long-awaited answers. — (FiercePharma)
3. Dubious Discount
President Trump announced Thursday that he will send $200 discount cards to 33 million Medicare beneficiaries. Had he kept his commitment to lower drug prices, he wouldn’t need to promise some Medicare beneficiaries a dubious discount card days before an election. Americans need systemic, enduring drug pricing reforms, not election-year gimmicks. — (STAT)
4. The System is Rigged
The entire drug pricing system is broken, from drug companies that set ever-increasing list prices to pharmacy benefit managers that keep rotating formularies. And who’s paying the price? Patients, who often face uncertainty and exorbitant drug costs at the pharmacy counter. It’s long past time for change. — (The New York Times)
5. Her Story, Her Voice, and Her Vote
Patient advocate Ramae Hamrin, a Minnesota resident who has multiple myeloma, is sharing her story to push for drug pricing reforms that will benefit us all. “Even if you are not in my shoes at the moment, you or someone you love could also be one step away from losing everything in order to simply stay alive. I’m more than happy to bring a face to the unfairness and high cost of prescription drugs for all of us in hopes that something can be done. It has to be.” — (Incurable Blessings)
TikTok may be going away. But your drug pricing newsletter is here to stay.
1. #AskAboutDrugPrices
Patients For Affordable Drugs Action, our sister organization, launched a campaign this week featuring patients calling on fellow voters to support candidates who will commit to lowering drug prices. As part of the campaign, the group will launch digital ads in 15 states, starting this week with Georgia, Iowa, Montana, Minnesota, and Virginia. Patients For Affordable Drugs Action will also focus its efforts on exposing Senator Thom Tillis‘ record of turning his back on patients in service of Big Pharma. — (Patients For Affordable Drugs Action)
2. Yes, the U.S. Government Will Pay Twice for a COVID-19 Vaccine
U.S. taxpayers are underwriting the development of a COVID-19 vaccine — to the tune of $12 billion. But the drug corporations plan to charge taxpayers yet again for the final product. P4AD Founder and President David Mitchell breaks it down from the patient perspective on PBS NewsHour. Our rigged drug pricing system is long overdue for major reforms. — (PBS NewsHour)
3. Drug Prices: Not Falling
On Sunday, President Trump signed the most-favored nations executive order that ties Medicare drug prices to lower prices in other countries. However, many questions about the details of the executive order remain unanswered, and it’s unlikely that Americans will see lower drug prices anytime soon. Advancing the order was a step in the right direction, but we’ll be waiting to see if any meaningful action comes next. — (NPR)
4. Profit Maximizers Don’t Wear Capes
American tax dollars filled global pharma giant AstraZeneca’s coffers with $1.2 billion for the development of a COVID-19 vaccine, but the company has CONTINUED TO RAISE DRUG PRICES this year — sometimes even twice on the same medication. — (Los Angeles Times)
5. ?Drug Corporations Cashing in on Crisis
Drug companies are peddling unsubstantiated “news” about progress in the race for a COVID-19 vaccine, which leads to inflated stock value. Then, pharma executives and shareholders are selling their stock shares and making millions. Pharma’s relentless bad behavior underscores that Congress must act to protect us from pandemic profiteering. — (Newsweek)
1. Even More Pandemic Price Hikes
Amid the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, drug companies have hiked the prices of 645 brand-name drugs this year, including those used to treat chest pain and depression. Time and again, pharma companies display limitless greed. — (AnalySource)
2. Leave No One Behind
It’s been five years since “pharma bro” Martin Shkreli increased the price of the medication Daraprim by over 5,000 percent to $750 per pill — and the drug still costs that much. Widespread outrage has not stopped drug corporations’ unchecked powers to increase prescription drug prices. We must reform the system to serve all patients — and that means lowering drug prices for all conditions. — (Roll Call)
3. System of Patent Abuse
In a new podcast, host Angela Glover Blackwell and Priti Krishtel, the co-founder of the drug patent watchdog organization I-MAK, discuss how Big Pharma’s patent abuses disproportionately harm people of color. The fight for health equity must include tackling drug companies’ monopoly pricing power. — (Radical Imagination)
1. We’re Drug Pricing Voters
More than one-third of Americans cite lowering drug costs as a top issue influencing their 2020 vote. The numbers don’t lie: This November, Americans are looking for candidates who will stand up to Big Pharma and pass legislation to curb predatory drug pricing practices. — (Gallup)
2. Paying Twice
A new analysis found American tax dollars helped to fund every new drug approved in the past decade. We’re paying billions of dollars to produce life-saving medications, only to be overcharged while pharma juices profits. Our rigged drug pricing system has to change. — (Institute for New Economic Thinking)
3. Profiteering Poster Child
Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney plans to subpoena pharma giant AbbVie after the company failed to provide the House Committee on Oversight and Reform with requested information on blockbuster drugs Imbruvica and Humira. AbbVie has raised the price of Humira 18 times between 2009 and 2019. We’re glad to see the committee continue the investigation, which started in January 2019 under the leadership of the late then-Chairman Elijah Cummings. — (FiercePharma)
4. Made in Cali
This week, the California state legislature passed a bill that opens the door for the state to become the first to produce its own line of generic drugs. The measure would require the state’s health agency to partner with drug companies to manufacture or distribute generics, helping to drive down the cost of expensive prescriptions. — (Kaiser Health News)
5. “PhRMA lacks standing”
“PhRMA lacks standing,” Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said this week in response to a federal lawsuit brought by PhRMA that challenged the constitutionality of the Alec Smith Emergency Insulin Act.The legislation, named for a young man with type 1 diabetes who died after he rationed insulin, would provide an emergency supply of the drug to the numerous patients who struggle to afford the critical medication. — (MinnPost)
1. The Case of the Missing Executive Order
President Trump’s self-imposed deadline to advance a yet unseen most-favored nation executive order passed midnight Tuesday, with lots of talk, no real news. Pharma, meanwhile, reportedly floated a flimsy counteroffer, which the president must reject. Trump should advance the most-favored nation proposal to help stop Americans from paying the highest drug prices in the world. While this approach is short of a solution to the drug pricing crisis writ large — most Americans won’t experience savings if it’s implemented — it’s a step in the right direction. — (KHN)
2. There has been no “dramatic action” on drug pricing
No, drug prices are not falling. No, dramatic action has not been taken. Drug prices are rising during a global pandemic. — (NBC)
3. Profiteering on a Pandemic
Oxford University once pledged to donate the rights to its promising COVID-19 vaccine contender. Instead, the university signed an exclusive deal granting AstraZeneca sole rights to sell the vaccine, in a contract that would also allow the university to receive millions in royalties. In the midst of an unprecedented health crisis, we all remain at the mercy of drug corporations’ unfettered pricing power. — (KHN)
4. Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing
Pharma wants the COVID-19 pandemic to revive its bottomed-out image, but companies like Pfizer are already signaling to investors that prices will rise in the likely scenario that COVID-19 vaccinations become a seasonal event. It’s business as usual for Big Pharma. — (Bloomberg)
5. Crackdown Continues
The U.S. Justice Department dropped conspiracy charges on Teva Pharmaceuticals following an investigation into price fixing for drugs to treat conditions like heart disease. It’s the seventh drug maker charged in the department’s ongoing criminal antitrust probe. — (Reuters)
1. Moderna Sees Potential for Jackpot
Moderna revealed it could pocket up to $8.125 billion from the U.S. government for 500 million doses of its potential COVID-19 vaccine. The set-up is clear: Taxpayers are on the hook for exorbitant amounts of money for a vaccine we’ve already 100 percent funded. — (FiercePharma)
2. Business as Usual
A new report from AnalySource shows it is business as usual for Big Pharma in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Drug manufacturers in July raised prices for 65 brand-name drugs by 3.62 percent, matching almost exactly Big Pharma’s July 2019 price hikes. — (AnalySource)
3. Acts of Desperation
Insulin prices continue to skyrocket, and with it, some patients are forced to purchase their black-market insulin on sites like Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace. The three insulin manufacturers are holding patients hostage, and Americans are desperate for relief. — (Sinclair Broadcast Group)
4. Pervasive Profiteering
The federal government sued pharma giant Teva, accusing the corporation of violating Medicare anti-kickback laws by funneling money to two “independent” patient assistance programs for the multiple sclerosis drug Copaxone. In the alleged scheme, Teva quadrupled the price of the drug to $73,326 a year between 2006 and 2015 and charged taxpayers via Medicare. We can’t say we’re surprised — this lawsuit is just the latest in a litany of bad behavior from Big Pharma. — (Reuters)
5. Pharma’s Statehouse Stampede
State lawmakers across the country are moving to cap out-of-pocket insulin prices, but drug company lobbyists are working overtime to water down the bills and protect pharma’s bottom line. The hundreds of thousands of dollars spent lobbying legislators underscore the lengths pharma will go to continue charging the highest possible prices for life-saving medications. — (Fair Warning, NBC News)
