pharmaceuticals Archives

Taxing Drug Price Spikes: Assessing the Potential Impact

How a proposed tax penalty on drugs with price increases exceeding the inflation could impact patients, public insurance programs, and innovation.

from Health Affairs Blog

On March 29, 2017, senior Democrats introduced comprehensive legislation (titled the Improving Access to Affordable Prescription Drugs Act) in the House and Senate aimed at lowering prescription drug costs and improving transparency. The 129-page bill contains several popular provisions that could help drive its passage or could reappear in a future bipartisan attempt to repair or replace the Affordable Care Act. One such provision is section 202, which establishes an excise tax on drugs with price increases exceeding the inflation rate. The amount of the tax penalty would depend on the size of the price increase. It is modeled on similar rebates already in place for Medicaid, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and the Department of Defense.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

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As Trump Pressures FDA for Faster Drug Approvals, Major Safety Issues with Past Approvals Surface

Researchers found nearly a third of approvals from 2001 through 2010 had major safety issues years after they were widely available to patients.

from HealthcareFinance

The Food and Drug Administration is under pressure from the Trump administration to approve drugs faster, but researchers at the Yale School of Medicine found that nearly a third of those approved from 2001 through 2010 had major safety issues years after they were widely available to patients.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

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The World’s 10 Most Expensive Medications

From a $1.2M gene therapy to a $450K lymphoma med, these are the 10 priciest medications out there.

from FiercePharma

FiercePharma takes a look at the ten priciest medications, including a treatment for lipoprotein lipase deficiency (Glybera, $1.21 million per year), a treatment for urea cycle disorders (Ravicti, $793,632), a therapy used to treat Pompe disease (Lumizyme, $626,400), and more.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

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Enzymes Versus Nerve Agents: Designing Antidotes for Chemical Weapons

Scientists invented chemical weapons; some are now working to destroy them.

from The Conversation

A chemical weapons attack that killed more than 80 people, including children, triggered the Trump administration’s recent missile strikes against the Syrian government. The use of illegal nerve agents – apparently by the Assad regime – violated international law; President Trump said he was moved to act by images of the victims’ horrible deaths. But there’s another path to mitigate the danger of chemical weapons. This route lies within the domains of science – the very same science that produced chemical weapons in the first place.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

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Taking Shortcuts in Drug Testing Can Put Patients at Risk

Using surrogate endpoints can speed up testing of new drugs, but doesn’t always find out if they actually help patients.

from NPR

There is growing interest in reducing the evidence required to approve new drugs and to more rapidly deliver new therapies to patients. The sentiment behind speeding approval is a good one—no one wants to delay the availability of drugs that are beneficial and safe—but can lead to shortcuts in evidence generation that can also come with risk.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

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Mylan Hit with New Class Action Lawsuit over EpiPen Pricing

The three plaintiffs are seeking damages from Mylan to represent a nationwide class of EpiPen purchasers.

from Reuters

The lawsuit was filed on Monday in Tacoma, Washington, federal court by three EpiPen purchasers. It claims Mylan engaged in a scheme with pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs – companies that act as intermediaries between pharmacies, insurers and drug companies – to dominate the market and overcharge consumers. Although other lawsuits have been filed over EpiPen pricing, Monday’s is the first to focus on the role of PBMs and to bring claims under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, a federal law historically used against organized crime.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

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Compassionate Use Access to Experimental Drugs and The Misguided Mission of Right-To-Try Laws

How can one possibly deny a dying patient even the slightest chance of prolonged life or recovery? Is there a side effect worse than certain death?

from Health Affairs Blog

Some patients facing death take drastic, or even desperate measures in order to prolong their lives. Such actions often include taking unapproved, investigational drugs. In the U.S., a program known as Compassionate Use, or Expanded Access, allows terminally ill patients who meet certain medical criteria to apply (through their physicians) to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the drug manufacturers for access to drugs that are undergoing FDA clinical trials. At first blush, it may appear that there should be no legal, political, or ethical controversies surrounding the concept of expanded access. How can one possibly deny a dying patient even the slightest chance of prolonged life or recovery? Is there a side effect worse than certain death?

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

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