Tuesday, September 22, 2015

Drug Pricing Problematic

As the cost of prescription drugs rise the impact on total health care expenditures is significant.
Consider the cost of Daraprim.
New York-based Turing bought the drug called Daraprim for $55 million this summer. It is used to treat toxoplasmosis, a parasitic infection that can be severe in patients with compromised immune systems, such as HIV, and for pregnant women. Earlier this month, the head of the Infectious Diseases Society of America and the HIV Medicine Association condemned the price increase from $13.50 a pill to $750, noting that the average cost per year for a patient weighing more than 132 pounds would be $634,500. - Washington Post
Drugs that have proven effective in treating specific conditions can be pricey, especially where there is a limited distribution population.

HIV patients comprise a relatively small number in the general population. As patients that are HIV positive have longer lifespans the total cost of care can be significant.

Never letting a crisis go to waste, it doesn't take long for politicians to step in and "fix" the problem.

Hillary Clinton can't keep track of her emails and claims to be electronically challenged yet it didn't take long for her to Tweet this comment.
Price gouging like this in the specialty drug market is outrageous. Tomorrow I'll lay out a plan to take it on.
I thought Obamacare and Medicare Part D were supposed to make healthcare more affordable.

Doesn't seem to be working so well.


#PrescriptionDrugs
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