No More $35 Cap: Legal Complexity Sinks Eli Lilly’s Insulin Deal
Reuters reports that an "unfavorable ruling" in the case has led to the settlement deal failing. The deal would have capped patient costs for insulin for four years at $35 a month.
Reuters:
Eli Lilly's Nationwide Insulin Pricing Settlement Called Off
A settlement between Eli Lilly and purchasers of its insulin drugs that would have capped prices and provided $13.5 million to resolve claims that the company inflated the drugs' cost has fallen apart, after an unfavorable ruling from the judge overseeing the case. Lawyers for a proposed nationwide class of individuals who paid for Lilly's Humalog and other insulin drugs said in a filing in Newark, New Jersey, federal court on Friday that they and Lilly had decided not to go forward seeking approval for the deal, which they first proposed last May. Steve Berman, one of the lawyers, called the demise of the settlement, which would have capped patients' out-of-pocket insulin costs at $35 per month for four years, a "potentially big loss for consumers." (Pierson, 4/15)
Stat:
Insulin Affordability: Chuck Schumer’s Broken Promise
In February 2022, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer stood alongside constituents in Buffalo, N.Y., and promised to hold a vote to cap costs for insulin at $35 per month for people with all types of insurance. Two years later, he hasn’t followed through. Democrats have achieved piecemeal progress in making insulin more affordable for millions of people during President Biden’s more than three years in office, but they’ve yet to do so for everyone. And despite Schumer’s repeated promises to hold a vote on whether to expand cost protections to people with all types of insurance, he hasn’t done it. (Zhang, 4/16)
More on drug costs and the drug supply chain —
The New York Times:
U.S. Scrutiny Of Chinese Company Could Disrupt U.S. Supply Chain For Key Drugs
A Chinese company targeted by members of Congress over potential ties to the Chinese government makes blockbuster drugs for the American market that have been hailed as advances in the treatment of cancers, obesity and debilitating illnesses like cystic fibrosis. WuXi AppTec is one of several companies that lawmakers have identified as potential threats to the security of individual Americans’ genetic information and U.S. intellectual property. A Senate committee approved a bill in March that aides say is intended to push U.S. companies away from doing business with them. (Jewett, 4/15)
Bloomberg:
Cancer, ALS Drugs That Don't Work Are Costing Americans Billions
One ALS drug made $400 million in sales for its maker. It doesn’t work. A cancer treatment brought in $500 million. That one turned out to have no effect on survival. A blood cancer medication made nearly $850 million before being withdrawn for two of its uses. That drug had been linked to patient deaths years prior. All of them were allowed to be sold to Americans because of the US Food and Drug Administration’s drive to get new drugs to patients quickly — sometimes even before they’re done testing. (Langreth, Rutherford, and Meghjani, 4/15)
NPR:
U.S. Drugmakers Lower U.S. Taxes By Shifting Profits To Overseas Subsidiaries
Corporations are supposed to pay a nominal tax rate of 21%. But in recent years, the biggest pharmaceutical companies had an average effective tax rate of less than 12%, according to an analysis by the Senate Finance Committee. (Lupkin, 4/15)
Stat:
Thanks To CVS, A Humira Biosimilar Is Grabbing Huge Market Share
The number of new prescriptions written for biosimilar versions of the Humira rheumatoid arthritis treatment, one of the best-selling medicines in the U.S., surged to 36% from just 5% during the first week of April, thanks to the expanding reach that CVS Health has over the prescription drug market. ... The changes underscore the complicated jockeying taking place to capture the enormous of money in play, according to Chris Brown, who heads McAteer, a consulting firm that specializes in drug pricing. (Silverman, 4/15)
