Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Even As Public Fury Mounts And Scrutiny Intensifies, Drugmakers Are Still Boosting Prices
The Wall Street Journal: Drugmakers’ Pricing Power Remains Strong
Pharmaceutical companies’ power to raise prices is firmly intact despite pushback from health insurers, scrutiny by U.S. lawmakers and anxiety about rising prescription drug spending. More than two-thirds of the 20 largest pharmaceutical companies said price increases boosted sales of some or most of their biggest products in the first quarter, according to a Wall Street Journal review of corporate filings and conference-call transcripts. (Walker, 7/14)
The Wall Street Journal: Valeant’s Ex-CEO Michael Pearson Sells Nearly $100 Million In Company Stock
Michael Pearson has sold nearly $100 million of his stock in Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. in the past two weeks, according to securities filings, following his firing as the troubled drugmaker’s chief executive in March. Mr. Pearson sold 288,441 shares on June 30 for $5.8 million, and sold another 411,601 shares for $8.2 million on July 5, according to Securities and Exchange Commission filings. One filing also indicates Mr. Pearson sold another 4,144,687 shares—a large portion of his remaining Valeant stake—for $82.9 million on July 1. (McNish and Grant, 7/13)
The Fiscal Times: Take The Money And Run: How Gilead Sciences Dodged $10 Billion In US Taxes
It was bad enough that Gilead Sciences, the California-based pharmaceutical giant, has been charging seriously ill Americans and government health providers -- including Medicare, Medicaid and the Department of Veterans Affairs – sky-high prices for its drugs that treat the potentially fatal hepatitis C virus. ... In recent years, the company has grown to become one of the largest drug manufacturers in the world, with revenues last year of $32.6 billion. ... Now comes a new report asserting that Gilead has moved a substantial portion of its assets to a tax shelter in Ireland, allowing income from some of its U.S. drug sales to be shifted abroad and taxed at a much lower rate than the top corporate rate of 35 percent in this country. (Pianin, 7/13)
Stat: Billionaire Businessman Mark Cuban Has Something To Say About Drug Prices
Mark Cuban has something to say about prescription drug prices. The billionaire entrepreneur and Dallas Mavericks owner might not seem like an obvious participant in the pharmaceutical debate. But he is a prolific businessman with an established interest in health care and a reputation for blunt talk. ... This week, the star of “Shark Tank” tweeted a link to a Harvard Business Review article that examined price-gouging by some drug companies, particularly with treatments for rare diseases, and what could be done to stop it. (Scott, 7/13)
Meanwhile, drugmakers are fighting hard against legalized marijuana —
The Washington Post: One Striking Chart Shows Why Pharma Companies Are Fighting Legal Marijuana
There's a body of research showing that painkiller abuse and overdose are lower in states with medical marijuana laws. These studies have generally assumed that when medical marijuana is available, pain patients are increasingly choosing pot over powerful and deadly prescription narcotics. But that's always been just an assumption. Now a new study, released in the journal Health Affairs, validates these findings by providing clear evidence of a missing link in the causal chain running from medical marijuana to falling overdoses. (Ingraham, 7/13)
Related KHN coverage: Medical Marijuana Linked To Modest Budget Benefits For Medicare Part D, Study Finds (Luthra, 7/6)
