How Life-Saving Cures Targeted To Small Populations Became A Profit Engine For Big Pharma

The New York Times: The $6 Million Drug Claim
Dawn Patterson keeps a multimillion-dollar drug in the fridge, next to a bottle of root beer and a jar of salsa. The drug, Strensiq, treats a rare bone disease that afflicted her with excruciating pain and left her struggling to work or care for her family. A year after she began taking the drug, Ms. Patterson, 49, credits it with nearly vanquishing her pain, enabling her to return to work part time for a hospital. (Thomas and Abelson, 8/25)

Stat: Canada Open To ‘All Options’ For Response To Trump Drug Importation Plan
The Canadian government reassured pharmaceutical industry representatives that “all options are on the table” regarding the Trump administration’s plan to import drugs from Canada at a closed-door briefing last week, according to an attendee. “The Government of Canada continues to monitor the situation and is engaging U.S. officials,” Health Canada, the government’s health department, said in a slide presentation obtained by STAT, which was distributed prior to the meeting. “All options available to the Government to respond to this issue are being considered.” (Facher, 8/27)

The CT Mirror: Blumenthal Slams Drug Makers For EpiPen Shortages
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., continued his long -running criticisms of Mylan, which markets the EpiPen at a press conference in Hartford on Monday, saying “the reason for its short supply is to keep prices up.” ...While Mylan markets the EpiPen, Meridian — a unit of Pfizer — manufactures the injectors that are used to deliver an emergency antidote to severe allergic reactions to peanuts, bee stings and other substances that can trigger a life-threatening reaction known as anaphylaxis. (Radelat, 8/26)

CQ: Conservative Group Launches Ads Against Drug Price Negotiations
A conservative political group launched a $2.5 million ad campaign on Monday targeting the prescription drug pricing plan House Democrats are set to release next month. The American Action Network will run a mail, digital and radio ad campaign in 35 congressional districts held by Republicans. The ads promote Republican incumbents, including the top three House Republicans and key members on committees that work on drug pricing issues. (McIntire, 8/26)

The Baltimore Sun: Maryland Drug Price Board Has Members, But No Money To Do Its Work 
Maryland officials named members of a new board that’s supposed to investigate high drug prices, but Gov. Larry Hogan has not released the money that’s needed to get the board up and running. State lawmakers created the Maryland Prescription Drug Affordability Board this year, charging it with reviewing the prices for prescription drugs paid by health insurance plans for state and county government employees. It also plans to study whether maximum prices should be set for prescription drugs. (Wood, 8/22)

Stat: Price Hikes For Multiple Sclerosis Drugs Helped Medicare Part D Out-Of-Pocket Costs To Skyrocket
Specifically, spending on multiple sclerosis drugs per 1,000 beneficiaries by the health program jumped from nearly $7,800 in 2006 to more than $79,400 in 2016. Meanwhile, out-of-pocket patient spending per 1,000 beneficiaries rose from $372 to nearly $2,700 for patients with multiple sclerosis during that same period of time. And the annual cost of treatment for those patients climbed from about $18,600 to almost $75,900, or 12.8% a year, according to the analysis in JAMA Neurology. (Silverman, 8/26)

Reuters: U.S. FDA Grants Orphan Drug Status To AstraZeneca's Asthma Drug Fasenra
AstraZeneca said on Wednesday that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted orphan drug status for its drug to treat eosinophilic esophagitis and unveiled positive results from a late-stage trial on a triple-drug therapy targeting a severe lung disease. Fasenra would treat allergic oesophagitis, an allergic inflammatory disease of the esophagus. The health regulator grants orphan status to drugs that are intended to treat and prevent rare diseases or disorders that affect fewer than 200,000 people in the U.S. (8/28)

The Wall Street Journal: Amgen Shows Price Is Still Right For Blockbuster Drug Deals
U.S. stocks have been wobbly lately, but the health-care deal market is still vibrant. Amgen said Monday it plans to purchase the anti-inflammatory drug Otezla from Celgene for $13.4 billion in cash. Shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb, which is planning to acquire Celgene for $74 billion in cash and stock, rallied in response. There was a good reason for that. (Grant, 8/26)

The New York Times: China Eases Rules On Cheap Drug Imports To Fight Chronic Diseases
China said it would reduce the penalties for the sale and import of unapproved drugs, effectively giving poor and critically ill patients the green light to access cheaper generic pharmaceuticals from other countries. The move, announced on Monday, could help fill a gaping hole in the country’s overburdened health care system. For years, Chinese patients and their relatives risked the threat of heavy criminal penalties in their hunt for affordable drugs in a country increasingly suffering from chronic diseases like cancer. (Wee, 8/27)

Kaiser Health News: Pharma Cash Rolls Into Congress To Defend An Embattled Industry
In the heat of the most ferocious battle over drug prices in years, pharmaceutical companies are showering U.S. senators with campaign cash as sweeping legislation heads toward the floor. In the first six months of this year alone, political action committees run by employees of drug companies and their trade groups have given the 30 senators expected to run for reelection nearly $845,000, the latest update to Kaiser Health News’ “Pharma Cash to Congress” database shows. That hefty sum stands out with Election Day more than 14 months away. (Huetteman, Hancock and Lucas, 8/27)