Nonprofit Buys Back Rights To Tuberculosis Drug, Lowers Cost
But, a pharmaceutical CEO at another company is defending why he bought the rights to an AIDS drug and then upped the price from $13.50 to $750 overnight. Also, the makers of Tylenol push to fend off tough new restrictions on acetaminophen.
The Wall Street Journal:
Nonprofit Reacquires Rights To Tuberculosis Drug After Hefty Price Hike
An Indiana not-for-profit has bought back the rights to a tuberculosis drug it sold to a small drug company just three weeks ago, amid outcry after a hefty price increase by the company. Rodelis Therapeutics had raised the price of the drug, Cycloserine, to $10,800 for a supply of 30 pills, up from about $480 that the Purdue Research Foundation had charged, the foundation said. (Rockoff, 9/21)
The Washington Post:
CEO Who Raised Price Of Old Pill More Than $700 Calls Journalist A 'Moron' For Asking Why
Ever since an HIV/AIDS patient advocacy group began raising questions last week about why Turing Pharmaceuticals jacked up the price for a medication from $13.50 per pill to $750 overnight, anger against the company has been boiling over. The medicine, Daraprim, which has been on the market for 62 years, is the standard of care for a food-borne illness called toxoplasmosis caused by a parasite that can severely affect those with compromised immune systems. Turing purchased the rights to the drug last month and almost immediately raised prices. (Cha, 9/21)
ProPublica:
New Court Docs: Maker Of Tylenol Had A Plan To Block Tougher Regulation
Recently filed court documents show the makers of Tylenol planned to enlist the White House and lawmakers to block the Food and Drug Administration from imposing tough new safety restrictions on acetaminophen, the iconic painkiller’s chief ingredient. An executive with McNeil Consumer Healthcare – which counts Tylenol as its flagship product – told the board of directors for parent company Johnson and Johnson about a campaign to “influence the FDA” and block recommendations made by an agency advisory panel in 2009. (Gerth and Miller, 9/21)
