Pfizer-Allergan Merger Could Disrupt Companies That Conduct Research For Drug Giants
In other prescription drug news, the head of Turing Pharmaceuticals says the company's decision to raise the parasitic infection treatment Daraprim to $750 a pill from $13.50 a pill "doesn't affect the system at all." In other pharma news, The New York Times reports on the Coalition for Affordable Drugs, a company set up to challenge weak or abusive patents.
Bloomberg:
Pfizer May Cause Research Firms Short-Term Pain, Long-Term Gain
The marriage of two of the biggest U.S. drugmakers is not without consequences for the rest of health- care supply chain, particularly for the firms that handle their outsourced research and development work. Pfizer and Allergan agreed Monday to a $160 billion deal that gives Pfizer a suite of new therapeutic development areas like eye care, women's health and antibiotics. With the merging of any two pharmaceutical giants comes overlap and cuts, in part from research and development. (Koons, 11/27)
Bloomberg:
Shkreli Says Price Increases For Turing Drug Don't Matter
Martin Shkreli, whose pharmaceutical company has been criticized for raising the price of a drug by more than 5,000 percent, said the increase barely causes a ripple in the health-care system. Shkreli’s company, Turing Pharmaceuticals AG, this year raised the price of Daraprim, used by HIV and cancer patients, to $750 a pill from $13.50 a pill. The company gives away or heavily discounts the treatment for many patients, Shkreli said in an interview on Bloomberg TV. (Armstrong and Mittelman, 11/25)
The New York Times:
Working To Lower Drug Costs By Challenging Questionable Patents
J. Kyle Bass made a fortune in the financial crisis when his hedge fund, Hayman Capital Management, bet big against subprime mortgages. Now Mr. Bass is wagering against pharmaceutical companies that he says exploit the patent system, keeping drug prices — and their profits — in the stratosphere. He has a formidable colleague in the effort: Erich Spangenberg, a man who became reviled in Silicon Valley for bringing lawsuits against technology companies that he contended had infringed on a patent. By mid-November, the firm had filed 33 requests for patent reviews, targeting 13 drugs from a dozen companies. (Morgenson, 11/27)
Meanwhile, other pharmaceutical developments target diabetes, dermatological conditions and rheumatoid arthritis -
Marketplace:
Diabetes Prevention Becomes Lucrative Growth Industry
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report 86 million American adults have prediabetes, and of those, as many as a third will become diabetics within five years. Beginning January 1, 2015, virtually all private insurers must cover services — with no copay — that help people with elevated blood sugar levels change their diets and increase their physical activity. (Gorenstein, 11/27)
Reuters:
Dermatology Drug Prices In U.S. Soared In Recent Years
The price of many drugs prescribed by U.S. dermatologists has skyrocketed over the past six years, far exceeding increases in overall health care costs and stretching patients' budgets in an era of high insurance deductibles, according to a new study from Florida. Of the 19 drugs analyzed, price increases between 2009 and 2015 ranged from about 60 percent to 1,698 percent, with an average rise of more than 400 percent. (Seaman, 11/25)
Reuters:
Amgen Files For U.S. Approval Of Biosimilar To Humira
Amgen Inc on Wednesday said it filed with U.S. health regulators seeking approval to sell its first biosimilar drug, which would be a less expensive alternative to AbbVie's Humira, the world's top-selling prescription medicine. Amgen said its drug, ABP 501, has demonstrated clinical equivalence and comparable safety to Humira (adalimumab) in late stage clinical trials for rheumatoid arthritis and the skin condition plaque psoriasis. Data to support the switching of patients from Humira to ABP 501 was included in the submission to regulators, Amgen said. (Berkrot, 11/25)
