Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
'Pharma Bro' Martin Shkreli's Fate On The Line As Judge Gets Ready To Hand Down Fraud Sentence
The Associated Press: ‘Pharma Bro’ Faces High Stakes Sentencing In Fraud Case
Is “Pharma Bro” Martin Shkreli a master manipulator who conned wealthy investors or a misunderstood eccentric who used unconventional means to make those same investors even wealthier? A federal judge in Brooklyn will have to weigh the conflicting portrayals of the former pharmaceutical company CEO on Friday at his sentencing on a securities fraud conviction. The stakes are high: The defense wants U.S. District Judge Kiyo Matsumoto to give Shkreli a sentence of 18 months or less because, in the end, his investors in two failed hedge funds got all of their money back and more from stock he gave them in a successful drug company. (Hays, 3/9)
In other pharmaceutical news —
The Wall Street Journal: Johnson & Johnson Says Discounts Cut The Prices For Its Drugs, Though Revenue Rose
Johnson & Johnson said Thursday the average price paid for its medicines in the U.S. fell by 4.6% last year due to the company’s discounts, and the company’s pharmaceuticals chief expects the pricing pressures on drugmakers will continue this year. J&J, one of the biggest sellers of prescription drugs in the U.S., said it raised the list prices for its medicines by an average 8.1%, but they wound up as a whole costing far less because the manufacturer handed out $15 billion in discounts and rebates. (Rockoff, 3/8)
