Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Pharma Isn't Eager To Carry Cures Act 2.0 Over Finish Line Despite Being Instrumental In Passage Of First Version
Stat: Pharma’s Not Nearly As Excited For Cures 2.0 — Yet
The bipartisan duo behind a 2016 law that poured billions into medical research want to repeat their success. But so far, the pharmaceutical industry that helped push the first version across the finish line isn’t nearly so eager to lend the new effort much support. The 21st Century Cures Act has been lauded since its passage for both the funding it included and its revamp of the regulatory landscape for medical breakthroughs. (Florko, 12/3)
Reuters: Pharmacy Chains Sue Bausch Health, Other Drugmakers For Overcharging For Diabetes Drug
Three pharmacy chains, including Walgreens Boots Alliance, have filed a lawsuit against drugmakers Bausch Health Inc, Assertio Therapeutics and Lupin Ltd, seeking damages for overcharging for Bausch's diabetes drug Glumetza. The lawsuit, filed on Monday, alleges that Assertio and Lupin struck a deal with units of Bausch to delay the entry of their generic versions of Glumetza and allowed the companies to "maintain a monopoly" in the sale of the branded drug and its generic copies. (12/3)
Stat: As Trump Looks Overseas On Drug Pricing, An Expert Points To France
As the U.S. grapples with rising costs for prescription medicines, the Trump administration has floated a proposal that would have Medicare use a so-called International Pricing Index as a benchmark to pay for certain drugs. Although still being crafted, the idea has, once again, focused attention on the different prices paid in the U.S. and other countries. So Suffolk University professor Marc Rodwin, who specializes in health law, has begun studying payment systems elsewhere and recently looked at France, where retail drug spending declined between 2008 and 2017, compared with rising spending in the U.S. We spoke with him about the different approaches taken by the two countries and what lessons can be learned. (Silverman, 12/3)
The Wall Street Journal: U.S. Considers Easing Drug Protections To Break Logjam Over Trade Pact
The Trump administration is considering scaling back intellectual-property protections for big drugmakers to help win Democratic support for a new trade pact with Mexico and Canada, according to people familiar with the matter. Many Democrats, backed by labor unions and consumer groups, are pushing the administration to reduce the length of time that leading biologic drugs would be protected from generic imitators in the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA. (Mauldin, Andrews and Leary, 12/2)
Reuters: Pfizer, Novartis Lead $2 Billion Spending Spree On Gene Therapy Production
Eleven drugmakers led by Pfizer and Novartis have set aside a combined $2 billion to invest in gene therapy manufacturing since 2018, according to a Reuters analysis, in a drive to better control production of the world's priciest medicines. The full scope of Novartis' $500 million plan, revealed to Reuters in an interview with the company's gene therapy chief, has not been previously disclosed. It is second only to Pfizer, which has allocated $600 million to build its own gene therapy manufacturing plants, according to filings and interviews with industry executives. (11/27)
The Wall Street Journal: Novartis Deal For Heart Drug Hinges On Succeeding Where Rivals Struggle
Novartis AG Chief Executive Vas Narasimhan has spent the past two years buying up cutting-edge science. His latest deal is a high-stakes bet that the Swiss health-care giant will succeed where many have struggled: launching a new heart drug. Cardiovascular diseases are the number-one cause of death in the U.S., but new drugs for conditions like high cholesterol and heart failure have proven tough to sell. They compete with a bevy of older, cheaper drugs, and cardiologists typically want to see evidence that patients benefit in the long run before fully embracing them. (Roland, 11/29)
The CT Mirror: In A Short Session, Lawmakers Eye Prescription Drug Proposals
With a limited time frame – officials have only three months to move bills through the General Assembly next year – lawmakers say the drug initiatives are some of the most crucial but workable proposals in a short session, and will become the centerpiece of their health care reform efforts. Rep. Sean Scanlon, a co-chairman of the legislature’s Insurance and Real Estate Committee, spent his summer and fall hosting roundtable discussions across Connecticut on the affordability of medication. (Carlesso, 12/3)
Stat: Biogen Strikes Value-Based Contracting Deal With UPMC Health
In a twist on value-based contracting, a drug maker has agreed to offer a larger discount that a commercial health plan will receive for medicines – but only based on outcomes that patients report. In this instance, the UPMC Health Plan will pay less for two Biogen (BIIB) drugs — Tecfidera and Avonex — if patients say the medicines failed to help them, based on their assessments using a validated clinical scale known as Patient Determined Disease Steps. If the medicines work, however, both the health plan and patients could eventually be expected to experience lower overall health care costs. (Silverman, 11/27)
Salon: Why Are Drug Prices Rising So Much? Pharma Exec Admits 'No Other Rationale' But Profit-Making
orporations' quest for profits is what "is driving up drug prices and nothing more." That's according to Dennis Bourdette, M.D., chair of neurology in the Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU) School of Medicine, who co-authored a study published Monday that sought to find out companies' rationale for the escalating prices on medications for patients with multiple sclerosis. (Germanos, 12/2)
