Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
PhRMA Top Lobbyist Faces Anger, Policy Challenges
The New York Times: Top Lobbyist For Drug Makers Threads A Thicket Of Outrage
Few lobbyists have walked into the kind of political inferno that greeted Stephen J. Ubl when he became the top pitchman for the pharmaceutical industry. Mr. Ubl, the 47-year-old president and chief executive of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, took charge in November, as the Obama administration, presidential candidates, members of Congress, consumer groups, health insurance companies and doctors were criticizing the prescription drug industry for charging prices they saw as exorbitant and excessive. The anger has only grown worse. (Pear, 2/26)
The Associated Press: AARP: Price Hikes Doubled Average Drug Price Over 7 Years
The average cost for a year’s supply of a prescription drug doubled in just seven years to more than $11,000 — about three-quarters of the average annual Social Security benefit. That’s according to the latest study of price trends for widely-used drugs conducted by AARP, the senior citizens advocacy group. It finds prices for existing drugs, driven entirely by manufacturer price hikes, have been rising more quickly since 2007 and likely will continue to do so. (Johnson, 2/28)
STAT: Doctors Promoting Treatments On Social Media Routinely Fail To Disclose Ties To Drug Makers
Physicians across the United States routinely offer medical advice on social media — but often fail to mention that they have accepted tens and sometimes hundreds of thousands of dollars from the companies that make the prescription drugs they tout. (Kaplan, 2/29)
The Wall Street Journal: European Pharma’s Failure To Launch
European pharmaceutical companies’ U.S. launchpad has lost its bounce. The pharmaceuticals sector’s results have prompted head-scratching over why new, innovative drugs have been slow to generate sales. Novartis’ heart failure drug Entresto, expected to generate peak annual sales of at least $5 billion, sold just $5 million in the final quarter of last year. Sanofi and Regeneron’s Praluent, a biologic to treat high cholesterol, notched up €5 million ($5.5 million) of sales against forecasts of closer to €40 million. This shouldn’t be a surprise, argue some. (Thomas, 2/29)
