Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Safety, Efficacy Concerns Over Promising Drugs Roil Already-Spooked Markets
Stat: Shaky Early Results On Novel Drugs Send Biotech Stocks Crashing
Several promising biotech companies crashed on Wall Street on Thursday morning after releasing preliminary data that suggested safety or efficacy concerns about experimental drugs they have in development. The worst blows were dealt to the companies whose experimental drugs had poor safety profiles — namely, Canada’s Trillium Therapeutics and Achillion Pharmaceuticals of New Haven, Conn. Rising star Bluebird Bio, a much-watched and heavily hyped gene therapy company based in Cambridge, Mass., also dropped sharply, falling 17 percent by mid-morning, as investors were not impressed with early data on its blood disorder treatments. (Keshavan, 11/3)
The Wall Street Journal: Big Hit On Drug Stocks Caps $26 Billion Decline For John Paulson
John Paulson’s subprime trade led to historic fortune. His drug-company investments? Big losses and plunging assets. Mr. Paulson’s hedge-fund firm, Paulson & Co., is suffering painful losses this year, extending a period of uneven performance that has left the firm managing about $12 billion, down from $38 billion in 2011. Behind the recent difficulties: A big, faulty bet on pharmaceutical companies, as well as excessive caution about the broader market, according to people close to the matter. (Zuckerman, 11/4)
The Wall Street Journal: Drug Industry Mounts Defense Of Pricing
The pharmaceutical industry is spending millions of dollars to fight groups advocating lower drug costs, as criticism of high prices mounts. Drug companies have long lobbied to protect their interests, but the industry-funded push is “more extensive this time,” said K.J. Hertz, a legislative representative for senior-citizen advocacy group AARP, which supports reining in drug prices. (Loftus, 11/3)
The Wall Street Journal: Drug-Price Ballot Proposal Stirs Industry Opposition
The pharmaceutical industry has contributed $109 million to defeat a ballot proposal to restrict drug prices in California, according to the state government—the latest flashpoint in a national debate over rising prescription costs. California voters will be asked Nov. 8 to vote on Proposition 61, which would prohibit state agencies from buying any prescription drug at prices higher than those paid by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, with certain exceptions. The VA negotiates discounts with drug manufacturers. (Loftus, 11/3)
Stat: Sanders Calls For Federal Investigation Of Insulin Prices
In his latest attack on the pharmaceutical industry, Senator Bernie Sanders has asked the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission to investigate three insulin makers for price collusion. In a letter sent Thursday, Sanders and Representative Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) referred to a pattern in which prices for insulin sold by Eli Lilly, Sanofi, and Novo Nordisk often rose in tandem over several years. The lawmakers expressed concern that the drug companies may have been coordinating their pricing and, as a result, driving up the cost for millions of Americans, including both patients and taxpayers. (Silverman, 11/3)
Meanwhile, hospitals are salivating over the administration's potential settlement with Mylan —
Stat: Hospitals Itching For A Share Of The Mylan Settlement Over Medicaid Rebates
More than 1,200 hospitals around the country want to know if they were overcharged by Mylan Pharmaceuticals for the EpiPen auto-injector. In a letter sent earlier this week to the Department of Justice, an industry trade group called 340B Health cited a recent settlement in which Mylan agreed to a $465 million settlement to resolve accusations of shortchanging Medicaid by failing to pay the appropriate rebates. These hospitals participate in a federal program known as 340B in which drug makers must offer discounts of up to 50 percent on all outpatient drugs to hospitals and clinics that serve indigent populations. (Silverman, 11/3)
