Drug Goes From $13.50 a Tablet to $750, Overnight. More increases to come!

a reply to: AlaskanDad

The guy sounds like a fraud. However, capitalism is why such drugs are developed and if you remove the ability for companies to recoup their investments watch how we enter the dark ages of medicine when no one wants to spent the capital to come up with cures for diseases that affect a small number of people.

originally posted by: strongfp
Who the hell is going to buy this drug?
If it's a parasitic fighting drug it means that people who most likely will get infected aren't going to be rich snobby people. Maybe one or two people a year who can afford it might contract the parasite.
It's just like snake venom, not all hospitals have antidotes and if they do it's very expensive.
Luckily this isn't like snake bites or gasoline, hospitals have choices, patients have choices, and people are going to choose the cheaper choice in this case.

Socialized healthcare, my friend. WE are going to buy this drug for them... We're all swimming the seas of snip now, man. They'll do an income means test on anyone who requires these drugs, shake out what they can from the patient, then turn to the insurance carrier to cover the rest. The insurance will pass this on to those of us paying for our own coverage, resulting in a continuation of the 20-30%+ annual cost increases we've all been enjoying paying for since the ACA was passed.

Thanks, Obama!

My husband mentioned something about this. They did it with allopurinol or one of the other of the two most common anti-gout drugs which is basically a natural drug that has been used to fight gout since before drugs were an idea.

It has to do with changes in FDA safety regs or something and it then allows companies to re-patent drugs which then drives up the prices because it makes them more expensive to produce thanks to the new safety regs, something to do with having to re-validate and prove safety for old meds that have been proven safe for basically ever, so now companies can easily retest them and do it safely and put patents on them, but they can them price tag them and make easy profits.

haha, i am new to this site, i just saw this thread, and i have alot of work in front of me but i did hear a few times that this "price gouging" was happening, and i just recieved something that says its mainly only happening in U.S. industries.

i just informed my CIA team, prepair to see a change...

there were actually quite a few companies doing this...

a reply to: Edumakated

It is one thing to recoup, another to profit...

...but a 62 yr old drug being jacked up from $13.50 to $750 is simply consumer rape.


Is this kind of profiteering the American dream?

How can any of you justify this?

a reply to: Indigent

That was my first thought as well.

Then again, the pharmas are always very strange. An antibiotic for a stomach ailment cost a friend of mine, who happens to have excellent insurance, $750 out of pocket a few weeks ago. Makes you wonder why.

originally posted by: Night Star
I swear, more and more people are going to die because of greed!

Now I don't know but I been told
It's hard to run with the weight of gold
Other hand I have heard it said
It's just as hard with the weight of lead

a reply to: infolurker
I came upon this graffiti the other day, don't know that artist (Banksy?), wonder why it can't happen?

Methylphenidate..( Ritalin) was created in 1941 as a diet drug for housewives. When & where they ever figured out it help kids with ADD/HD I have no idea. There has been literally billions & billions of dollars made off that drug created 70+ years ago........when it comes to Big Pharma it's always about the money. Always.

Watch his interview at Bloomberg Business Why Turing Increased Price of Daraprim Over 500%

Allow me to contrast that with some humour.

a reply to: infolurker

I suppose the joke is on them (the price increasers, that is).

I mean, the average person couldn't possibly afford those prices, so they will either get well over a much longer period, which is no money in the pockets of the greedy, or they will die - which is the same result.

Only rich people could afford these drugs but then, if you're rich, you probably could pay the money to *avoid* the situations and scenarios that lead to one needing these drugs.

So... I fail to see how raising the costs of these drugs will benefit them. Stupid, really. No one wins.

originally posted by: Kali74
Want to fix it?

Single Payer Healthcare.

Male cow feces. Before you start talking "Single payer", take a long hard look at the VA system. Be-careful what you wish for.

originally posted by: noonebutme
a reply to: infolurker

I suppose the joke is on them (the price increasers, that is).

I mean, the average person couldn't possibly afford those prices, so they will either get well over a much longer period, which is no money in the pockets of the greedy, or they will die - which is the same result.

Only rich people could afford these drugs but then, if you're rich, you probably could pay the money to *avoid* the situations and scenarios that lead to one needing these drugs.

So... I fail to see how raising the costs of these drugs will benefit them. Stupid, really. No one wins.

Incorrect. Insurance will pay for it. That is what they are banking on, insurance or government program paying for it.

Our insurance paid out $25,000 a bag for Chemo.

originally posted by: ugmold
a reply to: infolurker
I came upon this graffiti the other day, don't know that artist (Banksy?), wonder why it can't happen?

Dont know banksy?? Do yourself a favor.

"Exit through the gift shop" its on netflix.

The way universal healthcare works in all the other 1st world nations is that the government controls the prices and price increases of all pharmaceuticals. Big pharmacy cannot dictate the price in these countries - the price is dictated by how much our government is willing to pay to purchase the drug for distribution. This means that US drug companies are having to sell their drugs to other countries at drastically reduced prices if they want their drug sold outside the US.

This Daraprim drug costs roughly $2 per tablet everywhere else (retail), while in the US it was costing roughly $13 per tablet (retail)... hence the reason why so many Americans are now purchasing their drugs from online pharmacies in other countries.

Here's an example of the price difference of Daraprim (prices are before this recent increase) to give you a better understanding of what I'm talking about.

Americans are getting robbed blind by big pharmacy because they're being allowed to do so by your government's lack of price controls on drugs. They're allowing these corporate dogs to run wild with no leash attached.

a reply to: theNLBS

Wow, he really found the perfect storm in the market. Looks like the insurance companies will help him out now that the ACA has brought in more money. I'm sure there will be enough to go around.

a reply to: infolurker

I lost my job recently, and was amazed how with insurance my pills were $10 - $30 a month, but without insurance some were $300 to over $500 a month for those 30 pills...absolutely insane, no wonder insurance costs are so high
Luckily I was able to switch medications to bring it down but I still pay over $200 for my pills...

I am on a weight loss pill that is not covered by insurance, it is $195, but $130 after coupon...it was not covered by insurance when I had it which is funny, because I've lost over 65 pounds which has made me SO MUCH HEALTHIER! my blood pressure is better (almost too low now!) cholesterol is near normal, liver enzymes normal, and diabetes in check now all after losing weight....

a reply to: infolurker

Hmm. I suppose that's true, isn't it?

Shame. I kind of wish it would blow up in their faces but I guess, that's too idealised, isn't it?

I'd love to moan and say, "This isn't fair" but then, I'm usually the first to say, "Where does it say life is fair?"

originally posted by: St Udio
here's an excellent opportunity for rogue China corporations to make rip-off copies of the rare drugs which the vulture capitalist hedge fund managers price at a new unreasonable rate...

a $750. dollar pill, upped from $13.50
or a 30 day supply upped to $10k by these money hungry sociopaths not content with the tiny profits from the old price of $500.
~I can agree with a punishment of forced sterilization so that kind of person is eliminated from the gene pool ~

I agree with all of your comment except the bolded part.

Sterilizing someone wouldn't change a thing in situations like this. Extreme greed isn't hereditary. And ruthlessness in business dealings is both taught and encouraged in society. Sterilizing people won't change either of those.

Changing what's taught in business schools and in companies would change this mindset, though.

originally posted by: CranialSponge
The way universal healthcare works in all the other 1st world nations is that the government controls the prices and price increases of all pharmaceuticals. Big pharmacy cannot dictate the price in these countries - the price is dictated by how much our government is willing to pay to purchase the drug for distribution. This means that US drug companies are having to sell their drugs to other countries at drastically reduced prices if they want their drug sold outside the US.

This Daraprim drug costs roughly $2 per tablet everywhere else (retail), while in the US it was costing roughly $13 per tablet (retail)... hence the reason why so many Americans are now purchasing their drugs from online pharmacies in other countries.

Here's an example of the price difference of Daraprim (prices are before this recent increase) to give you a better understanding of what I'm talking about.

Americans are getting robbed blind by big pharmacy because they're being allowed to do so by your government's lack of price controls on drugs. They're allowing these corporate dogs to run wild with no leash attached.

Price controls cause shortages and never work. The only reason those countries can even get access to the drugs is that the pharmaceutical companies are able to charge the US more. The US is subsidizing everyone else. If the US enacted similar controls, you would quickly see a shortage as no business is going to continue to subsidize product below cost.