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As the debate over health care costs and drug prices intensifies, one of the issues that has been raised relates to the cost of orphan drugs — drugs for patients with rare diseases. Such drugs are often identified by critics as being more costly than drugs for more common diseases, despite the counterpoint that the volume of such sales is, by definition, low. Thus, we often hear that orphan drugs are significant contributors to rising health-care costs in the U.S., out of proportion to their contributions to health care. (Peter L. Saltonstall, 11/1)

Ohio Issue 2 on drug prices failed Tuesday night for the right reasons. As we spelled out in editorials opposing the issue, it was confusing, unworkable and prone to expensive litigation that Ohio simply didn't need. Still, the death of Issue 2 -- which, if successful, would have been the nation's first voter-initiated law aimed at controlling drug prices -- should not spell the end of attempts to lower drug prices and curb the pharmaceutical industry's oversized market power. (11/7)

Have drug companies been lying about their development costs to justify high prices? You’d be forgiven for thinking so, given the media’s portrayal of a new study published in the prestigious journal JAMA Internal Medicine. The study reaches a shocking conclusion — it costs just $648 million to develop a cancer drug. The prevailing estimate, from Tufts University, is $2.7 billion. This finding sparked media condemnation of the drug industry. Business Insider declared that the study “undermines Big Pharma’s justification for charging high drug prices.” Bloomberg warned the industry is “ignoring its price problem.” (Sandip Shah and Helen Shao, 11/5)

Looks like we've got a new candidate for a Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. inflection point. Valeant reported third-quarter earnings and revenue Tuesday morning that beat (lowered) analyst expectations. And for the second quarter in a row, the company defied analyst expectations by maintaining earnings guidance, despite having divested several assets. Shares jumped 15 percent on the news. (Max Nisen, 11/7)

Mallinckrodt may not be the best-behaved company in the drug industry, but investors in all pharmaceutical makers should take notice of Tuesday’s nasty stock slide. Third-quarter adjusted earnings of $1.97 a share topped analyst estimates, but sales of $794 million were down about 10% from last year. The stock fell more than 20% Tuesday. It is down about 50% so far this year and about 80% from the all-time high in 2015. The two big problems for Mallinckrodt are industrywide issues involving drug prices and the opioid crisis. (Charley Grant, 11/7)

Personalized cell therapy may have come of age with the recent approvals of two novel drugs, Kymriah and Yescarta, that genetically manipulate patient’s own immune cells to fight their cancers. Yet pharmaceutical companies face many challenges, including several key ethical and social issues, if they are to make these new therapies a success. (Aaron D. Levine, 11/8)

AbbVie Inc. has gotten some wins lately. But it may be guilty of over-celebrating. The company provided boosted long-term sales forecasts last week, commemorating strong third-quarter sales of its lead drug Humira and a deal with Amgen Inc. that will protect the drug's future. But as we've seen this earnings season, forecast overreach can come back to bite. (Max Nisen, 11/3)

The generic pharmaceuticals business has been trending well for Abbott Labs for some time now. It accounts for around 15% of the company’s value, according to our estimates. In Q3 2017, the segment saw double-digit growth in revenues, led by a ramp up in emerging markets, including Brazil, Russia, India and China. Abbott has a broad line of branded generic pharmaceuticals manufactured worldwide, and marketed and sold outside the U.S. (11/6)