Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Perspectives: Too Often In U.S. Profit Comes Before Public Interest
Scott Gottlieb, head of the Food and Drug Administration, wasted no time in his opening remarks at a forum last week on high drug prices. 鈥淭he fact is that too many people can鈥檛 afford the medicines that they need,鈥 he declared. On that, I hope, we can all agree. (David Lazarus, 7/25)
In 2014, when Greg Jefferys鈥檚 urine started smelling like dead meat, he knew there was something seriously wrong. For weeks, Jefferys, an Australian then 60 years old, had felt fatigued and noticed that just a slight bump would leave a dark purple bruise on his skin. Blood tests revealed to Jefferys that he had chronic hepatitis C 鈥 a disease he鈥檇 never heard of. (Sophie Cousins, 7/25)
Back in Sacramento, drug companies fight to kill Senate Bill 17, which would force some transparency in drug pricing. ... It would apply to drugs that cost more than $40 a month and would require drug companies to issue 60-day notices when they intend to raise prices by more than 10 percent over a two-year period. (7/24)
Drug pricing is a topic commanding a lot of attention these days, particularly as healthcare in the U.S. is a national focus. The debate isn鈥檛 simple. The ways that drugs are distributed and paid for in this country can be best described as convoluted. Froma Harrop, a nationally syndicated, award-winning columnist who focuses on the financial world, has recently weighed in on this discussion with her op-ed 鈥淎merica鈥檚 addiction to abusive drug pricing.鈥澛燝iven her reputation, one would expect that her views would add substance to the debate. Instead, her op-ed is fraught with inaccuracies. (John LaMattina, 7/19)
After years of failed efforts, the California Legislature may finally pass a bill that responds to the problem of rising prescription drug costs. But temper your enthusiasm: Though this measure (SB 17) has been fiercely resisted by the pharmaceutical industry, it wouldn鈥檛 actually stop manufacturers from raising their prices as high as they think the market will bear. It would just make them reveal more about the cost and value of their drugs as they do so. (7/24)
