$13.5 drug now priced $750 in US

Washington: US Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton on Monday urged US regulators to determine how to bring lower-cost generic drugs to market more swiftly and combat anticompetitive practices in the pharmaceutical industry.

 

Ms Clinton’s requests to the US Food and Drug Administration and the US Federal Trade Commission were prompted by what she called the “egregious actions of Turing Pharmaceuticals,” according to letters reviewed by Reuters.

 

The company drew fire from Ms Clinton in September after news reports that it had raised the price of Daraprim, a 62-year-old treatment for a dangerous parasitic infection, to $750 a tablet from $13.50 after acquiring it.

 

Ms Clinton’s criticism sent drug industry stock prices tumbling. Turing chief executive officer Martin Shkreli promised to lower Daraprim’s cost to an unspecified price, and Turing is in the midst of a rebranding effort after being mocked on “Saturday Night Live.”

 

In her letter to the FDA, Ms Clinton said that Turing has still not “meaningfully lowered the price” and its decision to “artificially increase the price” exploited vulnerable patients dependent on the drug, which is often used by those with compromised immune systems.

 

“The FDA should expedite any pending reviews, and encourage applications for review, of other generic alternatives to Daraprim,” she wrote. 

“I believe it would be a great service to the Congress and the US administration if the FTC would study and make recommendations on wheth-er and how our laws might be amended to address this problem,” Clinton wrote, offering an indication of how she might attempt to overhaul pharmaceutical practices if elected president in November 2016. Ms Clinton last month unveiled a plan for a $250 monthly cap on out-of-pocket prescription drug costs and other measures to stop what she calls “price gouging” by pharma companies.