Drugmakers kick off 2021 with 500 US price hikes
06 January, 2021
Drugmakers including Abbvie and Bristol Myers Squibb raised US list prices on a lot more than 500 medicines to start 2021, according to a great analysis by healthcare research firm 46brooklyn.
The hikes arrive as drugmakers are reeling from ramifications of the COVID-19 pandemic, which includes lowered doctor visits and demand for a few drugs. Also, they are fighting new medicine price-cutting rules from the Trump administration, which would reduce the industry's profitability.
They include a lot more than 300 price increases from companies like Pfizer and GlaxoSmithKline reported by Reuters late the other day.
Almost all the increases were beneath 10 %, and the median hike was 4.8 %, down slightly from this past year, 46brooklyn explained. The firm's analysis is based on info from Elsevier's Gold Common Drug Database.
Abbvie raised rates on around 40 drugs including a 7.4 per cent hike on rheumatoid arthritis treatment Humira, the world's top-selling drug. Income from Humira is likely to top US$20 billion next season.
Bristol Myers hiked rates on around a dozen drugs, including cancer medicines Revlimid and Opdivo by 4.5 % and 1.5 per cent, respectively. It hiked the cost of blood slimmer Eliquis by 6 %.
It said in a good statement that it just raised prices on prescription drugs with ongoing clinical research. It expects net prices, such as rebates and other discount rates, to fall this season.
Drug price increases experience slowed substantially since 2015, both in conditions of how big is the hikes and the amount of drugs affected.
However, 46brooklyn explained its analysis of Medicaid data shows the average cost per branded drug continues to be ticking up.
"Over time, we finish up cycling out cheaper makes made to treat large populations, and replacing them with expensive brands designed to treat smaller sized populations," wrote Eric Pachman, president of 46brooklyn.
"With price rises losing their impact, start prices is definitely the primary driver of US drug list value inflation."
Source: www.channelnewsasia.com
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