Data Stream
Pharmaceutical Scofflaw
One deterrent to skyrocketing drug prices is competition: With
more products vying for market share, manufacturers should
need to lower prices to stay competitive. But, a recent analysis of
average sales prices of injectable anti-cancer drugs shows that
drug pricing doesn’t follow the laws of economics.
Between 1996 and 2012, prices of 24 U.S. Food and Drug
Administration (FDA)-approved patented anti-cancer drugs
changed by +18%.
All but one drug had a price increase – and
drug prices rose by
up to 59%.
The True Cost of the Opioid Epidemic
A 2017 report from the White House Council of Economic
Advisers estimates that the cost of the U.S. opioid epidemic
is much higher than previously thought.
Accounting for costs attributed to health care, criminal
justice spending, illicit opioid use (including heroin), and lost
productivity, the “true cost” of the crisis in 2015 was
$504 billion.
Prices were unaffected by new supplemental ap-
provals by the FDA, new off-label indications, or
new competition, the researchers concluded.
The figure is more than 6 times the most recent estimate
($78.5 billion in 2013).
Source: Gordon N, Stemmer SM, Greenberg D, Goldstein DA. Tra-
jectories of injectable cancer drug costs after launch in the United
States. J Clin Oncol. 2017 October 10. [Epub ahead of print]
“Previous estimates of the economic cost of the opioid
crisis greatly underestimate it by undervaluing the most
important component of the loss – fatalities resulting from
overdoses,” the report said.
Source: White House Council of Economic Advisers, “The Underestimated
Cost of the Opioid Crisis, November 2017.”
The Pressure Builds
The American Heart Association (AHA)
recently revised the definition of hyperten-
sion – lowering the threshold from 140/90
mmHg to 130/80 mmHg – meaning that
many more U.S. adults will now be classi-
fied as having high blood pressure.
50%
30%
According to the AHA, the revised definition
means: 20%
The guideline is designed to help people
take steps to control their blood pressure
earlier, according to the authors. 10%
Source: American Heart Association news release,
November 13, 2017.
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ASH Clinical News
46%
40%
32%
30%
19%
0%
11%
140/90
mmHg
130/80
mmHg
The number of U.S. adults
identified as hypertensive will
increase 14%, from 32% to 46%.
140/90
mmHg
10%
130/80
mmHg
The number of hypertensive
men aged 20-44 years will
triple, from 11% to 30%.
140/90
mmHg
130/80
mmHg
The number of hypertensive
women aged 20-44 years will
nearly double, from 10% to 19%.
January 2018