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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsSenator Sanders to ask why drug, once free, now costs $375k
February 4, 2019 / 6:06 AM / Updated 2 hours ago
Senator Sanders to ask why drug, once free, now costs $375k
Yasmeen Abutaleb
3 Min Read
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders plans to send a letter to Catalyst Pharmaceuticals (CPRX.O) on Monday asking it to justify its decision to charge $375,000 annually for a medication that for years has been available to patients for free.
The drug, Firdapse, is used to treat Lambert-Eaton Myasthenic Syndrome (LEMS), a rare neuromuscular disorder, according to the letter, made available to Reuters by the senators office. The disorder affects about one in 100,000 people in the United States.
The government is intensifying its scrutiny of the pharmaceutical industry and rising prescription drug prices, a top voter concern and a priority of President Donald Trumps administration.
Both the Democratic-led U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate, controlled by Republicans, have begun holding hearings this year on the rising costs of medicines. Sanders is an independent who usually votes with Democrats.
In the letter dated Feb. 4, Sanders asked Catalyst to lay out the financial and non-financial factors that led the company to set the list price at $375,000, and say how many patients would suffer or die as a result of the price and how much it was paying to purchase or produce the drug.
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https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-healthcare-catalyst-idUSKCN1PT0ZJ?utm_campaign=trueAnthem%3A+Trending+Content&utm_content=5c582f2404d301555789244c&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=facebook&fbclid=IwAR3rxTGUdc1Z5wQGJKs5_WJgX3J3KpNeApH3SvOJy2SV8ejW3-nch4nQrJM
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Senator Sanders to ask why drug, once free, now costs $375k (Original Post)
babylonsister
Feb 2019
OP
still_one
(92,219 posts)1. There is no questen about it, pharma has been price gouging for some time, and it is getting worse
Donkees
(31,417 posts)2. Twitter Video:
crazycatlady
(4,492 posts)3. the CEO needs a new private jet