Valeant faces probe by U. S. Senate over soaring drug cost
Prices for prescriptions skyrocket after pharmaceutical obtains rights
The political scrutiny of Valeant Pharmaceuticals is heating up as the U. S. Senate formally launched a probe Wednesday into skyrocketing prices for three of the company’s prescription drugs.
The Senate’s special committee on aging said it had requested documents and information from Valeant and three other drug companies.
Also requested were documents from Turing Pharmaceuticals, Retrophin Inc., and Rodelis Therapeutics amid a public outcry over the hikes, most notably Turing’s move to raise the price of Daraprim by 5,000 per cent after obtaining rights to the drug. The medicine is the only U. S.- approved treatment for a deadly parasitic infection called toxoplasmosis.
Past political focus on Valeant in the U. S. has been on the heart drugs Isuprel and Nitropress. But in a letter to Valeant CEO Michael Pearson, the Senate committee is also seeking information on Cuprimine, used to treat Wilson’s Disease, an inherited disorder that can cause severe liver and nerve damage.
Cuprimine’s price soared nearly 3,000 per cent to $ 26,189 US for 100 capsules from $ 888 US after Valeant purchased the rights to it. Nitropress increased 625 per cent and Isuprel by 820 per cent, the Senate letter said.
Republican Senator Susan Collins and ranking Democrat Senator Claire McCaskill asked for Valeant’s co- operation by turning over analysis, documents and historical financial data.
They also wanted a list of countries where the drugs are sold or are expected to be sold in the next two years and the corresponding prices.
A hearing on the issue is tentatively scheduled for Dec. 9.
“We need to get to the bottom of why we’re seeing huge spikes in drug prices that seemingly have no relationship to research and development costs,” said McCaskill.
Some of the increases resemble “little more than price gouging,” she added.
Valeant said it would co- operate with the committee’s inquiry.
“Valeant manages a large portfolio of medicines and the prices of individual drugs fluctuate due to a number of factors, including the cost of development and acquisition and complexities in the health- care cost reimbursement system,” said spokeswoman Laurie Little.