Pharmaceutical Company Raise The Price Of Life Saving Drug By 5,000% Overnight
In a shocking move that many are calling price gouging, the company that makes an important drug used for fighting malaria and toxoplasmosis have raised the price to $750 per tablet; overnight. The original cost was just $13.50 per tablet, with this price increase representing a 5,500 percent increase in cost.
The medicine, called Daraprim, is important because many patients with cancer or AIDS have weakened immune systems, and they can get toxoplasmosis and have a hard time overcoming it. The sudden increase means that it will cost from $336,000 to $634,500, depending on a patient’s weight, to treat a person for one year.
Turing Pharmaceuticals bought the rights to the 62-year-old drug recently, and have decided that they “need” to raise the price in order to pay for research into making better versions of the drug. Critics are saying that the price hike is a case of pure greed.
Hillary Clinton got into the fray and said that she’ll announce a plan to put the brakes on spiraling prescription drug costs, including Daraprim. Rep. Elijah Cummings of Maryland vowed to investigate the “astronomical price increase,” too.
