CSRXP: BIG PHARMA DOUBLES DOWN ON BUSINESS-AS-USUAL AS JANUARY PRICE HIKES CLIMB TO 587

Brand Name Drug Companies Increase Prices on Treatments for Serious Conditions Like Cancers, Autoimmune Conditions, Seizures and More

Washington, D.C. – The Campaign for Sustainable Rx Pricing (CSRxP) released a statement Thursday reacting to brand name drug companies hiking prices on 587 brand name drugs over the first two weeks of 2023 by an average of 5.5 percent.

“Big Pharma has hiked prices on nearly 600 brand name drugs and counting this month as the pharmaceutical industry continues to double-down on a price-gouging playbook that puts profits over people,” said CSRxP executive director Lauren Aronson. “Big Pharma’s January price hikes, including on treatments for serious conditions like cancer and autoimmune conditions, should serve as a potent reminder that brand name drug companies are the cause of high prices and must be held accountable.”

“Policymakers must reject Big Pharma’s bogus blame game and pass market-based solutions to crack down on the pharmaceutical industry’s egregious price hikes, out-of-control launch prices and anti-competitive tactics, like patent abuse,” Aronson continued. “American patients who face financial uncertainty affording their prescription drugs are counting on Washington to build on recent positive progress toward holding Big Pharma accountable.”

Examples of Big Pharma price hikes in January 2023 include:

• AbbVie hiked prices on two of their top-selling drugs, including perennial blockbuster Humira, used to treat a variety of autoimmune conditions, and Skyrizi, a treatment for moderate to severe plaque psoriasis, both by eight percent.
• Pfizer increased prices on dozens of drugs including Celontin, a treatment to prevent a certain type of seizure, Synarel, used to treat women with endometriosis, Xeljanz, used to treat autoimmune conditions and cancer drugs Ibrance and Xalkori.
• GlaxoSmithKline increased the price of the company’s shingles vaccine Shingrix.
• Bausch Health hiked the price of its plaque psoriasis treatment Siliq by nearly 10 percent.
• GE Healthcare had the largest price hike to date, a 26.8 percent increase in the price of Omnipaque, a drug used before X-ray imaging tests to add contrast.
• Bristol Myers Squibb hiked the price of cancer drugs Abecma and Breyanzi.

Read more on Big Pharma’s January price hikes HERE.

Read more on market-based solutions to hold Big Pharma accountable and lower prescription drug prices HERE.