“DOSE OF REALITY” Big Pharma’s True Track Record Is A Hard Pill To Swallow: Part VI

In advance of the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance hearing on February 26, 2019, the Campaign for Sustainable Rx Pricing (CSRxP) is releasing a blog series on what lawmakers can expect to hear from the seven pharma executives who will attend — and why their rhetoric rings hollow when measured against their companies’ track record.

We’re taking a look at the unkept pledges, proclamations and promises made by Big Pharma that lawmakers should be prepared to confront with a “dose of reality.”

Yesterday, we examined the record of Merck compared to the commitments of CEO Kenneth Frazier.

Today, we will look at the rhetoric of Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla compared to his company’s track record.

PFIZER CEO ALBERT BOURLA:

Albert’s Assertions: 

• “We Believe The Best Means To Address Affordability Of Medicines Is To Reduce The Growing Out-Of-Pocket Costs That Consumers Are Facing Due To High Deductibles And Co-Insurance, And Ensure That Patients Receive The Benefit Of Rebates At The Pharmacy Counter.” (Press Release, “Pfizer Provides Transparency On Drug Prices In The U.S. 90 Percent Of Company’s Prices Will Remain Unchanged,” Pfizer, Accessed 1/17/19)

HARD MEDICINE: 

• Since 2012, Pfizer Has Hiked The Price Of Best Selling Drug, Lyrica, To Treat Pain, By 163 Percent.(“Overpatented, Overpriced: Special Humira Edition,” I-MAK, Accessed 2/7/19)
• From 2012 To 2017, Pfizer Raised The Price Of Its Heart Drug Nitrostat By 477 Percent. (“Manufactured Crisis,”U.S. Senate HSGAC, 3/27/18)
  • Before A Generic Of The Heart Drug Nitrostat Came On Market, Pfizer Increased The Price “By About 56 Percent Overnight – From Around $0.80 To $1.25 Per Tablet” – Pushing The Generic Drugs Cost To 25 Percent “More Expensive Than Nitrostat Had Been Before Its Price Jump.” “Just before a generic for Nitrostat was released, the price per tablet of Nitrostat increased by about 56% overnight – from around $0.80 to $1.25 per tablet.  A year later, generic nitroglycerin came on the market for around $1.00 per tablet, 25% more expensive than Nitrostat had been before its price jump.” (Tori Marsh, “Prices For Brand Drugs Spike Before A Generic Is Released. Here’s Why.,” GoodRx, 7/27/18)
• In July 2018, Pfizer Raised Prices On More Than 40 Prescriptions, “In Most Cases [By] More Than Nine Percent – Well Above The Rate Of Inflation In The US, Which [Was] Running At About Two Percent.” (David Crow, “US Drugmaker Pfizer Lifts Price Of Viagra And 100 Other Products,” Financial Times, 7/2/18)
  • The July Increase Alone Raised The Price Of Chantix, A Smoking-Cessation Pill, Seven Percent To $429 For A Bottle Of 56 Tablets. “On July 1, the list price of a bottle of 56 tablets rose 7% to $429, after a 9.4% increase in January, according to Elsevier’s drug-price database.” (Jonathan D. Rockoff, “Pfizer Raises Prices For Dozens Of Drugs,” The Wall Street Journal, 7/2/18)
• In January 2018, “Pfizer, The Largest Standalone Drugmaker In The US, Raised The Average Wholesale Price Of 148 Drugs By A Mean Average Of 8.8 Percent.” “Pfizer, the largest standalone drugmaker in the US, raised the average wholesale price of 148 drugs by a mean average of 8.8 percent, according to data seen by the Financial Times.  The list included several of its best-known medicines such as Viagra, the erectile dysfunction treatment, and Lyrica for nerve pain.” (David Crow, “Cost Of Viagra Soars As Hundreds Of Drug Prices Rise In US,” Financial Times, 1/4/18)

Stay tuned for our next blog tomorrow comparing another pharma CEO’s rhetoric to the reality.

CLICK HERE to read Big Pharma’s True Track Record Is A Hard Pill To Swallow: Part I.

CLICK HERE to read Big Pharma’s True Track Record Is A Hard Pill To Swallow: Part II.

CLICK HERE to read Big Pharma’s True Track Record Is A Hard Pill To Swallow: Part III.

CLICK HERE to read Big Pharma’s True Track Record Is A Hard Pill To Swallow: Part IV.

CLICK HERE to read Big Pharma’s True Track Record Is A Hard Pill To Swallow: Part V.