Rarely
does a single issue ricochet unequivocally across society — impacting
everyone regardless of age, gender, or economic status. No matter how
healthy or sick you are, skyrocketing prices on prescription drugs
should be a grave concern. Drug prices are rising at a fast and furious
pace. We don't know why, and drug companies do not want to tell us.
As the bills add up, physicians, patient and consumer advocates,
businesses, cities, counties, labor unions, health care leaders and many
more are calling on the California legislature to pass Senate Bill 1010
(Hernandez). This legislation will shed some light on drug pricing and
help get us off this unsustainable path. This bill does not impose price
controls on prescription drugs.
The need for transparency and solutions is urgent. While
transparency is becoming the norm across every other part of the health
care system, it seems that pharmaceutical companies can charge whatever
they feel like and no one seems to be able to pinpoint why.
Public scrutiny around astronomical drug prices has peaked —
ignited by the introduction of an effective new Hepatitis C drug that
was shockingly priced at $86,000 for a single course of treatment. But,
heightened awareness of the problem has not stopped drug makers from
continuing to raise prices on new and old drugs alike.
More and more new drugs are introduced at prices that eclipse
$10,000 a month, and the prices of older drugs that have long ago
recouped R&D costs climb with no explanation. A common antibiotic,
Doxycyline that was FDA approved in 1967, increased from $20 per bottle
to $1,850 in just six months — a 9,000 percent increase. There are many
similar examples, like the arthritis medication Vimovo whose active
ingredient naproxen which was first approved in 1976 that went from $161
to $959 overnight. And many treatments for life-threatening illnesses
are priced well into the six-figures.
The pharmaceutical industry has made claims that sharing basic
information about drug prices will harm patients. As a physician, I can
tell you that a far greater health risk is not getting treatment in the
first place because prescription drugs are priced upwards of $100,000.
As these prices spike, the people who pay for them are left in the
dark, with no information on what's behind these soaring prices. The
drug industry is one of the only sectors of our health care system
without transparency requirements. This environment has allowed drug
makers to run roughshod over Californians — leaving the state,
taxpayers, employers and patients to pick up the bill and continue
grappling with increased medical costs.
SB 1010 can help put the brakes on this unsustainable trend. The
bill would require drug companies to inform payers when drug costs
increase significantly and provide a reason why. This essential level of
transparency will arm purchasers with advance notice, and information
needed to fight back against price gouging by negotiating lower prices
for patients and consumers.This is not revolutionary — this is a
reasonable, small first step to help manage costs while getting patients
the care they need.
That's why so many organizations support SB
1010 including the AARP, Consumers Union, California Medical
Association, Health Access California, SEIU California, California
Nurses Association, Small Business Majority, the League of California
Cities, California Professional Firefighters, and many more.
There
are simply too many Californians on the hook for us to stand idly by as
pharmaceutical companies raise prices with little rhyme or reason. Now
is the time to advance SB 1010 to bring drug pricing out of the dark.
Sameer
V. Awsare, MD, FACP, practices Internal Medicine at The Permanente
Medical Group in Campbell and is a former president of the Santa Clara
County Medical Association. He wrote this for the Mercury News.
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