US faces ‘critical moment’ in pricing reform that ‘won’t come again,’ nonprofit founder says after tallying 554 new hikes
January 18, 2022
With 2021 over, the pharmaceutical industry kicked off the New Year with one of its favorite pastimes: raising the prices on hundreds of branded meds. Public and political scrutiny didn’t stop many of the world’s top drugmakers from partaking in the customary practice. Still, a shot at “historic” drug pricing reform could finally be within reach in the U.S., one watchdog figures.
In the early days of January, drugmakers dialed up the costs of 554 meds at an average rate of 6.3%, the nonprofit group Patients for Affordable Drugs said Thursday in its 2022 price hikes report. Ninety-three percent of those price hikes were on brand-name drugs. One-fourth of the price hikes exceeded the inflation rate for the 12-month period that ended in November, while 93% of the hikes surpassed 2023’s projected inflation rate of 2.3%, the group said.
Read the source article at Pharma News
2022-01-14 14:19:57