A new organization dedicated to eradicating high drug prices in the Netherlands has found what it believes is its first example — and will ask the government to investigate.
At issue is a medicine known as CDCA that is used to treat people with cerebrotendinous xanthomatosis, or CTX, a rare genetic metabolic disease. An earlier version had been available for decades at a low cost, but was purchased by a company that later took the drug off the market. Last year, however, the company was granted marketing exclusivity by regulators and, at the re-launch, boosted the price many times over.
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Having just read that the drug in question used to cost $360/ year, why was this seen as ‘more reasonable?’ “In April, a hospital in Amsterdam announced plans to produce a version in its own pharmacy for about $29,000.” Granted it is 1/6th of the Leadiant price but it would still be an increase of 8,000 percent?