Good morning, everyone, and how are you today? We would not be surprised to hear that many of you on this side of the pond may be a wee bit tired after tracking the extended drama over election results. After all, the right to vote is a good thing. And as our Bubbe taught us long ago, the only constant is change. So while you ponder what the future holds, please join us for a cup of stimulation and a quick look at the menu of tidbits we have provided. Hope your day goes well and, of course, do keep in touch. We enjoy the outreach …
After a pitched battle, former Celgene (CELG) chief executive Bob Hugin will not head to the U.S. Senate to represent New Jersey. The Democratic incumbent, Robert Menendez, prevailed in an especially nasty campaign in which Hugin was portrayed as a greedy pharma exec who repeatedly raised prices on a cancer drug and oversaw malfeasance because Celgene paid $280 million last year to settle a whistleblower lawsuit over allegedly illegal marketing tactics. For his part, Hugin ads reminded voters that Menendez was tried, unsuccessfully, for corruption. He also derided the “lies and mischaracterizations about the pharmaceutical industry. … We do such good things for all people around the world,” he told STAT.
The number of October 2018 drug price increases increased compared with September, but remained at a low level, according to an investor note by Wells Fargo analyst David Maris. Across all drug makers, approximately 82 products rose in price, versus 87 in September, and there were 50 price decreases, compared with 40 decreases in September. The 82 price increases ranged from 556 percent to 1.12 percent, with an average price increase of approximately 37.3 percent and a median increase of approximately 10 percent.
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