Under pressure over its pricing of insulin, Eli Lilly (LLY) on Sunday issued a report in which it claims that the price it was paid for a key diabetes treatment fell by 8.1 percent over the past five years, after subtracting rebates and other discounts.
Specifically, the net price for Humalog, after accounting for those givebacks, was $135 a patient per month last year, down from $147 in 2014. Meanwhile, the average list — or wholesale — price during that same period increased 51.9 percent to $594 per patient each month.
The disclosure comes as Lilly and two other insulin makers, Novo Nordisk (NVO) and Sanofi (SNY), face mounting criticism over insulin pricing.
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I’d like to know instead what they made per patient in 2005 or even better in 2001 (before the Medicare drug benefit was passed).
Even if it is the fact (which we can’t confirm) that it’s slightly less per patient per month than in 2014, I’ll bet it’s way higher than in the past and for a very cheap drug in terms of making it.
They so feel they have a right to make more on every patient every year on every drug that they think this vindicates them!!
And, as Adam Fein points out, since many uninsured patients DO pay much more it doesn’t address what this does TO patients and their health.
Perfect illustration of the gross-to-net bubble. Too many patients pay full price for essential drugs that are sold to insurers and PBMs at deep discounts.