Easter Sunday Closure

Bemis Public Library and the Littleton Museum are closed Sunday, March 31, for the Easter holiday.

Drugs, money, and secret handshakes: the unstoppable growth of prescription drug prices

Book Cover
Average Rating
Publisher:
Cambridge University Press
Pub. Date:
2019
Language:
English
Description
"In the warped world of prescription drug pricing, generic drugs can cost more than branded ones, old drugs can be relaunched at astronomical prices, and low-cost options are shut out of the market. In Drugs, Money and Secret Handshakes, Robin Feldman shines a light into the dark corners of the pharmaceutical industry to expose a web of shadowy deals in which higher-priced drugs receive favorable treatment and patients are channeled toward the most expensive medicines. At the center of this web are the highly secretive middle players who establish coverage levels for patients and negotiate with drug companies. By offering lucrative payments to these middle players (as well as to doctors and hospitals), drug companies ensure that inexpensive drugs never gain traction. This system of perverse incentives has delivered the kind of exorbitant drug prices - and profits - that everyone loves except for those who pay the bills"--
"Everyone has a limit. Every budget has an end point. Although sellers would love to raise prices continually, it does not take fancy economics to know that at some point, the money runs out. Why isn't that basic principle working as expected in the pharmaceutical industry? Instead, drug prices are rising continually and reaching astronomical levels, with no end in sight. In May of 2018, analysts reported that a company is contemplating a $1.5 million price tag for its new hemophilia cure. (The current hemophilia therapies already cost an astounding $580,000 to $800,000 per year. ) Along the same lines, Spark therapeutics' cure for a rare form of blindness will cost $850,000, rivaling Novartis' planned $475,000 price tag for its Car-T drug Kymriah. Even outside the eye-popping headlines, prescription drug prices across the board have risen to an alarming and puzzling level. A government inspector general's report found that the high cost of brand medications for common conditions (diabetes, high cholesterol, and asthma) were the true problem for patients on Medicare. In fact, pharmaceutical companies have raised the prices most sharply for commonly used medications such as these. Similarly, an analyst report concluded that in 2016, the average price for a set of specialty drugs known as "orphan drugs" was $140,000 a year and the average price of ordinary drugs was almost $28,000 a year. The list price of drugs tells only part of the story, given the many rebate and discount processes that exist within the industry. Nevertheless, real spending for drugs is rising as well"--
Also in This Series
More Like This
More Copies In Prospector
Loading Prospector Copies...
More Details
Contributors:
ISBN:
9781108482455
9781630159986
Reviews from GoodReads
Loading GoodReads Reviews.
Tagging
Tags:

No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!


Staff View

Grouping Information

Grouped Work ID8960775d-2425-427a-fe5c-8e27aafa7a5a
Grouping Titledrugs money and secret handshakes the unstoppable growth of prescription drug prices
Grouping Authorrobin feldman
Grouping Categorybook
Grouping LanguageEnglish (eng)
Last Grouping Update2024-02-19 17:01:55PM
Last Indexed2024-03-27 22:03:35PM

Solr Fields

accelerated_reader_point_value
0
accelerated_reader_reading_level
0
auth_author2
Kaye, Randye
author
Feldman, Robin
author2-role
Kaye, Randye
author_display
Feldman, Robin
available_at_bemis
Bemis Public Library
detailed_location_bemis
Bemis Lower Level
display_description
"In the warped world of prescription drug pricing, generic drugs can cost more than branded ones, old drugs can be relaunched at astronomical prices, and low-cost options are shut out of the market. In Drugs, Money and Secret Handshakes, Robin Feldman shines a light into the dark corners of the pharmaceutical industry to expose a web of shadowy deals in which higher-priced drugs receive favorable treatment and patients are channeled toward the most expensive medicines. At the center of this web are the highly secretive middle players who establish coverage levels for patients and negotiate with drug companies. By offering lucrative payments to these middle players (as well as to doctors and hospitals), drug companies ensure that inexpensive drugs never gain traction. This system of perverse incentives has delivered the kind of exorbitant drug prices - and profits - that everyone loves except for those who pay the bills"-- "Everyone has a limit. Every budget has an end point. Although sellers would love to raise prices continually, it does not take fancy economics to know that at some point, the money runs out. Why isn't that basic principle working as expected in the pharmaceutical industry? Instead, drug prices are rising continually and reaching astronomical levels, with no end in sight. In May of 2018, analysts reported that a company is contemplating a $1.5 million price tag for its new hemophilia cure. (The current hemophilia therapies already cost an astounding $580,000 to $800,000 per year. ) Along the same lines, Spark therapeutics' cure for a rare form of blindness will cost $850,000, rivaling Novartis' planned $475,000 price tag for its Car-T drug Kymriah. Even outside the eye-popping headlines, prescription drug prices across the board have risen to an alarming and puzzling level. A government inspector general's report found that the high cost of brand medications for common conditions (diabetes, high cholesterol, and asthma) were the true problem for patients on Medicare. In fact, pharmaceutical companies have raised the prices most sharply for commonly used medications such as these. Similarly, an analyst report concluded that in 2016, the average price for a set of specialty drugs known as "orphan drugs" was $140,000 a year and the average price of ordinary drugs was almost $28,000 a year. The list price of drugs tells only part of the story, given the many rebate and discount processes that exist within the industry. Nevertheless, real spending for drugs is rising as well"--
format_bemis
Book
format_category_bemis
Books
id
8960775d-2425-427a-fe5c-8e27aafa7a5a
isbn
9781108482455
9781630159986
itype_bemis
Juvenile Biography
last_indexed
2024-03-28T04:03:35.054Z
lexile_score
-1
literary_form
Non Fiction
literary_form_full
Non Fiction
local_callnumber_bemis
338.476151 FELDMAN
owning_library_bemis
Bemis Public Library
owning_location_bemis
Bemis Public Library
primary_isbn
9781108482455
publishDate
2019
publisher
Cambridge University Press
Tantor Audio
recordtype
grouped_work
subject_facet
Business
Drug Industry -- economics
Drug and Narcotic Control
Drugs -- Cost effectiveness
Economics
Electronic books
Health & Fitness
Nonfiction
Pharmaceutical Preparations -- economics
Pharmaceutical industry -- Economic aspects
Pharmaceutical policy
title_display
Drugs, money, and secret handshakes : the unstoppable growth of prescription drug prices
title_full
Drugs, money, and secret handshakes : the unstoppable growth of prescription drug prices / Robin Feldman, University of California Hastings College of the Law
Drugs, money, and secret handshakes [electronic resource] : The unstoppable growth of prescription drug prices. Robin Feldman
title_short
Drugs, money, and secret handshakes
title_sub
the unstoppable growth of prescription drug prices
topic_facet
Business
Cost effectiveness
Drug Industry
Drug and Narcotic Control
Drugs
Economic aspects
Economics
Health & Fitness
Nonfiction
Pharmaceutical Preparations
Pharmaceutical industry
Pharmaceutical policy
economics

Solr Details Tables

item_details

Bib IdItem IdShelf LocCall NumFormatFormat CategoryNum CopiesIs Order ItemIs eContenteContent SourceeContent URLDetailed StatusLast CheckinLocation
ils:.b59703787.i12590633xBemis Lower Level338.476151 FELDMAN1falsefalseOn ShelfMay 25, 2021below
overdrivecmc:ODN0004971877ODN0004971877Overdrive (CMC)Online Overdrive (CMC)eAudiobookAudio Books1falsetrueOverdrive (CMC)http://link.overdrive.com/?websiteID=162&titleID=4971877Available OnlineOverdrive (CMC)

record_details

Bib IdFormatFormat CategoryEditionLanguagePublisherPublication DatePhysical DescriptionAbridged
ils:.b59703787BookBooksEnglishCambridge University Press2019xiv, 186 pages ; 24 cm
overdrivecmc:ODN0004971877eAudiobookAudio BooksUnabridgedEnglishTantor Audio20191 online resource (5 audio files) : digital

scoping_details_bemis

Bib IdItem IdGrouped StatusStatusLocally OwnedAvailableHoldableBookableIn Library Use OnlyLibrary OwnedHoldable PTypesBookable PTypesLocal Url
ils:.b59703787.i12590633xOn ShelfOn Shelffalsetruetruefalsefalsetrue195, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 170, 11, 171, 12, 13, 14, 15