Tag Archives: pharmaceutical

The Cost of New Cancer Drugs (In One Picture)

Posted on May 9, 2017

“Specialty drugs” – that’s what they’re called. Not the pills of old, these pharmaceuticals are often given intravenously or through injection. Often more biologic in their synthesis than chemical, they are expensive to produce and often target narrow disease processes, … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , ,

Here’s Why Insulin Is So Expensive, And How To Reduce Its Price

Posted on May 17, 2016

She drew the life-saving medication into the syringe, just 10cc of colorless fluid for the everyday low price of, gulp, several hundred dollars. Was that a new chemotherapy, specially designed for her tumor? Was it a “specialty drug,” to treat … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , ,

Finally: Something Republicans and Democrats Can Agree On

Posted on December 17, 2015

The United States Medicare program is forbidden, by law, from negotiating with pharmaceutical companies. This was part of a negotiation that was reached at the time that the government, under the leadership of George W. Bush, created Medicare Part D, … Continue reading →

Posted in Health Policy | Tagged , ,

The High Price of Affordable Medicine

Posted on March 24, 2015

In the old days, blockbuster drugs were moderately expensive pills taken by hundreds of thousands of patients. Think blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes pills. But today, many blockbusters are designed to target much less common diseases, illnesses like multiple sclerosis … Continue reading →

Posted in Health Policy, Medical Decision Making | Tagged , , , , , ,