Turing Pharmaceuticals To Reduce Pricing For Daraprim Following Rate Increase Controversy
The American pharmaceutical company received a flak of negative feedback from various groups, including Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, since the sudden price increase of Pyrimethamine - better known as Daraprim - had been announced. Turing Pharmaceuticals will reduce the pricing for Daraprim from its staggering price increase of 5,000 per cent overnight.
CEO Martin Shkreli did not reveal any details of the new pricing yet, however he is expected to release an announcement over the next few weeks. He admitted that the company' decision to lower the pricing for Daraprim was a reaction to public outrage over its increase, turning up from $13.50 to $750 per pill, NBC News reports.
The New York-based company acquired the said drug from Impax Laboratories last month for $55 million dollars and immediately raised the pricing; with Shkreli saying that they needed to turn a profit on this drug and the practice is not out of line with the rest of the industry. The CEO said that Turing Pharmaceuticals will reduce its pricing for Daraprim, bringing it back to $13.50 in a few weeks.
A quick information from WebMD reveals that Daraprim is an oral medication that fights toxoplasmosis, which infects people whose immune systems have been weakened by AIDS, chemotherapy and pregnancy. Shkreli has said that the revenue from the increase would be used to develop better treatment for toxoplasmosis that has lesser side effects.
Clinton previously called Shkreli's movement "price gouging" and outlined a plan, saying that she would limit how much patients should pay out of pocket for monthly medications. Meanwhile, several healthcare units including the Infectious Diseases Society of America and the HIV Medicine Association (HIVMA) wrote an open letter to the company, urging them to reconsider the $750 price for the pill.
Shkreli also announced via Twitter that he plans to set the record straight on misconceptions and announce some adjustments to the company's plans. However, his Twitter account is now set to private as of this late.
