Drug's 5,000% price increase, where's the justification?

jumpy said:
Whatever way I think about this it looks dodgy, and the shameless way he initially responded to his critics is probably a reflection of how he sees absolutely nothing inherently wrong with what he was doing. Like a lot of fund managers and financiers, there doesn't seem to be any filter to their business mindset that says 'sure, we could do this, but everyone will look at it and say we're filthy greedy rats, so maybe we shouldn't, if only so we don't look like terrible people'.
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Good points, I genuinely believe that these types of people have serious addictions (to money) which should be looked at, but for some reason they are praised in society.

Just look at other addictions and how they compare. Look how someone with a severe heroin addiction can convince themselves to brutally mug an old lady for example.

I think the same thing happens with these types of people, the desire to accumulate even of more piles of money is stronger than their ability to act morally or with any kind of integrity.
 
jumpy said:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-34331761

Seems this guys has done the rounds of 'business' already




Researching new drugs takes money, and that money has to come from somewhere. If this guy had increased the price of a single dose of Daraprim from $13.50 to $20.00 or perhaps even $40.00, nobody would have batted an eyelid, but hiking it up to an obscene $750.00 is just taking the ****.

Whatever way I think about this it looks dodgy, and the shameless way he initially responded to his critics is probably a reflection of how he sees absolutely nothing inherently wrong with what he was doing. Like a lot of fund managers and financiers, there doesn't seem to be any filter to their business mindset that says 'sure, we could do this, but everyone will look at it and say we're filthy greedy rats, so maybe we shouldn't, if only so we don't look like terrible people'.
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Yep that is why people defending him are idiots.

The dude was already involved in shady dealings (Saw this elsewhere on reddit the other day), does anyone really think for 1 second this guy is trying to start a company which will develop new drugs to cure diseases and put the money into R&D lmao?

Of course not... it's a cash grab under the title of pharmaceutical company.

estebanrey said:
Good points, I genuinely believe that these types of people have serious addictions (to money) which should be looked at, but for some reason they are praised in society.

Just look at other addictions and how they compare. Look how someone with a severe heroin addiction can convince themselves to brutally mug an old lady for example.

I think the same thing happens with these types of people, the desire to accumulate even of more piles of money is stronger than their ability to act morally or with any kind of integrity.
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Capitalism is the new religion bro, worship the god of money.

Edit: http://www.cnbc.com/2015/09/22/controversial-drug-ceo-was-accused-of-serious-harassment.html

Also more serious claims against our little apparent drug developing life saving angel.

http://www.citizensforethics.org/le...orney-investigate-short-seller-martin-shkreli

Gotta wonder whether he's doing this deliberately in order to gain something financially. Wouldn't put it past him.
 
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Dj_Jestar said:
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/p...0-also-hiked-cost-of-pill-taken-10513645.html

He did it before, with a pill used for kidney disease.
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Here's what Wikipedia has to say about Retrophin, the company that did this:

Retrophin Inc. was created in 2011[5] and run from the offices of MSMB Capital as a portfolio company with an emphasis on biotechnology, to create treatments for orphan diseases.[2] In September 2014 Retrophin acquired the rights to Thiola, a drug used to treat the rare disease cystinuria. It was with Shkreli as CEO that Retrophin introduced a 20-fold price increase for Thiola.[6][7] Shkreli resigned from the company in October 2014 after Retrophin's Board decided to replace him that September[8] with Stephen Aselage.[9] Shkreli then left Retrophin and started Turing Pharmaceuticals.
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Have to admit I was relieved to read this on the same page: "In the UK, Daraprim is available from GSK at a cost of U.S. $20 (£13) for 30 tablets (approx. $0.66 each)", so at least the NHS isn't funding this leech. Although I've no doubt that he's given some senior managers at GSK food for thought :(
 
There is nothing wrong IMO for pharmaceutical companies making a profit to fund further research but the guy is a parasite.
 
scorza said:
Wow - he's gone too far even for Bear. This must be unprecedented levels of greed.
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I think you have me mixed up with someone else, at no point have I ever been profit above all else or that outright greed is good.
 
I haven't read all of the comments here so it may have been mentioned before..

But the cost to develop a totally new medicine before its even manufactured costs millions if not billions in many cases. And the only way to make this money back to to charge huge % margins on the production costs, and then use the profits to develop another new drug.

And this is one of the many reasons why the development of antibiotics has almost totally ceased in the last decade.. It is simply too expensive for the companies to develop a drug that is only used in limited courses.. And as the media have portrayed before, we are in a sticky position with antibacterial resistance!
 
C.mark said:
I haven't read all of the comments here so it may have been mentioned before..

But the cost to develop a totally new medicine before its even manufactured costs millions if not billions in many cases. And the only way to make this money back to to charge huge % margins on the production costs, and then use the profits to develop another new drug.

And this is one of the many reasons why the development of antibiotics has almost totally ceased in the last decade.. It is simply too expensive for the companies to develop a drug that is only used in limited courses.. And as the media have portrayed before, we are in a sticky position with antibacterial resistance!
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you're just posting noise - read the article/thread before commenting

this isn't a thread about a new drug or about the pharma industry in general
 
Greebo said:
Thats the power of PR and marketing ins persuading you that their drug is "better" so worth the extra money.

If there were two identical cars except one had a Skoda badge and the other an Audi badge, you would still get people who would pay more for the Audi one cause its "better" :p
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You just described the situation for 99% of iphone users lol
 
Greebo said:
Anyway this drug is out of patent so there will be generic alternatives which cost a fraction available.
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That's not the main problem though, as health trusts (or whatever they call them in the US) will have exclusive contracts with the company that provide the more expensive option.

It's the same in the UK, my wife is running a clinical trial for treatment of Age Related Macular Degeneration, comparing different drugs, licenced and non-licenced, the cost difference being a £50 pill (per eye) vs a £900 per eye respectively.

The cheaper drug so far has been proven to be exactly as effective and in some cases more effective, but the NHS still has 9 years left of a 16 year contract for the higher cost drug.
 
Dj_Jestar said:
Article is annoyingly light on details of his arrest like what the actual charge is, for example.
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Fraud, basically the same as what his company is suing him for(65million), just criminal side.

Basically using the company stocks and bank account for his own. "employing" people form rhe hedge fund to keep them happy. And other general financial abuse of said company.
 
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