PRESIDENT TRUMP: THEY'RE GETTING
AWAY WITH MURDER, PHARMA, PHARMA
HAS A LOT OF LOBBYISTS AND A LOT
OF POWER.
LIZ: REMEMBER THAT?
WELL, IT TURNS OUT DRUG
COMPANIES AREN'T THE ONLY ONES
STILL GETTING AWAY WITH WHAT THE
PRESIDENT CALLED MURDER.
THEY'RE STARTING THE NEW YEAR BY
USING PRICING AS A WEAPON, AMGEN
HIKING ITS RHEUMATOID
ARTHRITIS DRUG ENBREL BY 9.7% WE
HAVE BIOGEN TACKING ON ANOTHER 8
% ON TO ITS MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS
DRUG AND AMONG THEM THE POPULAR
AVANEX, AND THE MOST STUNNING
CYCLE NEXT SOURCE ADDING 1400%
ON TO THE PRICE OF ITS 40 YEAR
OLD LIFE EXTENDING CANCER DRUG.
MANY ACCUSING THE COMPANY OF
PRICE GOUGING CANCER PATIENTS
BUT THIS IS JUST BUSINESS AND
PROFITS AND STRONGER STOCK
SHARES.
WHICH SIDE WINS OUT HERE?
CHIP DAVIS REPRESENTS GENERIC
DRUG MAKERS AND IS A CONSUMER
LISTEN TO BIOGENS OF THE WORLD
AND THE AMGENS AND NEXT SOURCES
NOBODY IS STOPPING THEM THE
PRESIDENT HAS GIVEN PRETTY
STRONG LIP SERVICE, BUT NOBODY
IS STOPPING THEM FROM DOING WHAT
THEY'RE DOING AND THEIR STOCK
PRICES ARE UP RIGHT NOW.
BIOGEN IS UP 5%.
>> LIZ GOOD AFTERNOON THANK YOU
FOR HAVING ME.
EARLIER IN THE YEAR TAKE PRICE
INCREASES OFTENTIMES THEY MAY BE
ASSOCIATED WITH ONE OR TWO PRICE
INCREASES PER YEAR.
THAT NEEDS TO BE JUXTAPOSED
QUITE FRANKLY AGAINST AND IT'S A
UNITED STATES ARE WRITTEN
UNDERSTANDING THE LEVEL OF
SENSITIVITY THAT THE PUBLIC AND
LEVEL OF PRICE DEFLATION IN THE
GENERIC SECTOR, OTHERWISE, THE
INCREASES IN PRICES THAT YOU
COMPETITION.
NO GENERIC COMPETITION.
IF YOU JUST TRIANGULATE THAT AND
MY DAD WAS A DOCTOR AND USED TO
TALK ABOUT THIS ALL THE TIME IS
THE FDA DRAGGING ITS FATE HERE?
THIS WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A NEW
FDA THAT MOVED MORE QUICKLY.
WHAT'S GOING ON?
>> I ACTUALLY THINK YOU'RE
BEGINNING TO SEE THE FRUITS OF
THE EFFORTS OF NEW FDA
LEADERSHIP COMMISSIONER GOTLEIB
WAS CONFIRMED BACK IN
MAY LAST YEAR AND IMMEDIATELY
LAUNCHED WHAT HE REFERRED TO AS
A DRUG COMPETITION ACTION PLAN
RECOGNIZING QUITE FRANKLY THAT
THERE'S ONLY TWO FROM AN OVER
ARCHING PERSPECTIVE TWO WAYS
YOU'RE GOING TO ULTIMATELY LOWER
PRESCRIPTION DRUG COSTS ONE IS
GREATER INTERVENTION BY THE
GOVERNMENT AND ONE IS BY
INCREASING MARKET BASED
COMPETITION PREDOMINANTLY
THROUGH GENERICS.
HE BELIEVES IN THE MARKET-BASED
SYSTEM AND AS SUCH HAS DONE
THINGS TO BEGIN TO PRIORITIZE
APPLICATIONS WHERE THERE ARE NO
CURRENT GENERICS AND PUBLISHED
THAT LIST LIZ YOU REFERENCED THE
319 DRUGS SOME OF WHICH ARE NO
LONGER THE BEST STANDARD OF CARE
BUT OTHERS OF WHICH MAYBE OF
INTEREST TO GENERIC MANUFACTURES
AND I KNOW THERE ARE
MANUFACTURES LOOKING AT THOSE
PRODUCTS CURRENTLY.
LIZ: WHEN EPIPENS MAKER MYLAN
WAS BUSTED OR AT LEAST
SEVERELY ALLERGIC PEOPLE WHO
WILL DIE IF THEY DON'T HAVE IT
AND THEY HADN'T EVEN PUT ANY
MONEY INTO IT.
IT'S THE SAME THING AS WHEN YOU
BOUGHT IT IN THE 70S MORE OR
LESS, THEY WERE ATTACKED BY
CONGRESS.
THEY WERE ATTACKED BY
SHAREHOLDERS.
THEY WERE ATTACKED BY CIVIL SUIT
S AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
YOU SEE MARTIN SKRELLI AND THE
SENTENCE HERE AND I'M LOOKING AT
THIS THINKING ARE THESE PEOPLE
NOT THINKING BUT ON THE OTHER
HAND IF I'M A SHAREHOLDER I'D
SAY WAIT A MINUTE . THE PRICING
IS BASED ON DEVELOPMENT COSTS
AND REGULATORY AGENCY FEES AND
IT'S FAIR.
WHAT DO YOU SAY?
>> WELL, I THINK ONE OF THE
THINGS THAT WE'VE TRIED TO
STRIVE FOR HERE IN THE U.S. IS A
THE WORLD WITH THE ABILITY TO
DEVELOP NEW PRODUCTS BUT ALSO AT
A POINT IN TIME WHEN
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS ARE
SUPPOSED TO EXPIRE THE GENERICS
AND NOW BIOSIMILARS WHICH ARE
ALTERNATIVE COMPETITIVE PRODUCTS
TO SPECIALTY AND BIOLOGICS ARE
SUPPOSED TO ENTER THE MARKET
CREATING COMMODITIZED-LIKE PRIZ
ING FINDING 80-85% OFF THE
ORIGINAL PRODUCT AND ULTIMATELY
WHETHER THEY WANT GOVERNMENT
INTERVENTION LIKE NEGOTIATING
PRICES IN MEDICARE PART D, OR
ADOPTING MORE POLICIES IN
THOSE SCENARIOS YOU JUST
DESCRIBED LIZ INCLUDING THE
EPIPEN SCENARIO WHICH BY THE WAY
THAT PRODUCT WAS PATENTED WITH
FOUR PATENTS ON THE DELIVERY
SYSTEM SO YES THE INGREDIENT HAD
BEEN AROUND BUT IT WAS A PATENT
PATENTED BRANDED PRODUCT SO THE
REALITY IS ULTIMATELY POLICY
MAKERS HAVE TO DECIDE WHETHER
THERE ARE THINGS THEY CAN DO TO
ENHANCE THE MARKET OR SIMPLY
REVERT TO THE HEAVY HAND OF
GOVERNMENT WHICH IS SOMETHING WE
DON'T SUPPORT.