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> blame Congress for passing the laws that were allowing for such price increases and preventing competition That would be weird, since Daraprim (the drug he h
by icebraining 8y ago
> blame Congress for passing the laws that were allowing for such price increases and preventing competition
That would be weird, since Daraprim (the drug he hiked) was out of patent, anyone could make and sell it, and in fact a competitor did jut a couple of months later[1]. How was Congress preventing competition?
[1] https://www.cnbc.com/2015/11/30/express-scripts-imprimis-to-offer-daraprim-alternative.html https://www.cnbc.com/2015/11/30/express-scripts-imprimis-to-...
- king07828 8y agoPatents weren't the issue. As I recall, Shkreli's company had the exclusive right to market the drug in the US, regardless of patent protection. For example, the FDA provides regulatory exclusivity that prevents generics from entering the market even after the patent expires. [1] Patents were a collateral issue. On that collateral issue, one of the issues with patents is that drug companies have a tendency to stop producing drugs towards the end of life of a patent to force patients onto a newly patented drug. This practice could be stopped by allowing generics to produce, market, and sell when the patent holder will not. [1] https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/journal-article/2017/sep/determinants-market-exclusivity-prescription-drugs-united https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/journal-articl...
- icebraining 8y agoFair enough, there are other protections besides patents. Still, that doesn't seem to be the case here at all; like I wrote, competitors were selling alternatives within a couple of months. What seems to me is that the market was crowded out while the primary producer kept the prices low; when they were raised, the market responded.