Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Perspectives: The Pros, Cons Of Walmart's Insulin
The deal Walmart has inked with Novo Nordisk, which will allow it to sell the Danish drug manufacturer鈥檚 short-acting Novolog insulin for $75 a vial, is nothing short of revolutionary鈥攖hat is, if you believe the press release the retail Goliath released at the end of June, announcing the arrangement. Several news outlets more or less echoed these sentiments, noting that the price amounted to a discount of up to 75 percent off the typical $300 list price of a life-sustaining drug whose skyrocketing costs have been explicitly tied to multiple deaths in recent years. As the Good News Network put it, 鈥淲almart is seeking to bring 鈥榚veryday low prices鈥 to medical care.鈥 (Natalie Shure, 7/6)
For years, advocates of health care reform have been saying the market for prescription drugs is rigged, with powerful pharmaceutical companies setting prices at unreasonably high levels. Drug companies steadfastly have insisted they don鈥檛 do that. Thanks to Walmart, now we know for sure: They do. (David Lazarus, 7/4)
Also 鈥
At this writing three members of the FDA Advisory Committee have chosen to resign in protest over the Food and Drug Administration鈥檚 decision to approve aducanumab for the treatment of mild cognitive impairment. Their decision to resign is commendable for at least three ethical reasons. (Leonard Fleck, 7/2)