PhRMA chief defends US prescription drug costs and value

The head of the US trade group Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America has issued a strong defence of the country’s drug costs, which comes in the wake of criticism of the high price of Gilead Sciences' new hepatitis C treatment Sovaldi (sofosbuvir).

PhRMA president and chief executive John Castellani said: “It is penny wise and pound foolish to focus solely on the price of a new medicine while completely ignoring the value it provides to patients and the health care system broadly.”

His statement continued: “Curing hepatitis C not only dramatically improves patients’ lives, but has the potential to save the US health care system as much as $9 billion per year by preventing expensive hospitalizations and avoiding thousands of liver transplants that routinely cost over $500,000 each. The health improvements and cost-savings new medicines provide explain why, despite repeated claims to the contrary, prescription drug spending continues to be a small and declining share of overall health care cost growth – a reality that often gets ignored in the public debate about drug costs.