Communicators and crisis PR pros from several sectors—and politics—are angling to promote brands and, in some cases, downplay headlines.
News broke Thursday morning that retailer CVS is selling a generic alternative to Mylan’s EpiPen autoinjector. The price is about one-sixth of the cost of the name brand product.
ABC News reported:
The drugstore chain says it will charge $109.99 for a two-pack of the authorized generic version of Adrenaclick, a lesser-known treatment compared to EpiPen, which can cost more than $600..The [generic] is now available at all CVS stores. The chain runs about 9,600 retail pharmacies in the United States, including several locations inside Target stores.
A press release from CVS read, in part:
"As a health care company focused on helping people on their path to better health, we recognized that there was an urgent need in the marketplace for a less expensive epinephrine auto-injector for patients with life-threatening allergies," said Helena Foulkes, president of CVS Pharmacy. Over the past year, nearly 150,000 people signed on to a petition asking for a lower cost epinephrine auto-injector option and millions more were active in social media searching for a solution.
"To address this challenge," Foulkes continued, "we have partnered with Impax to purchase their epinephrine auto-injector at a price that is lower than similar brand or authorized generic epinephrine auto-injectors. We are passing these savings along to our customers and patients, making this product available at all CVS Pharmacy locations at the lowest cash price in the market."
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The CVS website has several pages devoted to its new product, as well as an FAQ section:
The news from CVS brought Mylan—and its CEO, Heather Bresch—to the forefront again. Both continue to battle criticism from consumers, health care providers and Congress over alleged price-gouging.
According to ABC News:
A Congressional panel grilled CEO Heather Bresch in September about the soaring cost, which she has blamed in part on insurers, pharmacy benefits managers and other middlemen that stand between the drugmaker and customer.
Mylan has since expanded the financial aid it offers customers and launched its authorized generic in December, priced at $300 per two-pack.
But patients with no health insurance or plans that make them pay a high deductible before covering care can be exposed to the full price of the drug if they aren't aware of that financial aid or if they don't seek it.
A shift in coverage policy
Another development came Thursday as well when Cigna announced it is dropping its coverage of Mylan’s autoinjectors. According to CNN.com:
Cigna now says it will only cover the half-priced generic version, which launched in December.
"The generic version, available now in pharmacies, has the same drug formulation and device functionality as the branded medication, but at a substantial savings," Cigna spokeswoman Karen Eldred said.
Mylan said it anticipated the coverage change due to the launch of its generic option.
The change comes as President-elect Donald Trump vows to fight increases in drug prices. He said many drug companies are "getting away with murder" at his first press conference since the election...
The harsh rhetoric sent drug stocks tumbling. Mylan shares closed down 4.3 percent.
FiercePharma reported on Trump’s assertions, offering reaction from inside the industry:
The U.S. can save billions in healthcare costs by subjecting pharma to a competitive bidding process, Trump contends. “We're the largest buyer of drugs in the world and yet we don't bid properly,” he said.
“They are getting away with murder,” President-elect Trump said. “Pharma has a lot of lobbies, lobbyists and a lot of power. There is very little bidding on drugs.”
“We’re going to start bidding and we are going to save billions of dollars over a period of time.”
Trade group PhRMA’s CEO Steven Ubl said in a statement that his organization is “committed to working” with Trump and Congress “to improve American competitiveness and protect American jobs.” He said biopharma invests $70 billion each year in the U.S. in R&D, an amount higher than any other industry.
Echoing that sentiment, BIO says it is “eager to discuss ways in which all parties can work together to ensure patients have access to the medicines they need, that we do not limit treatment options available for patients and that America remains the global leader in the development of innovative new treatments and cures.”
On Twitter, Brent Saunders, chair and CEO of Allergan Pharmaceutical, pushed back against some of Trump’s comments:
from PR Daily News Feed http://ift.tt/2iuNRDy
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