Turing Pharmaceuticals in New York has drastically increased the price of a drug that has been used to treat food borne illness since 1953. The shocking inflated price once only $13.50 per pill, is now $750 a remarkable increase of $736.50 for each pill.
The HIV Medicine Association responded with genuine concern, through spokesperson Judith Aberg, who said, This is a tremendous increase", explaining that patients including those with insurance will most likely have difficulty paying even the 20% deductible cost of $150 for one dose.
The drug at the center of the controversy, Daraprim, is commonly used to treat Toxoplasmosis, which, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC, is a leading cause of death attributed to foodborne illness in the United States." For patients suffering from conditions that weaken their immune system, like AIDS and cancer, this infection can be especially life threatening.
The CDC's warning statement and statistics indicate, More than 60 million men, women, and children in the U.S. carry the Toxoplasma parasite, but very few have symptoms because the immune system usually keeps the parasite from causing illness. However, women newly infected with Toxoplasma during pregnancy and anyone with a compromised immune system should be aware that Toxoplasmosis can have severe consequences. Toxoplasmosis is considered one of the Neglected Parasitic Infections, a group of five parasitic diseases that have been targeted by CDC for public health action."
Aberg added, Every week, I'm learning about another drug that has increased in price because of a change in marketing or the distributor." In fact, the HIV Medicine Association and Infectious Diseases Society of America contacted Turing to express concerns about the possible negative effects of the sharp rise in cost, including a delay in treatment for patients. Aberg explains that it could also influence hospitals decisions on keeping Daraprim in inventory and there is not another pharmaceutical drug as successful in treatment.
Bob Martin, a spokesperson for Fenvir, a progressive health and wellness company, stressed the importance of maintaining a healthy immune system the body's natural defense against germs, viruses, bacteria, toxins and infections, saying The best approach to Toxoplasmosis is prevention."
Those interested in learning more should visit http://www.fenvir.com/pharmaceutical-price-increase. While there, readers are invited to take full advantage of the wealth of information available on the company site.
