Pharmalittle: Congress is letting a drug shortages fix pass it by; FDA voucher program may lapse in October

By Ed Silverman July 13, 2023

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Alex Hogan/STAT

Rise and shine, folks, another busy day is on the way. Already, there was a burst of activity here on the Pharmalot campus, where our shortest person dashed off to a local educational institution in a hurry and the mascots are bounding about. As for us, we are diligently brewing another cup of stimulation — we are back to blueberry cobbler — as we review our growing to-do list. No doubt, you can relate. So no time to dillydally. Here are some items of interest to help you along on your own merry way. Have a smashing day and do keep us in mind when something interesting arises….

Congress is considering a must-pass pandemic preparedness bill that presents a good opportunity to fix the nation’s current drug shortages problem, but most indications are lawmakers will let the opportunity pass them by, STAT says. The legislation, the Pandemic All-Hazards Preparedness Act, is well-suited for drug shortage reforms, but neither the Senate nor House bills to renew the pandemic preparedness law include provisions to address the problem. The core of the draft Senate bill is bipartisan. Health committee chair Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and the committee’s top Republican, Bill Cassidy (La.), each have pet policies they want to add, but neither include drug shortage reforms.

Americans without health insurance pay an average of $98 for Eli Lilly’s generic insulin despite the company’s May 1 pledge to cut its list price to $25 per vial, Reuters writes, citing to a survey of more than 300 U.S. pharmacies by U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s office released on Thursday. The survey of chain and independent pharmacies across all 50 states, which was conducted last month, found a third of drug stores charged $164 or more to uninsured patients for Lilly’s Insulin Lispro. The highest-priced pharmacy wanted $330. Lilly, Novo Nordisk, and Sanofi, which dominate the insulin market, announced in March they would slash their insulin prices by at least 70% later in the year.

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