Bristol Myers Squibb files lawsuit to block President Biden's plan to lower the cost of soaring drug prices.
What's behind the lawsuit?
Why is Eliquis made in America 87% cheaper overseas?
How profitable is Bristol Myers Squibb?
How many millions do its executives make?
How much does it spend on lobbying?
How much did Bristol Myers Squibb give in political donations to Republicans?
Which Republicans voted against the Inflation Reduction Bill?
Follow the Blood Money Greed with this Relationship Map. What is 'Blood Money'? Money obtained at the cost of another's life.
Prescription drug prices are out of control
"The drug corporations have literally rigged the system to have monopoly pricing power—spending billions to get the laws and regulations that benefit them. They’ve spent $2 billion on lobbying in Washington since 2003. Out-of-pocket costs for some specialty drugs under Medicare can run as high as $15,000 per year or more, while the median income for Medicare beneficiaries is less than $26,200 a year.
The cornerstone of their pricing power is a law that says Medicare can’t bargain directly on prices. Instead, the drug corporations dictate prices to Medicare. Once the price is set for Medicare it ripples down the whole health care system, and lots of people get a piece of the action. Pharmacy Benefit Managers who run prescription drug insurance programs make more working off the higher initial price. Hospitals and doctors get percentage mark-ups. But the rest of us—patients, consumers, and taxpayers—get stuck paying the bill." - Patients For Affordable Drug Prices
President Biden's health-care affordability programs
The adoption of the Inflation Reduction Act last year secured the final component of Biden’s vast economic agenda. It clinched the largest single burst of climate funding in U.S. history, and it introduced a bevy of long-sought health-care affordability programs targeted at seniors, including a cap on insulin prices for Medicare beneficiaries. The work to implement that program is underway: The Biden administration is supposed to identify the first 10 drugs it is targeting for negotiation by September, continue the formal process into 2024 and see the prices implemented in 2026, with more drugs to follow in future years. Drug manufacturers that refuse to comply would face steep financial penalties. - Washington Post
Eliquis made in the U.S. is sold outside the U.S. for 87% cheaper.
"Eliquis (apixaban) is manufactured in America. At least some of it is. Since most brand-name drugs sold in the U.S. are not made in the U.S., the fact that Eliquis is made in the USA makes it pretty special. And one would hope that if a drug is made here, it would be cheaper than its cost elsewhere. Not so, especially in America. Sixty tablets of American-made Eliquis 5 mg are available from accredited international online pharmacies at a low cost of about $1 per pill. The cost is $7.85 per pill for Eliquis sold in U.S. pharmacies. - Pharmacy Checker
$11 billion from Eliquis
Pharmaceutical giant Bristol Myers Squibb — a maker of the popular blood-thinner Eliquis — sued the Biden administration over its forthcoming program to lower prescription drug prices for seniors. The company earned $46.2 billion in revenue last year, including about $11 billion from Eliquis, one of the drugs that could be targeted for Medicare negotiation.
Among the fiercest critics was the pharmaceutical industry, which spent more than $375 million to lobby over that period, the records show. Many tried and failed to block Congress from granting the government new powers to negotiate the price of selected prescription drugs under Medicare. - Washington Post
TakeAway: Call your elected official to demand they stop Big Pharma price gouging Americans for political donations.
Deepak
DemLabs
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