'Unnerving': Teva jacks up prices for Parkinson drug Azilect - report
Writes CBS' Jon Berr
The price of Teva Pharmaceutical's Azilect, "one of the most commonly prescribed treatments for Parkinson's disease, has surged more than 200 percent over the past decade," making it "unaffordable for some patients afflicted with the progressive and incurable disease," writes South Jersey-based reporter Jonathan Berr in a CBS News report.
"According to market researcher Truven Health Analytics, the wholesale price of Azilect was $634.70 as of July 1 for 30 tablets, up from $204.60 in June of 2006, a month after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the drug, also known as Rasagaline, to treat Parkinson's disease."
In its most recent increase, Teva, which is based in Israel and has U.S. headquarters in North Wales, Montgomery County, "in July hiked the prices it charges pharmacies and other middlemen for Azilect by 9.9 percent. However, consumers can pay much higher prices for the drug at the retail level, particularly if they're footing the bill without insurance."
"The decision to increase pricing is determined by a number of factors as we constantly evaluate the marketplace and needs of our patients," Teva spokeswoman Doris Saltkill told Berr. More in Berr's CBS story here.