n late 2013, Gilead Sciences released Sovaldi, a drug that can cure Hepatitis C in 90 days when used in combination with other anti-viral drugs. The initial price was more than $1,000 per day, and the total cost of treatment could exceed $80,000. In spite of a 90% cure rate for a disease that previously had low cure rates with longer treatments, many editorials, blogs, and TV segments castigated Gilead and other biotech and pharmaceutical companies as price-gouging profit mongers. Antitrust suit accuses Sovaldi maker Gilead of price-gouging and Gilead is accused of Price Gouging but is There Really a Legal Argument?
Recently a study by a panel of doctors and medical experts who help insurers set policies has determined that the drugs are worth the price - Gilead Pills at $1,000 a Day Are Found Cost Effective. In other words, the patients and insurers get more value from the drugs than they pay for them. Sovaldi is one of the highest selling drugs in the world after just one year. In addition, insurers are expanding the range of patients who can be treated with Sovaldi, further demonstrating that value pricing works.
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