Lawmakers Ask Drug Firms to Justify MS Drug Price Hikes

Two Democratic members of the House Oversight Committee sent a letter to seven drugmakers over price increases of multiple sclerosis drugs.

The investigation was prompted by a recent study in the American Academy of Neurology assessing “shadow pricing,” the practice of increasing prices in response to competitors’ price hikes. According to the research, annual MS drug sales more than doubled from 2008 to 2012, from $4 billion to $9 billion.

Ranking Member Elijah Cummings (Md.) and Rep. Peter Welch (Vt.) asked for financial data from the companies, including profits and expenses for the sale of each individual drug, including sales, cost of goods sold, operating costs, discounts, and rebates.