Pharmaceuticals

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, is looking into how the Orphan Drug Act may be affecting a wide range of drug prices.

Sen. Grassley Launches Inquiry Into Orphan Drug Law's Effect On Prices

1:20pm February 10, 2017

by Sarah Jane Tribble

Citing a Kaiser Health News investigation, Sen. Chuck Grassley, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, will examine potential abuses of incentives to spur development of drugs for rare diseases.

In 2014, the government said health providers would have to register with Medicare in order to prescribe drugs to beneficiaries. Delays have pushed back the requirement until 2019.

Health & Safety

How A Simple Fix For Medicare Prescribing Problems Got Complicated

9:30am February 10, 2017

by Charles Ornstein

In 2014, the government said health providers would have to register with Medicare in order to prescribe drugs to beneficiaries. Delays have pushed back the requirement until 2019.

McKesson Corp. agreed to pay a $150 million fine to settle claims that it failed to report suspicious orders for controlled substances.

Drug Distributors Penalized For Turning Blind Eye In Opioid Epidemic

5:09pm January 27, 2017

by Charles Ornstein

The wholesalers that move medicines between drug companies and pharmacies have been fined for failing to call out suspicious transactions involving opioids.

Secretary of Health and Human Services nominee Rep. Tom Price, R-Ga., (right) and Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., get settled before the start of Price's confirmation hearing Wednesday before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

6 Senators Assessing Trump's HHS Nominee Own Health Care Stocks, Too

9:58pm January 18, 2017

by Sydney Lupkin

A half-dozen senators involved in confirmation hearings for Rep. Tom Price to head the Department of Health and Human Services have health care investments made by themselves or family members.

Several new studies document widespread conflicts of interest in medicine.

From Twitter To Treatment Guidelines, Industry Influence Permeates Medicine

5:23pm January 17, 2017

by Charles Ornstein

Several new studies document widespread conflicts of interest in medicine. The way we think about disease "is being subtly distorted" by financial ties, the authors of an accompanying editorial write.

Seven of the top 10 drugs by U.S. sales in 2015 were orphan drugs.

Drugs For Rare Diseases Have Become Uncommonly Rich Monopolies

5:23pm January 17, 2017

Drugmakers have brought almost 450 orphan drugs to market and collected rich incentives by doing so. But nearly a third of the medicines aren't new or were repurposed many times for financial gain.

Queue Listen Now

Luke Whitbeck, 2, sits on his mother's lap while the nurse prepares his treatment at a pediatric infusion center in Hawthorne, N.Y., in October 2016.

High Prices For Orphan Drugs Strain Families And Insurers

3:30pm January 17, 2017

Three decades ago, Congress set up a system to encourage drug companies to develop treatments for rare diseases. The law has worked, but at a high cost.

If you make a mistake in estimating your yearly income, you may have to pay back the subsidy you get for health insurance.

A Raise Can Wreak Havoc With Your Health Insurance Subsidy

4:45pm January 10, 2017

by Michelle Andrews

Health insurance subsidies are pegged to personal income estimates. But if those are too low, a person may have to repay the government later on.

Morning sickness treatments range from steady consumption of dry crackers to a pill not much better than a placebo.

Morning Sickness Pill Gets Second Look From Persistent Researchers

4:19pm January 06, 2017

by Richard Harris

The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists says pregnant women with morning sickness shouldn't reach hastily for the pill bottle. Controversy over one medicine called Diclegis continues.

Diseased brain tissue from an Alzheimer's patient showing amyloid plaques (in blue) located in the gray matter of the brain.

Where Does Alzheimer's Treatment Go From Here?

12:35pm December 29, 2016

by Bret Stetka

The failure of an experimental drug that targets clumps of protein inside the brains of Alzheimer's patients called into question one of the leading theories about the cause of the dementia.