Allison Inserro

November 01, 2019

Novartis Friday announced results from a head-to-head trial of its secukinumab (Cosentyx) versus adalimumab in patients with active psoriatic arthritis (PsA), saying its therapy missed statistical significance for its primary end point.

October 30, 2019

Given how markets operate, pharmaceutical companies need financial incentives in order to keep providing a reliable stream of high-quality products that otherwise, due to low prices and other factors, might fall into shortage, according to an FDA report about the drug shortages problem released this week.

October 29, 2019

Between 2003 to 2014, patients in Ontario, Canada, received public drug benefits for infliximab or adalimumab at a combined rate of 2.2% in 2003, rising to 18.8% of eligible patients by 2014. During that period, the prevalence of Crohn‐related hospitalizations fell 32.4%.

October 28, 2019

A bipartisan bill to require patent transparency in an effort to bring down the cost of prescription drugs has been introduced in the House of Representatives; the bill is a piece of companion legislation to one introduced in the Senate in March.

October 23, 2019

Republicans in the House of Representatives this week laid out their alternative to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in an effort to position themselves against various Democratic healthcare proposals. The document contains many ideas that have been debated previously when Republicans tried to repeal the ACA, and it draws on work from the Heritage Foundation and the Cato Institute.

October 22, 2019

A recent survey of employers regarding their concerns about growing healthcare costs reveals that some are looking to biosimilars as one method of controlling specialty drug spending.

October 21, 2019

While some data suggest that overall drug price increases may have moderated recently, prices for specific drugs continue to rise at rates above inflation.

October 18, 2019

H.R. 3, The Lower Drug Costs Now Act, passed 2 committees in the House of Representatives Thursday, with a bipartisan amendment intended to boost uptake of biosimilars tucked inside.

October 16, 2019

Drug shortages are an increasing problem—witness the news this week that the chemotherapy drug vincristine, a mainstay in fighting pediatric cancer, is in such short supply that doctors may be forced to start rationing, according to published reports. On Wednesday, the FDA said fiscal year 2018 saw a record number of generic drug approvals.

October 15, 2019

The less experience an oncologist has with administering rituximab, the more likely a Medicare beneficiary with non-Hodgkin lymphoma is to discontinue treatment, according to a new study. In addition, early rituximab discontinuation was associated with inferior lymphoma-specific and overall survival.