Boston, MA 09/15/2014 (wallstreetpr) – Biopharmaceutical company, Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) is set to lift the price of its next generation edition of hepatitis C drug. The company has already been facing pressures of higher costs from the insurers and the latest move meant that the treatment would be more expensive than ever before.
To Increase Price
The company would be launching the first all-oral treatment drug next month, and the price is likely to be $84,000, Reuters reported. The cost of the current treatment is estimated at about $95,000 including Sovaldi and two other medicines, interferon and ribavirin.
Though Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)’ Executive Vice President for Corporate and Medical Affairs, Gregg Alton, preferred not to provide the exact pricing of its new medicine, he indicated that the new fixed-dose drug pricing would depend on the costs. He said that the company was also planning to launch a better product devoid of any significant premium.
Insurers Seek Discount
The price rise would come on the heels of the health insurers, congressional lawmakers, and the U.S. State authorities pleading with the company to provide higher amount of discount for Sovaldi since the cost involved in the treatment of over 3 million American were estimated to touch hundreds of billions of dollars.
Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) is predicted to generate approximately $12 billion from hepatitis C drug sales globally in the current year since sales of Sovaldi has been unprecedented during the first year of its market.
Expects Savings
The Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD), however, believes that there would be cost savings for some patients in its new pricing scheme. It pointed out that at least half of the patients affected by hepatitis C can be treated with eight weeks of taking a new drug versus 12 weeks of Sovaldi regimen. This meant that the treatment costs would be reduced by one-third for such patients.
The new drug, which combined Sovaldi with the experimental ledipasvir, removes any requirement for other treatments. The drug has demonstrated cure of maximum of 99% of patients compared to 90% for Sovaldi combined with interferon and ribavirin. However, the regulators would decide the new drug’s approval fate on October 10.
