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That is above the average of 404 drug price increases in the
first three days of January over the past five years. Nearly all
of the price increases are below 10%, with the median price
increase around 5%, according to 3 Axis.
Swiss drugmaker Novartis raised prices on nearly 30 drugs
including psoriasis treatment Cosentyx and multiple sclerosis
medicine Gilenya, 3 Axis said. Most of those increases were in
the range of 5.5% to 7%.
Novartis said that while it is raising the list prices of about
7 percent of its U.S. medicines, after discounts and rebates to
commercial and government payers it expects a net price decrease
of 2.5% in 2020.
U.S. drugmaker Merck raised prices on about 15 drugs, including
diabetes medicines Januvia and Janumet, mostly around 5%, 3 Axis
said.
The list price of its top-selling cancer immunotherapy Keytruda,
expected to tally more than $13 billion in 2019 sales, was
pushed up 1.5%.
Merck in a statement said the increases are consistent with its
commitment to not raise U.S. net prices by more than inflation
annually.
Ireland-based Allergan, which is being acquired by rival AbbVie
Inc for more than $60 billion, said it was raising prices on 25
drugs by 5% and on two more medicines by 2-3%. But with higher
rebates and discounts, it said, net pricing would be flat to
lower in 2020.
Reuters previously reported that Pfizer Inc, Bristol-Myers
Squibb Co and AbbVie were among drugmakers that had raised
prices on more than 330 drugs to start the year.
Soaring healthcare costs for U.S. consumers, and prescription
drug prices in particular, are expected to again be a central
issue in the 2020 presidential campaign for both parties.
President Donald Trump, a Republican who made bringing them down
a core pledge of his 2016 campaign, is running for re-election
in 2020.
Under pressure from politicians and patients, many makers of
branded drugs have pledged to keep annual U.S. price increases
below 10% a year.
Prescription drug prices are higher in the United States than
most developed countries where governments directly or
indirectly control the costs, making it the world's most
lucrative market for manufacturers.
Drugmakers often negotiate rebates or discounts on their list
prices in exchange for favorable treatment from insurers and
other healthcare payers. As a result, insurers and covered
patients rarely pay the full list price of a drug.
(Reporting by Michael Erman; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
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