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posted by Fnord666 on Saturday March 09 2019, @02:32PM   Printer-friendly
from the leopard-spots dept.

Martin Shkreli continues to run business from prison, report says

Martin Shkreli reportedly runs his pharmaceutical company from prison on a contraband smartphone. Shkreli continues to run the remains of the drug company that once earned him the title of most hated man in America, according to a story in the Wall Street Journal. He was convicted of securities fraud and conspiracy in 2017. He has served 16 months of a seven-year sentence in federal prison.

Shkreli is reportedly running Phoenixus AG, formerly known as Turing Pharmaceuticals. In 2015, when Shkreli was the CEO, Turing raised the price of the lifesaving drug Daraprim used by AIDS patients from $13.50 a pill to $750 a pill. The price hike sparked a public outcry.

The Journal says that Shkreli anticipates the company will grow more successful while he's in prison. He believes the company, of which he owns 40%, could be worth $3.7 billion by the time he gets out of prison.

On one recent phone call, Shkreli fired Phoenixus CEO Kevin Mulleady, the Journal reported. Shkreli reportedly later changed his mind, agreeing to suspend Mulleady rather than fire him.

Cartoon villain performance art.

Previously: Martin Shkreli Points Fingers at Other Pharmaceutical Companies
Martin Shkreli Convicted of Securities Fraud Charges, Optimistic About Sentencing
Martin Shkreli Lists Unreleased Wu-Tang Clan Album on eBay
Martin Shkreli's $5 Million Bail Revoked for Facebook Post Seeking Hillary Clinton's Hair
Sobbing Martin Shkreli Sentenced to 7 Years in Prison for Defrauding Investors

Related: Drug Firm Offers $1 Version of $750 Turing Pharmaceuticals Pill
Mylan Overcharged U.S. Government on EpiPens
EpiPen Maker is Facing Shareholder Backlash
FDA Has Named Names of Pharma Companies Blocking Cheaper Generics [Updated]
U.S. Hospitals Band Together to Form Civica Rx, a Non-Profit Pharmaceutical Company


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  • (Score: 2, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday March 09 2019, @11:16PM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Saturday March 09 2019, @11:16PM (#812170)

    For that matter, what is the current price of Daraprim? Did it come down?

    If high-school kids in Australia can replicate a $750 drug for $2, why is it still so expensive to buy? [qz.com]

    The good news is that pyrimethamine, the key ingredient of Daraprim, is not protected by patents. If a generic manufacturer can pass the US drug regulator’s tests, it can compete with Daraprim on price. Soon after Turing’s price hike, Imprimis Pharmaceuticals promised such an alternative, for $1 per capsule. But because it’s not an identical replacement to Daraprim, as of August [2016], Turing was still charging many patients $375 per dose.

    Looks like our work is not done here. We've got some more capitalists to put behind bars.

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  • (Score: 2) by wisnoskij on Monday March 11 2019, @02:00AM

    by wisnoskij (5149) <{jonathonwisnoski} {at} {gmail.com}> on Monday March 11 2019, @02:00AM (#812507)

    Because the kids did not have sell their product to anyone so 99% of the costs of a drug: FDA, Marketing, Bottling, RnD, giving away free product, were not included in their $2 cost.