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posted by Fnord666 on Monday May 13 2019, @07:41AM   Printer-friendly
from the naughty-executives dept.

Submitted via IRC for Runaway1956_

Leading drug companies including Teva, Pfizer, Novartis and Mylan conspired to inflate the prices of generic drugs by as much as 1,000 percent, according to a far-reaching lawsuit filed on Friday by 44 states.

The industrywide scheme affected the prices of more than 100 generic drugs, according to the complaint, including lamivudine-zidovudine, which treats H.I.V.; budesonide, an asthma medication; fenofibrate, which treats high cholesterol; amphetamine-dextroamphetamine for A.D.H.D.; oral antibiotics; blood thinners; cancer drugs; contraceptives; and antidepressants.

"We all know that prescription drugs can be expensive," Gurbir S. Grewal, the New Jersey attorney general, said in a statement. "Now we know that high drug prices have been driven in part by an illegal conspiracy among generic drug companies to inflate their prices."

In court documents, the state prosecutors lay out a brazen price-fixing scheme involving more than a dozen generic drug companies and just as many executives responsible for sales, marketing and pricing. The complaint alleges that the conspirators knew their efforts to thwart competition were illegal and that they therefore avoided written records by coordinating instead at industry meals, parties, golf outings and other networking events.

Source: https://theinformationsuperhighway.org/generic-drugmakers-conspired-to-inflate-prices-up-to-1000-state-prosecutors-say/


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  • (Score: 2) by isostatic on Monday May 13 2019, @01:22PM (2 children)

    by isostatic (365) on Monday May 13 2019, @01:22PM (#842993) Journal

    The value to a given consumer is the amount that a given consumer is willing to pay for it.

    Starting Score:    1  point
    Karma-Bonus Modifier   +1  

    Total Score:   2  
  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 13 2019, @07:11PM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 13 2019, @07:11PM (#843113)

    That falls apart for non-luxury goods like food, medicine, shelter. Hell even some luxury goods are basically required these days. Internet? Required for so many people. Smart phones? Almost a requirement these days. Vehicles are required for the vast majority of families, etc.

    Your simplistic statement holds intrinsic value, but as usual such ideas fall to pieces in the face of a more complicated reality.

    • (Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday May 15 2019, @02:25AM

      by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday May 15 2019, @02:25AM (#843671) Journal

      That falls apart for non-luxury goods like food, medicine, shelter.

      Why does it fall apart? Are we no longer willing to pay for food, medicine, and shelter because we need those things to some degree? The statement remains accurate.