The price war launched by Amgen repatha in EU is only half of the price in US market

Source: Biovalley, September 7, 2015 pcsk drug is a rare eye-catching product in the cardiovascular disease market in recent years Previous studies have shown that the incidence of cardiovascular disease can be significantly reduced by reducing the content of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) That's why giants like Amgen, Sanofi and Zaiyuan have invested heavily in this field The FDA approval of repatha of Amgen and praluent of Sanofi / Zaiyuan marks the beginning of a fierce battle in the field of pcsk drugs Although the drug has a bright future, its high price still makes American insurance companies and consumers grumble At present, repatha and praluent are selling for us $14100 / year and US $14600 / year respectively However, a recent move by Amgen may cause strong dissatisfaction among the American people This week, Amgen took advantage of the heat to begin the declaration work related to the listing of repatha in Europe It's surprising that the price of drugs listed in Europe is only half of that in the US market According to data provided by the company, the price of repatha in the UK is set at 340.2 pounds per course, and the cost of patients' treatment for one year is about $6870, which is far lower than the US $14100 In addition, repatha's price in other EU countries is slightly higher than that in the UK, but it only reaches $8220, which still has a huge advantage over the US The high drug prices in the United States, especially in recent years, have brought complaints from both sides of the country The disturbance caused by pcsk is the epitome of this problem Some drug welfare management companies (PBM) point out that the high drug price makes some patients unable to enjoy the benefits of medical technology progress Previous studies have shown that the high drug price in the United States has brought a heavy burden to the American finance and society In order to suppress the price of pcsk drugs, some PBM companies introduced competition mechanism, hoping that repatha / praluent could have a price war Other companies have strict prescription conditions for patients to use pcsk drugs For example, the new drugs can only be used after the current standard statins are ineffective or the LDL of patients is higher than the normal level beyond a specific range But some industry personages call on the U.S government to strengthen the legislation on drug prices to protect the legitimate interests of the American people Some people point out that if other countries can do it, why not the United States? The pricing information of repatha in Europe will undoubtedly set off another competition in pcsk drug market, but the pricing information of praluent, another leading actor, has not been disclosed But it is clear that the price of praluent will never be too different from that of repatha.