Trump’s FDA grant ‘Orphan’ status to drug being used to treat Covid

[Kentonio]

ON MONDAY AFTERNOON, the Food and Drug Administration granted Gilead Sciences “orphan” drug status for its antiviral drug, remdesivir. The designation allows the pharmaceutical company to profit exclusively for seven years from the product, which is one of dozens being tested as a possible treatment for Covid-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus.

Experts warn that the designation, reserved for treating “rare diseases,” could block supplies of the antiviral medication from generic drug manufacturers and provide a lucrative windfall for Gilead Sciences, which maintains close ties with President Donald Trump’s task force for controlling the coronavirus crisis. Joe Grogan, who serves on the White House coronavirus task force, lobbied for Gilead from 2011 to 2017 on issues including the pricing of pharmaceuticals.

Coronavirus Treatment Developed by Gilead Sciences Granted “Rare Disease” Status, Potentially Limiting Affordability

Oh and hours before it was announced, Gilead announced it would no longer provide the drug for emergency use, citing ‘overwhelming demand’.

And for bonus ‘wow’ points, the drug development was heavily funded by the US government.

 

[JackRT]

I times like these I think the companies involved would sell at cost plus a modest profit and THAT should be enforced by law. We are all in this together.

 

[MorkandMindy]

A lot of the US healthcare business is a scam - 'your money or your life'.

That's why it costs twice as much as other countries' systems.

 

[MorkandMindy]

It isn't even 'free market', if it was I could go to a Mexican clinic here and save a fortune, but even if I go to Mexico the pharmacists here aren't allowed to fill a prescription by anyone except an US doctor.

Deliberately monopolizing the market.

Not that a free market would be a good choice, just better than our scam.

 

[MorkandMindy]

Coronavirus Treatment Developed by Gilead Sciences Granted “Rare Disease” Status, Potentially Limiting Affordability

Oh and hours before it was announced, Gilead announced it would no longer provide the drug for emergency use, citing ‘overwhelming demand’.

And for bonus ‘wow’ points, the drug development was heavily funded by the US government.

I guess that's one stock that will be going up

 

[Kentonio]

I guess that's one stock that will be going up

It already did.

 

[Goonie]

"Rare" disease? Take it to court and ask them to testify on oath that the disease is rare. Then arrest them.

 

[Pommer]

Coronavirus Treatment Developed by Gilead Sciences Granted “Rare Disease” Status, Potentially Limiting Affordability

Oh and hours before it was announced, Gilead announced it would no longer provide the drug for emergency use, citing ‘overwhelming demand’.

And for bonus ‘wow’ points, the drug development was heavily funded by the US government.

???
What do you expect?

The company has the material, equipment and personnel to make (say) 1000gm/day of the active ingredient and all of a sudden demand shoots up to 30,000gm/day.

It’ll take time to scale up production, (and they’re not even sure if the drug is a viable treatment for COVID-19!

Non-story.

 

[ToddNotTodd]

I times like these I think the companies involved would sell at cost plus a modest profit and THAT should be enforced by law. We are all in this together.

That’s not capitalism. What are you, some kind of commie?

 

[wing2000]

Disgusting.

 

[com7fy8]

they’re not even sure if the drug is a viable treatment for COVID-19!

I read this, too.

This is quite something, how people might be up in arms that they don't have enough money to buy what is not sure to work.

But there can be side effects that work < I just think of this. May be they will use it effectively to produce a side effect which is needed. By-produced effects have been discovered for different products, and used.

So . . . humans can put up a lot of money or whatever for even a lost cause . . . just being wishful. This is part of what makes it possible for a scam to work. So, it's not all the scammer's fault.

But paying for the drug could help to fund research . . . saving tax dollars?

(And, by the way, I might look into if there are statistics showing COVID-19 has helped to cut deaths from flu because of precautions everyone is taking against COVID-19. And because of fewer people going out on the road, how many fewer traffic deaths have there been . . . by the way?)

 

[MorkandMindy]

But paying for the drug could help to fund research . . . saving tax dollars?

Increasing profits.

In our type of economy, neoliberalism, the sole purpose of a company is to maximize profit for it's owners - the shareholders.

 

[com7fy8]

Increasing profits.

for it's owners - the shareholders.

I would say this might not always be the same for every company. So - - relating this to a drug company with an orphaned "maybe" drug . . .

Why would people care about the shareholders getting money? I mean, I do not think someone operating the company would have shareholder profits as the end-goal > but as a means to keep shareholders interested in investing, so the company has money to make profits for the owners and executives.

They might say, oh we have been watching out for you and we are so glad you made a lot of money.

But I think they really are after their own profit which is connected with the company succeeding. Shareholders getting something could be a by-product of the ones at the top and the owners making some.

Even so, there are companies whose owners could have causes. But I suspect ones are chiming along with causes, so people will buy their stuff. So, in a number of cases one's own profit can be the motive, even if a company claims a cause.

I guess you can check how much an owner or CEO keeps for oneself, versus investing in doing some good.

So, may be an interesting fact check could be to see how much remdesivir's CEO and owners are spending on themselves, versus for causes.

 

[JackRT]

The stock market can and has been manipulated in quite a number of ways. I am convinced that companies and company officers should be strictly prohibited from any stock market transaction involving their own stock. And also, at every level of government all elected and appointed officials should be required to place all business and stock dealings in a blind trust.

 

[Tanj]

Coronavirus Treatment Developed by Gilead Sciences Granted “Rare Disease” Status, Potentially Limiting Affordability

Oh and hours before it was announced, Gilead announced it would no longer provide the drug for emergency use, citing ‘overwhelming demand’.

And for bonus ‘wow’ points, the drug development was heavily funded by the US government.

Well, there's always fish tank cleaner. Oh wait, that went up 400%... so there's not even fish tank cleaner.

Also, just for clarity:
"but patients in the U.S. could be prevented from buying generics with lower prices"

The rest of us will be OK.

 

[TLK Valentine]

I times like these I think the companies involved would sell at cost plus a modest profit and THAT should be enforced by law. We are all in this together.

But then there'd be nothing left over for Uncle Sam's... ahem, Uncle Donald's inevitable kickbacks...

 

[DaisyDay]

Joe Grogan, who serves on the White House coronavirus task force, lobbied for Gilead from 2011 to 2017 on issues including the pricing of pharmaceuticals.

...Grogan, who in 2016 earned over $800,000 in salary and bonuses at Gilead, came under scrutiny in 2018 for his work, also at Gilead, on a Medicare payment model for a cancer treatment.

Coincidence?

 

[Kaon]

A lot of the US healthcare business is a scam - 'your money or your life'.

That's why it costs twice as much as other countries' systems.

We want it this way, otherwise we would to scoff and deride people that expose the medical industry, and we wouldn't pay into a system that is clearly a scam.

The businesses are just doing what they are supposed to do; if we don't like it, we need to come together and change the paradigm.

But we won't do that, because we also love our ISMs - so why would these entities ever expect they would be held accountable?

Lol.. We are just realizing that we have been had in the same ways people we thought were crazy told us... decades ago.

 

[whatbogsends]

Coronavirus Treatment Developed by Gilead Sciences Granted “Rare Disease” Status, Potentially Limiting Affordability

Oh and hours before it was announced, Gilead announced it would no longer provide the drug for emergency use, citing ‘overwhelming demand’.

And for bonus ‘wow’ points, the drug development was heavily funded by the US government.

Again, during this time of crisis, Trump putting profit ahead of people.

The immorality knows no bounds.