On 2016 Dec 17, John Tucker commented:

The authors of this highly publicized petition raise the issue of the untenable rate of increase in the price of oncology drugs. They point out that the average cost of new cancer drugs at launch has increased by 5-fold to 10-fold over the last 15 years, and express concern regarding the effects of these drug costs on patient's financial well-being, treatment decisions, and the financial stability of the healthcare delivery systems. They propose a variety of solutions, including price controls, re-importation, reforms to the patent system, and encouraging professional groups to incorporate the cost of medical interventions into guideline development decisions.

Certainly we can all agree that the cost of healthcare cannot be allowed to perpetually outstrip the rate of economic growth. But ultimately, controlling healthcare spending requires a data-driven examination of what is driving costs, and not just politically expedient finger pointing at other contributors.

Per CMS (https://www.cms.gov/Research-Statistics-Data-and-Systems/Statistics-Trends-and-Reports/NationalHealthExpendData/Downloads/highlights.pdf), US healthcare spending increases from 2014 to 2015 included:

• A $53B increase in hospitalization costs, from $947B to $1000B
• A $37B increase in physician and clinic fees, from $597B to $635B
• A $26B increase in drug costs, from $298B to $324B.

Further, a recent IMS study (available at http://www.imshealth.com/en/thought-leadership/quintilesims-institute/reports/global-oncology-trend-report-2014) has shown that for many cancer drugs, including bevacizumb, cetuximab, pertuzumab, rituximab, and trastuzumab among others, the price paid by patients to hospitals exceeds the average wholesale price of the drug by more than 100%. This is in spite of the increasing number of hospitals that pay far below AWP for these drugs due to 340b discounts.

In order to control healthcare costs, it will be necessary to put all cost sources on the table, not just those of pharmaceuticals. This will include the very high drug administration fees pay to hospitals, and in the long run, the mid-six figure to seven figure salaries of many signatories of the Mayo Petition on Drug Prices.

On 2016 Dec 17, John Tucker commented:

The authors of this highly publicized petition raise the issue of the untenable rate of increase in the price of oncology drugs. They point out that the average cost of new cancer drugs at launch has increased by 5-fold to 10-fold over the last 15 years, and express concern regarding the effects of these drug costs on patient's financial well-being, treatment decisions, and the financial stability of the healthcare delivery systems. They propose a variety of solutions, including price controls, re-importation, reforms to the patent system, and encouraging professional groups to incorporate the cost of medical interventions into guideline development decisions.

Certainly we can all agree that the cost of healthcare cannot be allowed to perpetually outstrip the rate of economic growth. But ultimately, controlling healthcare spending requires a data-driven examination of what is driving costs, and not just politically expedient finger pointing at other contributors.

Per CMS (https://www.cms.gov/Research-Statistics-Data-and-Systems/Statistics-Trends-and-Reports/NationalHealthExpendData/Downloads/highlights.pdf), US healthcare spending increases from 2014 to 2015 included:

• A $53B increase in hospitalization costs, from $947B to $1000B
• A $37B increase in physician and clinic fees, from $597B to $635B
• A $26B increase in drug costs, from $298B to $324B.

Further, a recent IMS study (available at http://www.imshealth.com/en/thought-leadership/quintilesims-institute/reports/global-oncology-trend-report-2014) has shown that for many cancer drugs, including bevacizumb, cetuximab, pertuzumab, rituximab, and trastuzumab among others, the price paid by patients to hospitals exceeds the average wholesale price of the drug by more than 100%. This is in spite of the increasing number of hospitals that pay far below AWP for these drugs due to 340b discounts.

In order to control healthcare costs, it will be necessary to put all cost sources on the table, not just those of pharmaceuticals. This will include the very high drug administration fees pay to hospitals, and in the long run, the mid-six figure to seven figure salaries of many signatories of the Mayo Petition on Drug Prices.