Price Comparison of Human and Veterinary Formulations of Common Medications

Haque, Waqas; Chencheri, Satheesh; Virnig, Beth A; Blaes, Anne; Booth, Christopher M.; Dusetzina, Stacie B.; Gupta, Arjun

doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2022.3938

Cited by 4 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…13 In a recent cross-sectional study, researchers found that prices for two-thirds of human medications were higher compared to pets. 14 Therefore, it is important to regulate veterinary drugs to not only avoid inadvertent administration to humans but also to curtail drug abuse.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

When Veterinary Drugs Reach Human Hospitals: A Problem-Based Learning Discussion

et al. 2023

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The delivery of drugs from the manufacturer to the hospital is a complex process. Despite numerous safeguards, lapses may occur, creating the potential for patient harm. Recently, an urban tertiary care medical center received a shipment of isoflurane bottles labeled for veterinary use. This error was not identified until the veterinary isoflurane reached the operating room automated medication dispensing system. No patients received the anesthetic. This report describes how such an error occurred, explains the differences between veterinary and human medications, and emphasizes the importance of vigilance in the drug supply chain to prevent patient harm.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

When Veterinary Drugs Reach Human Hospitals: A Problem-Based Learning Discussion

et al. 2023

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“…The inexplicable cost differences between pet and human versions of the same generic drug raise a broader question: how much longer will the mismatch between the aspirational mission of improving health, and the strategic goal of pricing drugs to maximize profits, be acceptable in the US? Drug companies are routinely contacted by patients who are unable to afford their medications .…”

Section: Lobbying Against Reforms To Reduce Drug Pricesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As a result, millions of people are unable to afford important, often lifesaving medicines. In this issue of JAMA Internal Medicine , Haque et al demonstrate the higher prices for humans than for pets in the US for the same generic drug. Their study raises a fundamental question: how large a margin between production costs (including the costs of research and manufacturing) and sales price is acceptable for prescription drugs?…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Curbing the Financial Incentives That Contribute to the High Prices of Prescription Drugs in the US

Wolfe

2022

JAMA Intern Med

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delay) as reasons why we should force drug prices lower. The anticompetitive behaviors are particularly distressing because they distort the original intent of the patent system by extending the patent protections beyond their intent.Although the facts about profits, government funding to support innovation, and company behaviors are true, the evidence nevertheless suggests that innovation does respond to profits. [4][5][6] Profits encourage innovation by attracting capital to support innovation and raising the acquisition price when companies with innovative products are acquired by other companies (which incentivizes innovation). But this does not mean drug companies should get a blank check or that all innovation is good.The fundamental policy issues are how to encourage innovation, particularly high-value innovation, who should pay for innovation, and how much. Price discrimination across payers in the US (commercial payers pay more than many public payers) and across countries (those in the US pay more than those in other countries) have important distributional effects. Elimination of price discrimination may reduce innovation incentives, depending on the exact policy chosen, but many may be willing to trade some decrease in innovation for a more equitable distribution of the burden of financing that innovation.We need to find ways to get high-value innovations for less spending. One way to do that could be to reduce the amount of spending on drugs that goes to administering the complex system of managing access to drugs (eg, pharmacy benefit manager costs, administrative costs of copay assistance, utilization management) and does not go toward innovation. We cannot abolish these activities without a replacement because they counter the inflationary combination of patents and insurance. In fact, there is some evidence that they may help direct innovation toward high-value products. 7 Yet, the present approach is a very cumbersome way to encourage innovation.We have long known that markets for prescription drugs are, by design, not competitive, and the burden of financing innovation has disproportionately fallen on individuals in the US. Many have argued that we should not pay more than other countries for drugs, and Haque and colleagues 2 suggest that we should not pay more than our pets (and farm animals). Although distributional concerns may motivate a substantive amount of policy interest, the core focus should balance innovation incentives and spending. Policies that direct more drug spending toward innovators and high-value innovationsand less toward administration of prescription drug marketswill be important. Similarly, we must work to prevent anticompetitive behaviors that extend patents and dampen competition between patented, but therapeutically substitutable, products.

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“…It is well known that drug prices in the US are greater than those in many other countries . In this issue of JAMA Internal Medicine , Haque and colleagues report that within the US, prices for human formulations of drugs generally exceed that of veterinary formulations. The authors raise the important issue of price discrimination in the prescription drug market, meaning that consumers are charged different prices for essentially the same product.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We have long known that markets for prescription drugs are, by design, not competitive, and the burden of financing innovation has disproportionately fallen on individuals in the US. Many have argued that we should not pay more than other countries for drugs, and Haque and colleagues suggest that we should not pay more than our pets (and farm animals). Although distributional concerns may motivate a substantive amount of policy interest, the core focus should balance innovation incentives and spending.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

The Price of Human and Veterinary Formulations of Common Medications—Price Discrimination and Innovation in Prescription Drug Markets

Ward

Chernew

2022

JAMA Intern Med

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Price Comparison of Human and Veterinary Formulations of Common Medications

Cited by 4 publications

References 3 publications

When Veterinary Drugs Reach Human Hospitals: A Problem-Based Learning Discussion

When Veterinary Drugs Reach Human Hospitals: A Problem-Based Learning Discussion

Curbing the Financial Incentives That Contribute to the High Prices of Prescription Drugs in the US

The Price of Human and Veterinary Formulations of Common Medications—Price Discrimination and Innovation in Prescription Drug Markets

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