Why a drug company raised a pill’s price 4,100 percent
Go Deeper.
Create an account or log in to save stories.
Like this?
Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.
This is Martin Shkreli, who today became the face of the perceived problem with the health care industry-- drug makers.
https://twitter.com/MartinShkreli/status/631483778158993409
Shkreli, a hedge fund manager by trade, is CEO of Turning Pharma, which bought the rights to Daraprim, for 62 years has a standard treatment for a food-borne illness caused by a parasite, and raised the price per pill from $18 to $750.
Shkreli has been making the rounds on TV business channels today, and has said the drug is still "at the low end" of what it should cost.
Turn Up Your Support
MPR News helps you turn down the noise and build shared understanding. Turn up your support for this public resource and keep trusted journalism accessible to all.
"Profits are a great thing to sustain your corporate existence," he told CNBC.
Some doctors have said patients won't be able to afford the drug.
When the CNBC host asked if he feels badly about the situation, Shkreli replied, "No," saying the company is giving the pill away to low-income people.
In an earlier interview with Bloomberg, Shkreli said under the old price, the cost per course of treatment "to save your life was only $1,000, and these days cancer drugs can cost $100,000."
Shkreli said the company will never deny anyone treatment. "That's something the previous company wasn't doing," he said.
He said the company would use its profits to develop a better drug to treat the illness.
