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The debate over high drug prices has raged for decades, thanks to the inherent tension between delivering innovative and cost-effective patient care. But recently something has changed, and it’s one that may have major ramifications for how we take care of patients – hyperinflation in drug pricing. This good news is that this new wave of hyperinflation in the pharmaceutical industry has been receiving attention on Capitol Hill. As chief clinical officer for St. Vincent Health in Indianapolis, a faith-based health system that is a member of Ascension, the largest non-profit health system in the U.S. with 2,000 sites of care, I was privileged to testify recently at a hearing before the Senate Special Committee on Aging. Of particular interest to the committee was the action of Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, a company that has been exceptionally aggressive in raising its prices. (Richard Fogel, 5/19)

Drug-resistant superbugs account for an estimated 700,000 deaths worldwide today, but that number could rise to 10 million within the next few decades unless new antibiotics are developed. That’s according to a new report commissioned by the UK government, which is proposing a provocative solution to the problem: a 10-year, $40 billion global fund to provide incentives to develop new superbug-fighting drugs. Under the proposed scheme, any drug maker that comes up with a useful antibiotic could receive a reward of around $1 billion. (Ed Silverman, 5/24)

The soaring cost of prescription drugs is expected to reach $640 billion by 2020 but it’s doing a lot more than putting a dent in people’s wallets — it is also forcing many people into life-or-death decisions, and a quick fix is nowhere near a drawing board. According to Dr. Henry Jacobs, president of the Connecticut State Medical Society, an astonishing 20 percent of cancer patients in the United States choose to forgo treatment and die rather than burden their families with medical bills that could drive them into financial ruin. (5/21)