Most Expensive Drug, Literally Ever.
We hope you have good insurance, don’t have one of two rare blood diseases, and do not reside in Canada because the life-saving potential cure, Soliris, will cost you $700,000
Alexion Pharmaceuticals solely-produces Soliris and has faced global scrutiny for its high price-tag on the drug. Though Canada sees the worst prices with $700,000, it’s across the board the most expensive drug sold globally. In the U.K., it goes for about $569,000.
So check this out. If a patient needs to use Soliris, they will need to use for the rest of their lifetime, meaning the prescription fee is not a one-time kind of deal, but rather an annual one. According to NICE, the National Institute for health and Care Excellence in the UK, about 170 patients need to use Soliris to live. In that very first year of all 170 patients purchasing Soliris, that’s an estimated generation of $97,000,000. Soliris will globally generate $3.4 billion by 2018.
Luckily, the public-health systems in Canada and the UK alike pay for the drugs for sufferers to live, but the burden ultimately comes down onto the average tax-payer.
The validity and effectiveness of the drug is overwhelmingly proven, so its legitimacy is not the problem. But many people want to know why exactly Alexion charges what it does for Soliris, as it has yet to prove an itemized list of its expenses.
