Valeant Doubles Price of Physician-Assisted Suicide Drug

In response to California’s passage of an “aid-in-dying” law, which will go into effect in June of this year, Valeant Pharmaceuticals has doubled the price of its assisted suicide drug Seconal Sodium (secobarbital) to more than $3000.

Valeant is current under congressional investigation for its pricing practices.

Secobarbital is a barbiturate indicated for the treatment of epilepsy and insomnia or for preoperative anesthesia. However, it is most commonly used for physician-assisted suicide.

In 2009, 100 capsules of secobarbital cost less than $200, but the price of the drug steadily rose over the last 6 years to $1500 in 2015, according to the drug pricing databases Medi-Span and First Databank. Valeant purchased Seconal in February of 2015.

David Grube, MD, a family doctor practicing in Oregon, where physician-assisted suicide is legal, told NPR that, while most drug companies justify drastic price increases by pointing to high research costs, Valeant cannot make the same justification with Seconal because it has been around for 80 years and has not been subject to further research.

In a statement, Valeant said that it “sets prices for drugs based on a number of factors.” They added, “When possible, we offer patient assistance programs to mitigate the effects of price adjustments and keep out-of-pocket costs affordable for patients.”

Pharmaceutical companies, including Valeant, often raise prices based on generic availability. EM Kolassa, MBA, PhD, chairman and managing partner of Medical Marketing Economics, told NPR that Valeant may have raised the price of Seconal because of the lack of generic versions of the drug. Another possible explanation for the high price may be the low demand for the drug; only five states have legalized physician-assisted suicide, and it is infrequently prescribed for other purposes.

Under the California aid-in-dying law, private health insurance companies have the option to cover the costs of Seconal. So far, most have reported that they are planning to do so, and the state’s Medicaid program is as well.—FRMC Editor

Reference

Dembosky A. Drug company jacks up cost of aid-in-dying medication. NPR. March 23, 2016.