Dr. Amesh Adalja discusses "
Pyrimethamine and the Market". An excerpt:
While I have no understanding of how the new price was determined, it
will eventually have to withstand the scrutiny of the market. If the
price is set higher than the market will bear, because it is no longer
under patent, other manufacturers will enter the market lowering prices.
Ideally this would happen near instantaneously but, because of
legislative barriers to entry, which include a multi-step approval
process, it will take some time. Better alternatives to the current
regimen may also appear in time as well.
Overall, however,
infectious disease products have become less attractive to
pharmaceutical companies and this, at root, is why we are left with just
one manufacturer for many important non-patented products. The
disincentives to enter this market are myriad and the ultimate answer to
this scenario is not more intervention but to remove artificial
barriers to entry, inviting the appearance of competitors in the market...
