Dispensed: Pharma CEOs on Capitol Hill, the exploding CBD market, and treating kids with new models of primary care
Hello,
Well, it's certainly been a week. Between drug price hearings and disgruntled Bristol-Myers Squibb investors, I'm sure a lot of folks in the industry are looking forward to the week winding down.
But before it does, I wanted to share some of the stories that preoccupied the healthcare team here at Business Insider this week.
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We spent the first half of the week readying for the Senate hearing with seven top pharmaceutical executives, in total cranking out six stories on it. Emma Court has the play-by-play of the whole ordeal.
America's top pharma CEOs just got grilled by Congress over the cost of their drugs
- Seven leaders of major pharmaceutical companies testified about high US drug prices as part of a congressional hearing on Tuesday.
- Lawmakers pushed the pharma executives on what they and their organizations could do to make change for patients.
- "We've all seen the finger-pointing," said Chuck Grassley, the Republican senator from Iowa who led the hearing. "But like most Americans, I'm sick and tired of the blame game. It's time for solutions."
- The pharma executives sought to justify prices by emphasizing the value of their medicines to patients. They also shifted blame to other parts of the US healthcare system like intermediaries.
And here's a rundown of our other dispatches coming out of the hearing, in case you're still digesting all that we learned this week (I know I am).
- Congress will grill 7 top pharma executives over the high cost of drugs today. Here's how they're set to shift the blame.
- The CEO of a $210 billion pharma company says that US drug prices are working against patients. One chart explains why.
- 7 pharma execs just told Congress: Don't expect the Trump administration's newest drug pricing plan to lower all US drug prices yet
- Everybody is talking about the high cost of prescription drugs. Here's who's actually responsible for the prices you pay.
- Pharma companies want the government to do something about high drug prices, so long as it's not forcing them to lower their drug prices
While that was unfolding, Erin Brodwin had a slew of great stories about the exploding CBD market, and some developments in the lab for marijuana compounds.
- Wall Street thinks the $1 billion market for CBD could explode to $16 billion by 2025
- Scientists just made marijuana compounds in a lab for the first time, and it could open the door to new treatments for devastating diseases
- This ER doctor is about to launch the first marijuana breathalyzer, and it could completely upend how we do drug testing
- Regulators are gearing up to decide how to handle the $1 billion CBD industry, whose lotions and cookies currently exist in a legal haze
I had the scoop on Parsley Health's expansion into pediatrics. It was interesting to understand how the no-insurance, monthly fee approach to primary care could work to help kids manage chronic conditions like asthma or food allergies. And Parsley isn't the only primary care startup getting into pediatrics - One Medical has been testing it out too, with plans to expand pediatric practices into more of its offices.
A doctor's office that charges a monthly fee and doesn't take insurance wants to stop the 'revolving door' of appointments for sick kids
- Parsley Health is a medical practice that charges a monthly fee and doesn't take insurance.
- The $150-a-month membership provides access to doctors and health coaches, with the goal of treating conditions in a more comprehensive way than traditional primary care.
- Now the practice is expanding into pediatrics in its New York office, aiming to provide better care for children and teens with chronic conditions.
- The cost for kids is $129 a month.
Oh! And while I have you - are you a BI Prime subscriber? (I hope the answer is yes!) We'd love to get your feedback on the kinds of stories we're working on via this quick survey.
As always, questions? Tips? Stories we should be chasing? Words of encouragement that spring will soon be here? Find me at lramsey@businessinsider.com or the whole team at healthcare@businessinsider.com.
- Lydia