Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., wants Health and Human Services to spell out its plans for getting drugmakers to lower the price of critical overdose drug naloxone.
McCaskill sent a letter to HHS Secretary Alex Azar on Tuesday wanting to know if the agency has demanded an explanation from drugmakers on the price of naloxone, which is used to reverse drug overdoses. Congress has sought to expand access to the treatment for first responders as the opioid epidemic has raged.
But McCaskill, who is in a tough re-election race, said that HHS hasn’t been able to pressure drugmakers that have raised the price of naloxone. She asked Admiral Brett Giroir, assistant secretary for health at HHS, during a Senate hearing in April about whether he could demand an explanation from drugmakers on the price hikes, but hasn’t gotten a response.
She noted that drugmaker Kaleo, which makes the product Evzio, increased the price of a two-pack from $690 in 2014 to $4,500 in 2016. Another drugmaker, named Hospira, increased the price of a naloxone product by 129 percent from 2012 to 2016, McCaskill said.
“Despite the existence of patient assistance and donation programs, these price increases complicate the goal of boosting the availability of naloxone,” she wrote.
McCaskill calls for HHS to share any actions it has taken to negotiate reduced pricing for naloxone units purchased by the government. She also wants to know whether HHS has chastised drug companies for the price hikes.
McCaskill is in a tough re-election race this fall against Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley. She has made healthcare a key plank in her re-election strategy, including her work on fighting the opioid epidemic.
