Tuesday, June 8, 2021

A.G. Sues Over Insulin Prices

 Attorney General Lynn Fitch issued the following statement. 

Attorney General Lynn Fitch filed a lawsuit yesterday at the Chancery Court of Hinds County against drug manufacturers and pharmacy benefit managers (“PBMs”) working in tandem to manipulate and inflate insulin prices.

“As the mother of a diabetic, I know the emotional, physical, and financial toll the unconscionable price of insulin has on families,” said Attorney General Lynn Fitch. “I filed this lawsuit on behalf of every Mississippian who relies on this medication to survive. These companies are exploiting the vulnerable. I’m fighting back because you should never have to decide between paying the ever-increasing price of insulin or compromising your care.”

The complaint states, “Mississippi has the highest prevalence of diabetes in the United States with 13.6%   of its population – over 400,000 people – living with diabetes… Diabetes is the leading cause of blindness, kidney failure, and lower limb amputations and is the seventh leading cause of death in Mississippi despite the availability of effective treatment. Over 22% of all hospitalizations in Mississippi are attributable to diabetes.”

The total estimated cost of diagnosed diabetes in Mississippi is $3.5 billion, with one in four health care dollars spent caring for people with diabetes.

Over the course of the last decade, these companies have raised the reported prices of their respective diabetes drugs up to 1,000 percent, down to the decimal point within a few days of each other.   Even though, over the last fifteen years, the cost of producing these drugs has actually decreased, a diabetic in 2016 spent, on average, $5,705 for insulin needed to survive.

Attorney General Fitch alleges that the reason behind the increase is a fraudulent conspiracy between billion-dollar companies known as PBMs and the Manufacturer Defendants.

In their “Insulin Pricing Scheme,” the Manufacturer Defendants artificially and willingly raise their reported prices, and then deceptively refund a significant portion of that price back to PBMs through things called rebates, discounts, credits, and administration fees. They also switch medications within their formularies to suit their pricing scheme to the detriment of diabetics relying on those drugs.

This practice has resulted in record profits for Defendants at the expense of diabetics and payors, such as the State of Mississippi, who have been overcharged millions of dollars a year for egregiously inflated diabetes medications.

The complaint alleges violations of the Mississippi Consumer Protection Act  for unfair and deceptive practices as well as unjust enrichment and civil conspiracy. These excessive prices cause some diabetics in Mississippi to ration or underdose their insulin, inject expired insulin, re-use needles, and starve themselves to control their blood sugar to use as little insulin as possible. This compromise in care is extremely dangerous and can lead to serious complications or,
in some cases, death.

With this lawsuit, Attorney General Lynn Fitch seeks to hold the Defendants accountable, to protect the health and well-being of the hundreds of thousands of diabetic Mississippians, and to protect the economic interests of the State.


14 comments:

Anonymous said...

Post a copy of complaint?

Anonymous said...

which campaign donor firm got that one?

Anonymous said...

Unless there is a tape, email or other evidence, this is going to be hard to prove. Every company looks at what the competition is doing and if there are just a few players maybe they have the discipline to not have a price war. If they are smart enough to signal in the open market using their prices - and not have private correspondence - there won't be anything illegal about it.

Anonymous said...

Free shots for Covid.... hmmmmmm

Anonymous said...

November 8, 2022

Anonymous said...

Good for Lynn Fitch. I am not necessarily a fan but this could be huge.

I am a Type 1 diabetic who takes insulin. I have good insurance, so the cost to me is no big deal. But, I have been interested in this situation for some time ever since I learned that a box of Novolog that I pay less than $20 for has a "list" price of $500 - $700. Insulin was developed about 90 years ago so all of it should have been "generic" by the start of WWII. As the Fitch lawsuit says, the price of insulin has gone up 1000 percent in the last 10 years, even though they can prove the cost to produce insulin has gone down. If this was a regular consumer product, I would say don't buy it if you think the price is too high. But insulin is a life or death drug: you have it, you live and if you don't you die. There is a recent case of a 26 year old diabetic man who did not have insurance or a job where he could afford insulin in the amount he needed. So, he died.

What is incredible is that a possible solution is easy: advertise the price of drugs. It is not illegal to do so but it is not required and drug companies claim that requiring them to disclose price is a violation of their 1st amendment rights. The Trump administration tried to force drug companies to disclose prices (in one of his true efforts to fight the swamp). But, proving that big pharma has spread the dollars everywhere, the judge not only ruled against Trump, she lectured his administration for even bringing this up. Here is the story from Forbes:

https://fortune.com/2020/06/18/prescription-drug-prices-tv-ads/

This story should merit national attention. But, the next time you see those 3 minute ads about some new drug you didn't know you need, realize those represent billions of dollars in revenue for TV networks and you'll understand why it does not. Again, big pharma has spread so much money around no politician is talking about this. They argue about Medicare expansion, but that is just about who will send drug companies the money not in reducing costs. Democrats want Medicaid to negotiate directly with drug companies on price, but that doesn't let you know what the price is. Republicans just oppose Nancy Pelosi without saying what they would do. There is a bill in the U.S. Senate (bipartisan too!) to disclose prices, but its future is "unclear."

The Fitch lawsuit will be really interesting. Clearly she is doing this because she was tired of paying diabetes bills for her daughter. Maybe that will spur real change. If this goes away, check her campaign contributions disclosures.

Anonymous said...

Where is link to complaint?

Anonymous said...

Fantastic post, 2:58! I agree with every word.

I won't be allowed to say too much on the subject, but please look into Ketogenic diets and Time-restricted Eating (aka Intermittent Fasting). I can't say specifically HOW, but this might help enormously with what you're facing. I speak from experience.

Lemuria has a (barely) decent selection of books on the subject, and YouTube offers more-than-enough, for free. (you're smart enough to distinguish between the hucksters and the legitimate Keto docs).

Anonymous said...

Why won’t anyone send a link to the complaint?????

Kingfish said...

Because it will cost $20 to download the complaint. There is no link to it in MEC. I've asked the AG's communications director for a copy but of course, he hasn't even acknowledged my request. Oh well.

Anonymous said...

We need a lot more pro-competition anti-trust activity in this country. COVID has helped expose very serious issues in our supply chain, where only a few mega companies are dominating and controlling an entire industry, to the point that they are essentially setting prices.

Lumber prices are sky high, but timber growers aren't making any more money than they were decades ago. A couple of the mega wood processors are setting market prices for both growers and retailers.

Meat prices are going sky high, but beef, pork, and poultry growers aren't making much more money than in the past. Several major meat processors are setting market meat prices for both growers and retailers.

Google, Facebook, and Twitter control a huge portion of the information available on the internet. They censor and control what information they will allow to be disseminated to the global public.

This is dangerous and it's getting worse. Politicians IN BOTH PARTIES have been in bed with Big Business for far too long, and the two groups are working in concert to exert more and more control over the people. The pharma industry is another prime offender. Insulin is one example, epi-pens have been another. It's unconscionable and it's not going to change until we demand action and follow through.

Anonymous said...

I never got my $3.00 pro rata portion from the last law suit the Ms. attorney general won for me. By the way, why did the MP and L lawsuit go away when we elected a new Attorney General? Apparently, while the state was paying to defend that suit, the sky was the limit. You had MP and L (whose fees are regulated by the state) being sued by the attorney general. A number of Mississippi lawyers got rich on that one. To her credit, Fitch eliminated that Ponzi scheme.

Anonymous said...

Amen 2:58 I would not listen to 5:10 especially if your a type 1, none of that stuff works. Doctors would never recommend it . If your a type 2 in a lot of cases weight & edit management and can help.

Anonymous said...

Pandering to the emotional crowd with "I'm the mother of..."

Her personal circumstance is totally irrelevant to the mission and duty of an elected official. Reminds me of Dogbart's repetitive use of his office to rattle on about autism.



Recent Comments

Search Jackson Jambalaya

Subscribe to JJ's Youtube channel

Archives

Trollfest '09

Trollfest '07 was such a success that Jackson Jambalaya will once again host Trollfest '09. Catch this great event which will leave NE Jackson & Fondren in flames. Othor Cain and his band, The Black Power Structure headline the night while Sonjay Poontang returns for an encore performance. Former Frank Melton bodyguard Marcus Wright makes his premier appearance at Trollfest singing "I'm a Sweet Transvestite" from "The Rocky Horror Picture Show." Kamikaze will sing his new hit, “How I sold out to da Man.” Robbie Bell again performs: “Mamas, don't let your babies grow up to be Bells” and “Any friend of Ed Peters is a friend of mine”. After the show, Ms. Bell will autograph copies of her mug shot photos. In a salute to “Dancing with the Stars”, Ms. Bell and Hinds County District Attorney Robert Smith will dance the Wango Tango.

Wrestling returns, except this time it will be a Battle Royal with Othor Cain, Ben Allen, Kim Wade, Haley Fisackerly, Alan Lange, and “Big Cat” Donna Ladd all in the ring at the same time. The Battle Royal will be in a steel cage, no time limit, no referee, and the losers must leave town. Marshand Crisler will be the honorary referee (as it gives him a title without actually having to do anything).


Meet KIM Waaaaaade at the Entergy Tent. For five pesos, Kim will sell you a chance to win a deed to a crack house on Ridgeway Street stuffed in the Howard Industries pinata. Don't worry if the pinata is beaten to shreds, as Mr. Wade has Jose, Emmanuel, and Carlos, all illegal immigrants, available as replacements for the it. Upon leaving the Entergy tent, fig leaves will be available in case Entergy literally takes everything you have as part of its Trollfest ticket price adjustment charge.

Donna Ladd of The Jackson Free Press will give several classes on learning how to write. Smearing, writing without factchecking, and reporting only one side of a story will be covered. A donation to pay their taxes will be accepted and she will be signing copies of their former federal tax liens. Ms. Ladd will give a dramatic reading of her two award-winning essays (They received The Jackson Free Press "Best Of" awards.) "Why everything is always about me" and "Why I cover murders better than anyone else in Jackson".

In the spirit of helping those who are less fortunate, Trollfest '09 adopts a cause for which a portion of the proceeds and donations will be donated: Keeping Frank Melton in his home. The “Keep Frank Melton From Being Homeless” booth will sell chances for five dollars to pin the tail on the jackass. John Reeves has graciously volunteered to be the jackass for this honorable excursion into saving Frank's ass. What's an ass between two friends after all? If Mr. Reeves is unable to um, perform, Speaker Billy McCoy has also volunteered as when the word “jackass” was mentioned he immediately ran as fast as he could to sign up.


In order to help clean up the legal profession, Adam Kilgore of the Mississippi Bar will be giving away free, round-trip plane tickets to the North Pole where they keep their bar complaint forms (which are NOT available online). If you don't want to go to the North Pole, you can enjoy Brant Brantley's (of the Mississippi Commission on Judicial Performance) free guided tours of the quicksand field over by High Street where all complaints against judges disappear. If for some reason you are unable to control yourself, never fear; Judge Houston Patton will operate his jail where no lawyers are needed or allowed as you just sit there for minutes... hours.... months...years until he decides he is tired of you sitting in his jail. Do not think Judge Patton is a bad judge however as he plans to serve free Mad Dog 20/20 to all inmates.

Trollfest '09 is a pet-friendly event as well. Feel free to bring your dog with you and do not worry if your pet gets hungry, as employees of the Jackson Zoo will be on hand to provide some of their animals as food when it gets to be feeding time for your little loved one.

Relax at the Fox News Tent. Since there are only three blonde reporters in Jackson (being blonde is a requirement for working at Fox News), Megan and Kathryn from WAPT and Wendy from WLBT will be on loan to Fox. To gain admittance to the VIP section, bring either your Republican Party ID card or a Rebel Flag. Bringing both and a torn-up Obama yard sign will entitle you to free drinks served by Megan, Wendy, and Kathryn. Get your tickets now. Since this is an event for trolls, no ID is required. Just bring the hate. Bring the family, Trollfest '09 is for EVERYONE!!!

This is definitely a Beaver production.


Note: Security provided by INS.

Trollfest '07

Jackson Jambalaya is the home of Trollfest '07. Catch this great event which promises to leave NE Jackson & Fondren in flames. Sonjay Poontang and his band headline the night with a special steel cage, no time limit "loser must leave town" bout between Alan Lange and "Big Cat"Donna Ladd following afterwards. Kamikaze will perform his new song F*** Bush, he's still a _____. Did I mention there was no referee? Dr. Heddy Matthias and Lori Gregory will face off in the undercard dueling with dangling participles and other um, devices. Robbie Bell will perform Her two latest songs: My Best Friends are in the Media and Mama's, Don't Let Your Babies Grow up to be George Bell. Sid Salter of The Clarion-Ledger will host "Pin the Tail on the Trial Lawyer", sponsored by State Farm.

There will be a hugging booth where in exchange for your young son, Frank Melton will give you a loooong hug. Trollfest will have a dunking booth where Muhammed the terrorist will curse you to Allah as you try to hit a target that will drop him into a vat of pig grease. However, in the true spirit of Separate But Equal, Don Imus and someone from NE Jackson will also sit in the dunking booth for an equal amount of time. Tom Head will give a reading for two hours on why he can't figure out who the hell he is. Cliff Cargill will give lessons with his .80 caliber desert eagle, using Frank Melton photos as targets. Tackleberry will be on hand for an autograph session. KIM Waaaaaade will be passing out free titles and deeds to crackhouses formerly owned by The Wood Street Players.

If you get tired come relax at the Fox News Tent. To gain admittance to the VIP section, bring either your Republican Party ID card or a Rebel Flag. Bringing both will entitle you to free drinks.Get your tickets now. Since this is an event for trolls, no ID is required, just bring the hate. Bring the family, Trollfest '07 is for EVERYONE!!!

This is definitely a Beaver production.

Note: Security provided by INS
.