Drugs, Money, and Secret Handshakes (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781108482455)

In the warped world of prescription drug pricing, generic drugs can cost more than branded ones, old drugs can be relaunched at astronomical prices, and low-cost options are shut out of the market. In Drugs, Money and Secret Handshakes, Robin Feldman shines a light into the dark corners of the pharmaceutical industry to expose a web of shadowy deals in which higher-priced drugs receive favorable treatment and patients are channeled toward the most expensive medicines. At the center of this web are the highly secretive middle players who establish coverage levels for patients and negotiate with drug companies. By offering lucrative payments to these middle players (as well as to doctors and hospitals), drug companies ensure that inexpensive drugs never gain traction. This system of perverse incentives has delivered the kind of exorbitant drug prices - and profits - that everyone loves except for those who pay the bills.

Author: Robin Feldman
ISBN-10: 1108482457
ISBN-13: 9781108482455
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Language: English
Published: 04/11/2019
Pages: 196
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.00lbs
Size: 9.20h x 9.60w x 0.50d

Review Citation(s):
Choice 10/01/2019