Durbin demands answers from Novum Pharma on skyrocketing drug prices

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) called on Chicago-based Novum Pharma to explain sudden, dramatic price increases for three dermatological gels that treat common skin conditions like acne, dermatitis, and eczema. In a letter to Novum CEO Todd Smith, Durbin expressed concern that price hikes like those of Novum and Mylan, which has recently come under fire for increasing the price of the Epi-Pen, result in higher health insurance premiums for patients and increased costs for federal health care programs, including Medicaid and Medicare. Novum purchased the rights to Alcortin A, Aloquin, and Novacort in 2015 and has since increased prices at least 40-fold.

“There seems to be no justifiable reason for price increases or sales prices of this magnitude for many of these products – and consumers, payors, and members of Congress are fed up,” wrote Durbin. “If the pharmaceutical industry is unwilling or unable to reasonably price their products in a way that both protects access for patients in need and does not place an unnecessary financial burden on our health care system, then Congress must step in and act.”

Senator Durbin has fought to rein in skyrocketing prescription drug costs for American families. He recently joined 19 of his Senate colleagues calling on drug company Mylan to explain sharp price increases for its life-saving EpiPen Auto-Injector. Earlier this Congress, Durbin introduced the Medicare Prescription Drug Savings and Choice Act, which would help lower drug costs for seniors and persons with disabilities by allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices. Durbin is also a cosponsor of the FAIR Drug Pricing Act, which would force drug companies to provide justification and advance notice before raising prices of certain drugs by more than 10 percent, and theCREATES Act, which would expedite consumers’ access to more affordable generic drugs.

Full text of the letter is available here

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