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Re:New HIV vaccine with a 97% antibody response rate in phas... by tjohns on Sunday April 04, 2021 @06:56PM (#26693561)
Gilead's patent on Truvada (the most common drug used for PrEP) just expired. As of a few months ago it's available as a generic.
Re:New HIV vaccine with a 97% antibody response rate in phas... by heavyset_go on Sunday April 04, 2021 @07:03PM (#26693595)
Generic Truvada costs between $1600 - $2200 a month without a discount. GoodRx brings it down to about $600 - $1200.
Re:New HIV vaccine with a 97% antibody response rate in phas... by tjohns on Sunday April 04, 2021 @07:15PM (#26693669)
As I understand it, only one company makes the generic right now.

As others begin producing it market pressure will hopefully drive those costs down.

It’s also worth noting that some insurance companies have recently begun classifying it as preventative medicine (as it should’ve been this whole time) and covering it at 100%.

Re:New HIV vaccine with a 97% antibody response rate in phas... by ceejayoz on Sunday April 04, 2021 @07:37PM (#26693797)
> As others begin producing it market pressure will hopefully drive those costs down.

That's the idea, but it doesn't really work that way.

https://hbr.org/2017/04/how-pharma-companies-game-the-system...

> One of the ways branded drug manufacturers prevent competition is simple: cash. In so-called “pay for delay” agreements, a brand drug company simply pays a generic company not to launch a version of a drug. The Federal Trade Commission estimates these pacts cost U.S. consumers and taxpayers $3.5 billion in higher drug costs each year.

and this fun one...

> Another way pharmaceutical firms are thwarting generics is by restricting access to samples for testing. Generic drug makers need to be able to purchase a sample of a brand-name product to conduct bioequivalence testing. That’s because they have to prove they can make a bioequivalent product following the current good manufacturing practices (CGMP) standard. These manufacturers don’t need to conduct clinical trials like the original drug company did.

> But the original drug developer often declines to sell drug samples to generics manufacturers by citing “FDA requirements,” by which they mean the agency’s Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies program. The idea behind this program is a good one: give access to patients who will benefit from these personalized medicines, and bar access for patients who won’t benefit and could be seriously harmed. However, brand drug makers are citing these requirements for the sole purpose of keeping generics from coming to market.

Re:New HIV vaccine with a 97% antibody response rate in phas... by trident5000 on Sunday April 04, 2021 @08:28PM (#26694141)
Thats collusion and its supposed to be illegal. Maybe the US should enforce the laws it has or get more teeth in anti-trust cases by expanding the definition.

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/collusion.asp

Re:New HIV vaccine with a 97% antibody response rate in phas... by taurath on Sunday April 04, 2021 @09:13PM (#26694387)
Pharma has leadership of both Dems and republicans. It’s one of the most underrated lobbying groups in the country
Re:New HIV vaccine with a 97% antibody response rate in phas... by refurb on Sunday April 04, 2021 @07:54PM (#26693891)
But since there is already a generic apparently this did not work?
Re:New HIV vaccine with a 97% antibody response rate in phas... by ceejayoz on Sunday April 04, 2021 @07:57PM (#26693907)
Successfully limiting the number of generic competitors still helps quite a bit.
Re:New HIV vaccine with a 97% antibody response rate in phas... by refurb on Sunday April 04, 2021 @10:33PM (#26694744)
That's not how the system works. The first generic get 6 months of market exclusivity. The FDA won't approve any other until after the 6 months is up.

And if one generic manufacturer was able to get approved, then the flood gates are open. It won't limit anything if all those additional patents were found invalid (which they would need to be for the 1st generic to be approved).

Re:New HIV vaccine with a 97% antibody response rate in phas... by ceejayoz on Sunday April 04, 2021 @10:49PM (#26694813)
I cited two specific ways used to keep “the flood gates” closed.
Re:New HIV vaccine with a 97% antibody response rate in phas... by refurb on Monday April 05, 2021 @02:52AM (#26696053)
Right, which don't apply to this situation.
Re:New HIV vaccine with a 97% antibody response rate in phas... by ttul on Sunday April 04, 2021 @07:29PM (#26693752)
Generic medicines also require licensing, which costs money and takes time. A whole lot more could be done by governments to facilitate more competition in generic drugs.
Re:New HIV vaccine with a 97% antibody response rate in phas... by peter303 on Sunday April 04, 2021 @10:54PM (#26694847)
India manufacturers it for $6 a month. Gilead looks the other way as long its only used in the 3rd world.