The Trump administration has been talking tough on drug prices for many months and, of course, pharmaceutical companies and other organizations have pushed back because they mostly oppose controls on the free market for prescription drugs.
For health care journalists covering these proposals, it’s essential to remain skeptical of any group that offers support or opposition and, as always, follow the money. Continue reading
Investigative journalist Katherine Eban will discuss her new book documenting rampant fraud in the generic drug industry during an AHCJ webcast on Wednesday, June 19.
In her book, “Bottle of Lies: The Inside Story of the Generic Drug Boom,” Eban reveals how generic drug makers not only help ensure that some of the worst quality drugs enter the least regulated markets but also take extreme measures to avoid regulatory scrutiny. Harper Collins/Ecco’s Hardcover division published the book on May 14. Continue reading
Photo: Esther Dyson via Flickr
The registration and reporting requirements of Clinicaltrials.gov are vital to informing the evidence base – but only if study sponsors actually use it and keep entries updated. A recent research letter in JAMA Internal Medicine suggests this is not happening often enough. That’s helpful for journalists to know if they are attempting to find all the recent evidence on a particular drug or intervention.
“Missing or incomplete reporting of clinical trial results and its scientific and ethical consequences are well documented,” wrote Kevin M. Fain, J.D., M.P.H., Dr.PH, and his team at the National Institutes of Health.
Alex Azar
When newly installed Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar held one of his first meetings with the media on Feb. 8, only three reporters were invited. They got a sneak peek at drug price provisions contained in President Trump’s budget, while other reporters had to wait days to get questions answered.
The topic – tackling the cost of pharmaceuticals – was one of Azar’s signature issues, but he chose to discuss it only with the Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, and the Daily Caller. Continue reading
Photo: Phil Galewitz/Kaiser Health NewsWashington, D.C., health journalists got together to catch up and make contact with communications official from several pharmaceutical companies on March 18.
About 25 journalists gathered on March 18 at Bistro d’Oc in Washington, D.C., for an AHCJ chapter happy hours event with top communications officials with PhRMA and several of its member pharmaceutical companies.
Photo: Phil Galewitz/Kaiser Health NewsJulie Appleby (left), of Kaiser Health News, and Laurie McGinley, of The Washington Post, with a representative of Bristol-Myers Squibb at the Washington, D.C., AHCJ chapter event on March 18.
There was no formal program, just a chance to meet PhrMA officials and representatives of companies that included Novo Nordisk, GlaxoSmithKline and Bristol-Myers Squibb.
Journalists from The Washington Post, Kaiser Health News, Politico, U.S. News & World Reports and Inside Health Policy were among those in attendance. AHCJ helped cover costs for journalists, who were asked for a voluntary $10 to defray expenses.
The event marked the third D.C. chapter event since December. For more info on D.C. chapter events, contact Phil Galewitz at pgalewitz@kff.org.
Photo: Phil Galewitz/Kaiser Health NewsJulie Appleby and Mary Agnes Carey, both of Kaiser Health News, and Laurie McGinley, of The Washington Post, (left to right) were among the journalists who attended the March 18 AHCJ chapter event.
