I agree, that journalist was terrible.
I suspect this guy spent a lot of time being placed in garbage cans by the jocks in High School and he has a few issues to work out. Meh, it happens.
He was markedly less confident when he was pleading the fifth, over and over again. If he has nothing to hide and his motives are what he says, he should have felt righteous answering those simple questions. He came off scared. His PR is atrocious.
"Toxoplasmic encephalitis usually occurs in HIV-infected patients with CD4 T-cell counts <100/µL.(2) Toxoplasmic encephalitis in AIDS patients in the United States is almost always caused by reactivation of a chronic infection. Thus, the incidence of this disease correlates directly with the prevalence of anti-T gondii antibodies."
If the man has done nothing wrong and is without warning arrested on fraud charges, why should he be obligated to testify at a hearing? If he's facing such charges, he should be pleading the 5th. The court brought him in to grill him. One word said sideways could be something used against him in the future by a keen lawyer. He will have plenty of time to explain himself during the actual trial.
I agree his flippant attitude (the smirks, etc.) was not exactly conducive to making him look like a "good guy." But I do not think that's something he is overly-concerned with.
Again, the cost of the drug is based on income bracket. People who cannot afford it get it for a dollar. People with insurance and within certain income brackets pay on a scale. Did you see how much HIV antivirals cost? That is far more outrageous of a situation, but no one's talking about it. You can argue it is morally wrong that people who can afford the drug should have to have a scaled cost for it, but this is a matter of the greater good. You cannot do pharmaceutical research without funds.
"A Turing rep told The Post: 'We would be happy to work with any individual in understanding which program may be right for him or her.'" (Source)
He explains in his videos the exact process people who are in complicated situations can go through to get his drug.
His rationale for the price increase was to maximize profits for shareholders. He said that. He claims there will be a downstream benefit by putting additional revenues into R&D and developing a new drug.
So, what sort of a pipeline does Turing Pharmaceuticals have? A check of its website is pretty revealing. Thirteen programs are listed, impressive, but unfortunately, the majority of the these programs are years from market. And it is surprising to see only one program for toxoplasmosis, as Shkreli has publicly stated that Turing has three programs in this area. This is a part of the fraud investigation.
Further concerning is the lack of visibility for Turing’s clinical programs. A check of ClinicalTrials.gov shows ZERO entries for “Turing Pharmaceuticals.†Given that Turing’s website indicates that it has drugs in phase 2 (TUR-001–for lactation) and phase 1 (TUR-002–ketamine–for suicidality; and the aforementioned TUR-004), one would expect that Turing would begin to have a public presence with its clinical programs. This is part of the fraud investigation.
Daraprim works well to treat toxoplasmosis, yet Shkreli believes that relying only on a 70-year-old drug to treat toxoplasmosis is a problem.
Coming up with a next-generation Daraprim will be challenging. For one thing, to generate interest on the part of regulators and physicians, you would have to run head-to-head clinical trials showing the superiority of your new agent. Such data would also be crucial to convince payers to reimburse the cost of the drug. However, the product profile needing to justify premium pricing has not been defined. It would have to be spectacular to command a price of $750/pill.
The payment landscape is also likely to be radically different by the time a new toxoplasmosis drug is launched by Turing. Let’s say in the next 7-10 years Turing actually does deliver an alternative to Daraprim. In all likelihood, the U.S. government will have solved the problem of the Daraprim price by approving new generic versions of pyrimethamine.
Already Express Scripts and Imprimis Pharmaceuticals are getting ready to offer a $1/pill alternative to Turing’s drug. Payers are going to allow use of the new agent only as a last resort. So will he be able to deliver on his promise to his investors? Another issue that is part of the fraud investigation.
Very nice, Trypt. Agree, the interview was not the best, but also not the worst...lol...
I may be going out on a limb with this, but I think Shrekli has been a scapegoat for "corporate greed." Another example of the media creating hysteria about a particular individual, instead of focusing on more important issues like conglomerations and lobbying. Although as major media outlets are run by conglomerates themselves, it's easy to see why they focus so little on such issues.
Not out on a limb at all...but not that limb. A different one.
Why do you suppose he pleaded/s the 5th?
Partially like I said in a prior response, one wrong sentence can be used as a weapon against him by a skilled prosecutor when the time for the trial comes. The other factor I think is at play is that he feels justified and not responsible to answer to anyone at a hearing.
"His rationale for the price increase was to maximize profits for shareholders. He said that. He claims there will be a downstream benefit by putting additional revenues into R&D and developing a new drug."
Shareholders are where his money came from since the beginning. Can you link something that elaborates that he has no interest in developing new drugs?
"So, what sort of a pipeline does Turing Pharmaceuticals have? A check of its website is pretty revealing. Thirteen programs are listed, impressive, but unfortunately, the majority of the these programs are years from market. And it is surprising to see only one program for toxoplasmosis, as Shkreli has publicly stated that Turing has three programs in this area. This is a part of the fraud investigation."
No pharmaceutical company puts a drug on the market without extensive testing. It is a long process, usually starting with mice (they have a very similar neurochemisty to humans), and then onto human patients. It would be a blunder to just rush out a drug without knowing what it's side-effects or even if it is effective. The fraud investigation is based on that he is accused of running a ponzi scheme, using investors to pay off other investors. It has nothing to do with Turing's research.
"Further concerning is the lack of visibility for Turing’s clinical programs. A check of ClinicalTrials.gov shows ZERO entries for “Turing Pharmaceuticals.†Given that Turing’s website indicates that it has drugs in phase 2 (TUR-001–for lactation) and phase 1 (TUR-002–ketamine–for suicidality; and the aforementioned TUR-004), one would expect that Turing would begin to have a public presence with its clinical programs. This is part of the fraud investigation."
Being open-minded, I do not disregard that fraud might have been at play. But again, that is not what the fraud investigation is about. Shrekli is facing fraud, not Turing. And since when have pharmaceutical companies been open about their R&D? Pharma is a cut-throat business. Turing doesn't share data because a company dwarfing it such as Eli Lily might just pour money into beating them at the development.
"Daraprim works well to treat toxoplasmosis, yet Shkreli believes that relying only on a 70-year-old drug to treat toxoplasmosis is a problem."
He has stated repeatedly it is a rare disease, and as I've stated, there are other cures, while admitting Deraprim may be the best. We've gone over how people can get it for a dollar, how those that can afford it pay on a scale, and how in circumstance, Turing is willing to provide the drug at the cost of a cheap toothbrush. Did Shrekli say it's bad we rely upon a 70-year-old drug to treat toxoplasmosis? Where?
"Coming up with a next-generation Daraprim will be challenging. For one thing, to generate interest on the part of regulators and physicians, you would have to run head-to-head clinical trials showing the superiority of your new agent. Such data would also be crucial to convince payers to reimburse the cost of the drug. However, the product profile needing to justify premium pricing has not been defined. It would have to be spectacular to command a price of $750/pill."
This is redundant. I've already displayed that 50% of the users get the drug for a dollar, there's a pay scale for those within income brackets with insurance, and that special circumstances are made for those who find themselves in precarious situations. By the way, he's not working on the next "Daraprim." He hiked up the price of Daraprim so that Turing can do research on a cure to AIDS. The man has several ideas that run along the line of what other pharmaceutical companies are investigating, but I feel you probably haven't listened to him much.
"The payment landscape is also likely to be radically different by the time a new toxoplasmosis drug is launched by Turing. Let’s say in the next 7-10 years Turing actually does deliver an alternative to Daraprim. In all likelihood, the U.S. government will have solved the problem of the Daraprim price by approving new generic versions of pyrimethamine."
They aren't working on a new toxoplasmosis drug. You seem very misinformed.
"Already Express Scripts and Imprimis Pharmaceuticals are getting ready to offer a $1/pill alternative to Turing’s drug. Payers are going to allow use of the new agent only as a last resort. So will he be able to deliver on his promise to his investors? Another issue that is part of the fraud investigation."
You don't see that as an undercut to competition? And furthermore, a barrier to a cure for AIDS?
Yes, you did. I caught that. Agree with you on that as well. Did you pay attention to the questions as they were asked? The type of questions and the conflations where it would make no sense for him to try to answer? They would cut him off before he could finish. lol
By pleading the 5th , he is drawing Big Pharma out. By talking about what he is and is not doing online is how, he is spreading the word of how Big P is one big mind fuck of corruption.. without saying it in those words.
It's long off patent, and no one bothered with a generic.