One of pharma's most notorious gougers is going bankrupt, but 2019 is a banner year for shkreli-grad pharmaceutical price-hikes

Back in September 2016, Novum Pharma made headlines when it raised the price of Aloquin, a barely-effective acne cream from $240/tube to $10,000/tube, after acquiring the exclusive right to manufacture it.

Now, Novum is bankrupt, a fact it attributes to the price hike leading to "public scrutiny regarding [Novums] business model and further increased prescription rejection rates."

While this is reason to cheer, don't get too happy. As Beth Mole points out at Ars Technica: "despite the public spotlight on drug pricing, more than three-dozen drug companies started 2019 with sweeping price increases on hundreds of drugs."

While the bankruptcy may seem like a victory in the battle to drag down soaring drug prices, Craig Garthwaite, director of healthcare at Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, did not have such an optimistic view. I think were seeing companies sensitive to announcing these price changes. I dont think were seeing a wholesale change in behavior, he told the Tribune.

Infamous pharma company declares bankruptcy after 3,900% price hike [Beth Mole/Ars Technica] Read the rest