CVS joins PBMs in questioning Sovaldi cost
Pharmacy benefit manager CVS Caremark Corp. (NYSE:CVS) has joined the debate over the price of HCV drug Sovaldi sofosbuvir from Gilead Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD). In an Express Scripts Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ESRX). In April, Express Scripts said it would ask plan sponsors to "stand side-by-side" with the PBM to encourage Gilead to provide Sovaldi at a "more reasonable price." The wholesale acquisition cost (WAC) for a 12-week course of Sovaldi is $84,000.
Earlier this month, two members of the Senate Finance Committee requested pricing information for Sovaldi from Gilead including an explanation of the difference between the drug's current cost and a lower cost projected by its original developer. Gilead gained Sovaldi through its 2012 acquisition of originator Pharmasset Inc. (see BioCentury Extra, July 11, 2014). ...