Good Day BIO: Drug prices rising more slowly than inflation – plus, base editing makes its debut

The latest data shows drug prices are still rising slower than inflation—so, why are drug manufacturers the target when it comes to controlling health care costs? Plus, a BIO member company launched the first human trial of “base editing,” which could be a game-changer for patients and the potential of gene editing. (667 words, 3 minutes, 20 seconds)

Inflation is way up—but drug price are not, says BLS

June numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released last week once again show drug prices are rising more slowly than inflation, prompting the Wall Street Journal Editorial Board to condemn the Senate’s proposed “drug pricing non-fix.”

The numbers: While overall prices rose 1.3% from May to June, prescription drug prices rose 0.1%. In the previous 12 months, overall prices rose 9.1% and prescription drug prices rose 2.5.%.

Other health costs rose faster: Health insurance outstripped inflation, rising at an annual rate of 17.3% in June, the Wall Street Journal explains.

The long-term trend: “Per capita spending on prescription drugs began to level off in real terms…in the mid-2000s. Since that time, such spending has fallen as a percentage of total spending on health care services and supplies,” a January Congressional Budget Office report finds.

But for some reason, drug manufacturers are the target, with lawmakers considering a plan that would allow Medicare to set prices of certain drugs.

“There is no negotiation,” says the WSJ Editorial Board, citing the proposal’s 95% tax on drug manufacturers who don’t comply with government demands, and no way to appeal.

The bottom line: “The deal would discourage investment in new treatments,” says the WSJ Editorial Board.

BIO agrees: “The Senate proposal “would drastically slow critical investments in future research and development, stalling drug innovation” and harming patients,” according to BIO President and CEO Dr. Michelle McMurry-Heath.

More precise gene editing makes its clinical-trial debut

Base editing, a method to make gene editing even more precise, is being tested in the clinic for the first time, with Verve Therapeutics dosing the first patient in a clinical trial of a drug targeting hereditary high cholesterol.

The treatment: The patient takes just one pill “to make a single spelling change in liver DNA to permanently turn off a disease-causing gene,” thereby reducing “disease-driving low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C),” says BIO member Verve Therapeutics.

The disease: Heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia is a common genetic disorder affecting 1 in 500, which increases LDL cholesterol levels and is associated with a higher risk of coronary artery disease.

The technology: “In CRISPR–Cas9 genome editing, the Cas9 enzyme breaks both strands of DNA at the site that is to be edited,” according to Nature. The cell usually stitches the DNA back together correctly, but errors can happen. However, “base editing” only cuts one strand, reducing possible errors.

It’s a potential game-changer: The clinical trial for Verve Therapeutics’ VERVE-101 drug not only provides hope for millions worldwide with this genetic disorder—it could show whether base editing offers “safer and more controllable therapies for genetic diseases.”

What they’re saying: “The dosing of the first human with such an investigational base editing medicine represents a significant achievement by our team and for the field of gene editing,” says Verve Therapeutics CEO Sekar Kathiresan.

The context: Regulatory challenges for gene-edited drugs, especially regarding new manufacturing techniques, are “keeping the game-changing sector from realizing its full potential,” Bio.News reports—and regulators need to keep up with the science, said experts on a gene editing panel at the BIO International Convention in June.

More Health Care News: 

Innovation and Value Initiative: IVI names Dr. Jason Spangler as new CEO
“For nearly two decades, Dr. Spangler has worked in the professional health policy and public health sector with pharmaceutical and non-profit organizations. Dr. Spangler joins IVI from his most recent role as Executive Medical Director and Head of Global HTA Policy Strategy & Engagement for Amgen, Inc.”

President Biden’s Tuesday: No public appearances scheduled today. Biden is considering declaring a climate emergency to enact parts of his agenda that were scuttled in the Senate, reports The Washington Post.

What’s Happening on Capitol Hill: The House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis holds a hearing, “Long COVID and Its Health and Economic Consequences.” The House Energy and Commerce Committee holds a hearing. “The Impacts of Taking Away the Constitutional Right to an Abortion.” The House Committee on Oversight and Reform will hold a hearing, “Regenerative Agriculture: How Farmers and Ranchers are Essential to Solving Climate Change and Increasing Food Production.”