Valeant To End Controversial Relationship With Specialty Pharmacy Philidor
The nation’s three largest drug benefit managers, CVS, Express Scripts and UnitedHealth Group, had also announced that they would no longer work with Philidor, the mysterious pharmacy at the center of questions surrounding Valeant's business practices.
Bloomberg:
Valeant Says It's Cutting Ties With Troubled Pharmacy Philidor
Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. will terminate its relationship with Philidor Rx Services, the closely-associated pharmacy that the drugmaker has used to distribute its products and that is under scrutiny for its business practices. Philidor will shut down operations as soon as possible, Valeant said in a statement Friday, and the drugmaker will continue to ensure patients’ access to treatments. The decision came after Bloomberg News reported that Philidor altered doctors’ prescriptions to wring more reimbursements out of U.S. health insurers. (Armstrong and Kitamura, 10/30)
The New York Times:
Express Scripts And CVS Health Cut Ties With A Pharmacy Linked To Valeant
The nation’s three largest drug benefit managers said on Thursday that they would cease doing business with a mysterious pharmacy that has been bolstering sales of products made by Valeant Pharmaceuticals International. Express Scripts, CVS Health and OptumRx said they would stop paying for drugs dispensed by the pharmacy, Philidor Rx Services. (Pollack, 10/29)
The Wall Street Journal:
CVS, Express Scripts, UnitedHealth Group Cut Off Philidor, Pharmacy Used By Valeant
The three largest pharmacy-benefit managers in the U.S. said they are ceasing work with a pharmacy that has helped drive sales growth at Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc., dealing another blow to the drug maker. CVS Health Corp. on Thursday said it is terminating mail-order pharmacy Philidor Rx Services LLC from the network of its Caremark pharmacy-benefit unit, after audits found the pharmacy wasn’t complying with terms of its agreement. Express Scripts Holding Co. released a similar statement about an hour later, saying it was cutting off Philidor and also evaluating four additional pharmacies with which Valeant “has a similar relationship.” UnitedHealth Group Inc.’s OptumRx also said it was dropping Philidor from its networks, beginning the process after an audit late last year. (Wilde Mathews, Whalen and Copeland, 10/29)
And after a hot start, Theranos founder and chief executive Elizabeth Holmes is now facing marketplace hurdles -
The New York Times:
The Narrative Frays For Theranos And Elizabeth Holmes
Few people, let alone those just 31 years old, have amassed the accolades and riches bestowed on Elizabeth Holmes, founder and chief executive of the blood-testing start-up Theranos. This year President Obama named her a United States ambassador for global entrepreneurship. She gave the commencement address at Pepperdine University. She was the youngest person ever to be awarded the Horatio Alger Award in recognition of “remarkable achievements accomplished through honesty, hard work, self-reliance and perseverance over adversity.” She is on the Board of Fellows of Harvard Medical School. (Stewart, 10/29)