With controversy over Mylan's price spikes quelling, Ariad Pharmaceuticals may be replacing the EpiPen maker as the government's newest target for high drug costs.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) sent a letter to Ariad asking for more information about the Cambridge, Mass.-based drugmaker's large price hikes on its leukemia drug Iclusig, reports Reuters.
According to a STAT report, Ariad raised the wholesale acquisition price of Iclusig four times this year. The treatment costs more than $16,000 for a 30-day pack of pills, which amounts to $199,000 per year. Iclusig produced $65.3 million in sales for the second quarter of 2016, according to Reuters.
In the letter, Sen. Sanders and Rep. Cummings write, "In the interest of patients and taxpayers, we are interested in learning more about the impact that the escalating price and restrictions on product availability have had."
The letter comes a week after a tweet from Sen. Sander's account admonished the high price of Iclusig, sending Ariad's shares down 15 percent and costing investors $387 million.
Ariad acknowledged it received the letter and said it plans to respond to Rep. Cummings and Sen. Sanders' request for more information, according to the report.
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