Academic OB/GYN

The recent hulabaloo with KV Pharmaceuticals and Makena continues, with multiple news and blog articles popping up every day.   Senator Brown is trying to get the FTC to do an anti-trust investigation.  The FDA is interested, but sadly they have no purview in pricing of drugs.  Many newscasts have done pieces on the issue, the vast majority leaning towards condemning KV for their pricing of Makena.   One aspect of the issue has been March of Dimes’ initial support of KV getting the FDA approval for the product.

The March of Dimes has been a positive organization for decades, and generally does a lot of good work.  This one really blew up in their face.  MOD was a major player in pushing the FDA to give orphan drug status to 17-OHP, paving the way for KV to bring Makena to market.   Jennifer Howse, PhD, president of MOD, has stated that the MOD had no idea of the planned pricing structure, and I believe her.  Nonetheless, the MOD has suffered a great deal of bad press and in some cases decreased donations because of their association with KV and Makena.

Today the March of Dimes delivered a letter to KV Pharmaceuticals, saying a lot of the things that we have been saying.  It must have been a tough letter to write, given the amount of financial support KV has given to MOD, and the potential for that to end.  While I don’t think the letter was perfect, I think it was pretty good for a major organization that has a lot of difference issues to keep in balance.  Here it is:

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