A state medical association is calling on similar organizations across the nation to rise up and take action against spiraling generic drug price increases.

The Pennsylvania Medical Society issued a statement alleging that increases in certain key generics were likely the result of anti-competitive behavior on the part of pharmaceutical firms.

“Health care costs are always under a microscope,” said Scott Shapiro, MD, president of the Pennsylvania Medical Society. “And, when you see increases that go significantly beyond the inflation rate, it’s going to raise questions.”

In answer to the question, “How does one explain these price spikes?” Robert Campbell MD, chair of Physicians Against Drug Shortages and immediate past president of the Pennsylvania Society of Anesthesiologists, said there could be little other explanation than anti-competitive behavior.

“The truth is that drug shortages and price spikes are not terribly complex,” said Campbell. “If you consider one simple fact — high demand and low supply at high prices — what possible explanations are there for such a condition?”

Joel Fiedler, MD, president of the Pennsylvania Allergy and Asthma Association, said he saw a 4,000 percent increase in the price of Mylan NV’s albuterol sulfate — used to treat wheezing and shortness of breath caused by breathing problems such as asthma — from 2013 to 2014 alone.

“Increasing drug costs can certainly create challenging financial situations for families, possibly forcing some to skip treatments,” Fiedler said.

The society is urging others in the medical profession to lobby for state and federal legislation that will limit price hikes in common generics so that patients can afford to purchase the life-saving drugs their physicians prescribe.

“What good are medications if they price themselves out and patients decide to forego a visit to the pharmacy because it would create a financial strain,” Shapiro said. “I can understand that some of the increase comes as a result of research needs, but when it outpaces inflation by large margins, tough questions need to be asked and solutions need to be found."

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Doctors call for fight against generic drug price increases

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