The global battle over high drug prices

Western countries, as well as poor ones, are demanding transparency in the cost of drugs

These days it is hard to find a government that is not struggling with the high price of medicines. In England, the government is fighting Vertex, a drug company, over the cost of a drug for cystic fibrosis, Orkambi. In America, diabetics have died because of the high cost of insulin. In the Netherlands, the government for a time stopped buying the immuno-oncology drug, Keytruda, because it was too expensive—even though it had helped to develop it. The list price of Orkambi is about $23,000 a month in America, and Keytruda is about $13,600 month (for as long as treatment continues). It has taken such rich-world dramas to force the unaffordability of medicines to the top of the agenda, even though poorer countries have complained about it for decades. read more »

Ex-Credit Suisse banker pleads guilty to U.S. charge over Mozambique loan

A former Credit Suisse Group AG banker pleaded guilty on Monday to a U.S. charge that she helped launder money from a kickback scheme involving $2 billion in loans to state-owned companies in Mozambique.

Detelina Subeva, 37, pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering conspiracy before U.S. District Judge William Kuntz in Brooklyn, New York. Subeva is one of three Credit Suisse bankers charged by U.S. prosecutors in January with taking part in the scheme. read more »

Tesla stock and bonds tumble as investors fret about costs and safety

Tesla’s stock and bonds tumbled on Monday as investors worried about the automaker’s cash burn and problems with an Autopilot system that CEO Elon Musk has held out as key to the electric car maker’s future.

Tesla’s stock fell 3.8% to $203.03, bringing its loss to 11% since the National Transportation Safety Board said on Thursday that the Autopilot system was engaged during a fatal collision of a Model 3 on March 1, in at least the third deadly U.S. crash reported involving the driver-assistance system. read more »

UK Cryptocurrency scams triple in a year – at £27m total cost to victims

Investment scams involving cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and foreign currency trading have tripled in a year, with the average victim losing £14,600, according to the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

Crypto-assets is a broad term covering many different types of products. The most popular include tokens such as bitcoin and litecoin. The FCA calls these “exchange tokens,” though they are often referred to as cryptocurrencies, cryptocoins or payment tokens. read more »