Amgen Boosts Drug Prices to Offset Slowdown in Anemia Medicine Aranesp
By Rob Waters - Jan 21, 2011 1:31 PM PT
Amgen Inc. raised prices on several medications to offset falling revenue from anemia drug Aranesp, which is expected to decline more due to new government payment rules for dialysis services, an analyst said.
The price of Aranesp increased 4.4 percent, Eric Schmidt, an analyst with Cowen & Co., said in a report today. Prices on Neulasta and Neupogen, used to boost infection-fighting white blood cells in chemotherapy patients, rose 2.9 percent, he said.
Drug sales for Thousand Oaks, California-based Amgen, the world’s largest biotechnology company, fell 2.3 percent in 2009 from 2008, led by a 15 percent drop in sales of Aranesp. Aranesp is used by patients with kidney disease, including those receiving dialysis. Treatment of dialysis patients is paid for by Medicare, the U.S. health insurance program, which has imposed a new program to control costs.
“We think Amgen’s pricing power will help offset any decline in the proportion of Aranesp sales derived from the U.S. dialysis market where Medicare bundling rules are being adopted,” Schmidt said in his note today.
Amgen fell 34 cents, less than 1 percent, to $56.97 at 4 p.m. New York time in Nasdaq Stock Market composite trading.
Amgen spokesman David Polk didn’t immediately respond to a phone call and an e-mail requesting comment.
To contact the reporter on this story: Rob Waters in San Francisco at rwaters5@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Reg Gale at rgale5@bloomberg.net.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-01-21/amgen-increases-prices-to-offset-revenue-slowdown-of-anemia-drug-aranesp.html
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