Xolair prices

[Guest guest]

What, exactly, is the price of Xolair per 150mg bottle? I was under

the impression that it is $600/bottle, so that your price per month

will vary with your dosing with most folks averaging between $1200 and

$2400 a month? I mean the actual price , not what you are paying for

co-pay. Seems I've heard a very wide range of prices, so I am not sure

what's going on. Only a limited number of pharmacies can sell the drug

and I thought they were all selling it at the same price. I'm sure we

would all LOVE to know however<vbg>

New drugs, with a previously unavailable use, are not initially priced

by their development cost, but instead by the cost of the alternative

they are hoping to replace, in this case the ICU stays of the severe

asthmatics and the ER visits of the moderates. This is beneficial for

individuals who suffer from one of the very rare diseases, since the

development cost based pricing might ticket a drug at $1,000,000 a

dose or more. It is not so good for breakthroughs in more common

diseases. Eventually the price WILL come down as more people get on

the drug, unless the serious and/or long term side effects are too

expensive for the drug compnay (lawsuit-wise.)

If you are having trouble with your insurance company; and you have

evidence that this drug is working for you, document their savings for

them. Show them that, for example, the first six months of 2003 you

were in hospital 5 times for a total of $35,000 and not at all since

you have been on the Xolair. Money talks. It worked for me with a

drug that is roughly 12 times the cost of the Xolair I take...all I

had to do was point out that the week long ICU parties had stopped.

Good luck to all in their insurance battles....