Drug prices up after competition is down

Prices of some prescription drugs rose sharply after rivals left the market recently, but drugmakers say there's no connection.

• Wholesale prices for leading multiple sclerosis drugs Avonex and Copaxone jumped in May by 8 percent and 9.4 percent respectively, their makers confirmed Friday. In February, sales of MS drug Tysabri were halted after several users contracted a rare brain infection.

• Retail prices for painkiller Mobic rose 7 percent to 11 percent, depending on the dose, from September through early March, says Consumer Reports. Last September, rival Vioxx was withdrawn from the market because of cardiovascular risks.

Other painkiller prices also rose. Prescription-strength Motrin was up 3.9 percent to 13.3 percent, depending on the dose, says Consumer Reports. It analyzed retail sales data from market researcher NDCHeath.

Boehringer Ingelheim raised Mobic's wholesale prices in January. But spokesman Mark Vincent says the increases were planned before Vioxx's withdrawal.

"We raise prices as part of a scheduled price increase. It's not a reactionary thing," Vincent says. Motrin's manufacturer, Pfizer, did not return calls for comment.

Mobic nabbed 9.9 percent of U.S. painkiller prescriptions for the week ending May 27, vs. 4.4 percent the week Vioxx was recalled, says research firm Verispan. Its gain also follows the withdrawal of Bextra in April and increased evidence that Celebrex poses cardiovascular risks. Both drugs are similar to Vioxx.

Prices can go up even if drugmakers don't raise them. Consumer Reports says the average retail price for painkiller Lodine, made by Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, rose 13.3 percent from September to March. Wyeth says it hasn't raised prices. That means wholesalers or pharmacists have, says Al Heaton, director of pharmacy for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota.

"You don't know who in the food chain is taking the increase," Heaton says. He says Blue Cross is on alert when a drug exits the market because increases by rivals often follow. "I have never seen a price decrease for other (drugs) when one rival comes off the market," he adds.

Last year, wholesale prices rose an average 7.1 percent for 195 brand-name prescription drugs tracked by the AARP.

MS drugs are going up faster. The No. 1 seller, Avonex, is made by Biogen Idec, which, along with Elan, markets Tysabri. Biogen raised Avonex wholesale prices in October, too.

Copaxone wholesale prices also rose 9.4 percent in October, says Kevin Mannix of Teva Pharmaceutical Industries. Avonex's recent price increase "is not related to the Tysabri situation," says Biogen spokeswoman Amy Ryan.

Tysabri was approved for sale last fall. Its makers have said they expect the drug to return to market after further testing. That prospect was clouded last week after reports that a fourth Tysabri user might have a life-threatening brain infection.