The American Prospect - Public Pharma’s Biggest Barrier

Open Markets Industrial Policy Program Manager Audrey Stienon penned a piece in The American Prospect on the pros and cons of California’s close partnership with Civica Rx, as the state begins to manufacture insulin in an effort to lower costs.

Several months ago, California’s CalRx Biosimilar Insulin Initiative partnered with nonprofit generic drug producer Civica Rx to develop and manufacture insulin, a lifesaving drug for people with diabetes whose price has tripled in the last decade. The pair aim to sell their publicly backed brand across the country, including to people without insurance, at $30 a vial—a tenth of the price of some existing brands.

This innovative partnership leverages the unique strengths of governments and nonprofits when competing with corporate producers, and has the potential to make insulin more affordable and accessible to people whose lives depend on it. It has also prompted breathless anticipation among progressive onlookers about whether a public option for pharmaceutical manufacturing may be on the horizon.

But even as California is getting much of the credit, most of the heavy lifting of developing, manufacturing, and distributing low-cost insulin is coming from Civica, the nonprofit partner. Rather than showcasing the state’s strength, the CalRx initiative is exposing how underwhelming the resources available to the government currently are. If states like California are serious about stepping into the ring with the corporate heavyweights of the pharmaceutical industry, they are going to need one hell of a workout.

Read the full article at The American Prospect.