A judge has sentenced John Kapoor, the founder and former CEO of Insys Therapeutics, to 5.5 years in prison after a jury found him guilty in a bribery and racketeering scheme around the company's potent opioid drug, Subsys.
Why it matters: "Kapoor, 76, is now the highest-ranking pharmaceutical executive to be sentenced in a case linked to the opioid crisis," Reuters reports.
Eighteen Blue Cross Blue Shield insurers are investing a combined $55 million to build a new generic drug company as a subsidiary of the nonprofit Civica Rx. The firm will focus on manufacturing generics people get at the pharmacy.
Between the lines: Civica and the Blues aren't disclosing which drugs they want to make, so it's unclear how much effect this company will have. But the investment highlights the broad desire to counter generic companies that are accused of price-gouging.
Centene and WellCare have cleared all federal and state antitrust reviews, and today they finalized their merger — combining into the largest health insurer by membership, with 23.4 million covered people.
Why it matters: The health insurance industry gets a lot more consolidated with this deal, and competition will decline within state Medicaid programs and among federal Medicare plans.
The Trump administration has consistently tried to get controversial cases in front of the Supreme Court as quickly as possible — but not when that might have meant striking down the entire Affordable Care Act before the 2020 election.
Why it matters: Trump’s Justice Department has tried to leapfrog the traditional process far more than its predecessors did, and at least one Supreme Court justice seems to be worried that it’s affecting the court’s work.
Social mobility — the ability to move up the income ladder — can help explain the gap between the life expectancies of the rich and the poor, according to a new study in JAMA Internal Medicine.
What they found: Counties with higher social mobility tend to have smaller life expectancy gaps between the rich and poor, and the poorest people in those counties live longer.
Add the U.S. government to the list of groups going after patients for thousands of dollars in medical debt, per reporting by The Center for Public Integrity and The Atlantic.
How it works: Civilians can receive care at military hospitals in an emergency or if the military hospital offers superior care.
A bipartisan group of senators wants the vaping industry to pay for more of the Food and Drug Administration's oversight of vaping products.
Driving the news: Six senators, led by Democrat Jeanne Shaheen, will introduce a bill today to charge e-cigarette manufacturers higher user fees, which fund many of the FDA's regulatory activities. A corresponding bill led by Rep. Cheri Bustos will be introduced in the House soon.
State and federal spending on prescription drugs is dramatically outpacing inflation, even after accounting for rebates, according to a new analysis of federal data.
The big picture: Rebates lower drug spending, as their proponents argue. But they also reinforce a system that's incredibly complex and costly — especially for people who take a lot of medications and have to pay sizable amounts out of pocket.
