Maybe the FTC is too lax when it comes to pharma

Recent pharma mergers have run into turbulent regulatory waters as the FTC seems to be taking a harder line with high-dollar unions in the drug industry. But according to Katy Milani of a think tank called the Roosevelt Institute, the agency isn’t going far enough to protect consumers from the downstream effects of pharmaceutical consolidation.

Writing in STAT, Milani says deals like AbbVie’s proposed acquisition of Allergan illustrate pharma’s desire to take the easy way out, buying up rival firms at the expense of investing in science that might discover new medicines. Between 1995 and 2015, 60 pharmaceutical companies merged into just 10, and Milani argues that the simultaneous rise in drug costs is no coincidence.

Her solution: Elected leaders should pressure the FTC to outright reject some of these mergers.

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