1 September 2015 - Amgen is launching its injectable cholesterol drug in Europe at around half the U.S. price, in a move likely to stoke controversy about the way Americans end up paying far more than others for new medicines.

Repatha belongs to a potent and expensive new class of drugs for lowering "bad" LDL cholesterol, whose high cost has prompted concerns among healthcare providers and doctors.

U.S.-based Amgen said on Tuesday it would charge 340.20 pounds ($521.70) in Britain for a 28-day supply of Repatha, or roughly $6,780 a year, against a list price of $14,100 in the United States, where the drug is also being launched this week.

In Austria and Finland, a year's supply will cost around 7,293 and 7,825 euros ($8,220 and $8,820) respectively. Prices have yet to be determined for other European Union markets.

Repatha is a so-called PCSK9 inhibitor, which is more powerful than cheap statin pills that are effective for most people with high cholesterol.

A rival PCSK9 product called Praluent from Regeneron Pharmaceuticals and Sanofi, which has a U.S. price tag of $14,600, is still awaiting final European approval.
Both drugs are expected to generate more than $2 billion a year each in sales by 2020, according to Thomson Reuters data.

For more details, go to: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/reuters/article-3218345/Europe-gets-Amgen-cholesterol-drug-50-60-pct-U-S-price.html