After outrage, CEO reverses decision to raise cancer drug's price by 5,000%

By Kevin Roose  |  September 22, 2015 | 11:11pm
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Turing Pharmaceuticals CEO Martin Shkreli became a figure of global notoriety this week after his company bought a drug used to treat toxoplasmosis, a severe parasitic infection that is found in AIDS and cancer patients, and raised the drug’s price from $13.50 per pill to $750, an increase of more than 5,000%.

Now, following a heated backlash that included criticism from Hillary Clinton and other prominent figures, Shkreli is apparently reversing course, reportedly telling NBC News that the drug his company purchased, Daraprim, will not see such a severe price hike after all.

“Shkreli said he will cut the cost of treatment in response to the public outcry,” according to CNBC.

Shkreli, who spent much of the last 48 hours fighting for his reputation on his Twitter account, appears to have had an about-face. According to CNBC, Shkreli told NBC News that the price of Daraprim will increase “to a level where Turing will break even or make a ‘small profit,'” but did not specify what that price would be.

Earlier today, Shkreli took his Twitter account private, and said he would be turning off Twitter. His last two public messages before going private were:

I’ve reached out to Shkreli for comment, and will update if I hear back.

This story is developing.

 
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