NEW YORK — Former hedge fund manager Martin Shkreli is under fire after spiking the price of a life-saving drug more than $700.
The drug, Daraprim, was acquired by Shkreli's company Turing Pharmaceuticals in August. Immediately after acquiring the 62-year-old drug, Shkreli raised the price from $13.50 a tablet to $750.
It's used to treat toxoplasmosis, a parasite infection that can cause life-threatening problems for newborns. The drug is also used for patients with weakened immune systems including those with HIV/AIDS.
Shkreli defended the price increase to the New York Times saying it "isn't the greedy drug company trying to gouge patients, is us trying to stay in business."
A medical expert tells the New York Times that the price increase could force hospitals to use other methods of treatment that may not be as efficient as Daraprim.
Following the announcement of the price raise, presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton blasted the company on Twitter calling it "price gouging" in biotech drugs. The impact of Clinton's tweet was felt as biotech stock prices dropped, knocking the NASDAQ into the red.
Nine of the biggest losers on the NASDAQ 100 were biotech companies, CNN reports. BioMarin Pharmaceutical and Biogen each tumbled five percent. Retrophin, plummeted 14% on Monday. Retrophin was founded by Shkreli, but he was fired and later sued by the company.
Investors are still apparently worried that Shkreli's strategies have caught Clinton's eye.
The price spike has also caught the attention of several organizations including the Infections Diseases Society of America. In a note to Turing Pharmaceuticals, IDSA calls for the immediate revision of the pricing strategy.
The IDSA estimates that under the current structure, a patient who weighs under 60 kilograms (132 pounds) will pay $336,000 annually. For patients above that weight, they'll shell out around $634,500.
"This cost is unjustifiable for the medically vulnerable patient population in need of this medication and unsustainable for the health care system," the letter reads.
