Gilead's Earnings Fuel Drug Pricing Debate, But Even Waxman Doesn't See Congress Acting

Gilead's revelation Wednesday (July 23) that it sold $3.48 billion of its breakthrough hepatitis C drug Sovaldi in the second quarter of this year alone -- beating even Wall Street expectations -- fueled an already heated national drug pricing debate, spurring health plans, a broad-based stakeholder coalition and lawmakers to again demand the company voluntarily lower the $84,000-per-course cost of the drug. At the same time, a key House Democrat conceded Congress is unlikely to act. The company, whose new...