Jakob Riis, president of the Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk, posted an open letter on the company's website Wednesday, vowing he would not raise the list price of any medicine by more than a single-digit percentage annually, reports STAT News.
In the letter, Mr. Riis discussed the company's position on drug affordability and listed three main initiatives the company will take that revolve around creating more pricing predictability, transforming the drug pricing system and reducing the burden of out-of-pocket costs to patients.
"We hear from more and more people living with diabetes about the challenges they face affording healthcare, including the medicines we make. We take this issue seriously and have been thinking about what we can do to better support patients," Mr. Riss wrote in the letter. "This has become a responsibility that needs to be shared among all those involved in healthcare and we’re going to do our part."
Mr. Riis' initiative follows the stance Allergan CEO Brent Saunders took against high drug prices in September when he promised to limit price increases through a social contract with consumers.
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