Expert: COVID-19 drug price 4x higher on black market

Dr. Rontgene Solante, head of SLH’s Adult Infectious Disease and Tropical Medicine, said hospitals are running out of tocilizumab due to the high number of patients.

AFP / Vincenzo Pinto

MANILA, Philippines — As daily cases of COVID-19 surge, a drug repurposed to treat the viral infection is reportedly being sold on the black market for four times its retail price, according to an infectious disease expert from San Lazaro Hospital (SLH).

Dr. Rontgene Solante, head of SLH’s Adult Infectious Disease and Tropical Medicine, said hospitals are running out of tocilizumab due to the high number of patients.

“The patients are telling us they could buy it from the black market. But it’s really (expensive), the price is four times higher than the original price,” he said in an interview.

Full Story: https://www.philstar.com/nation/2021/09/08/2125555/expert-covid-19-drug-price-4x-higher-black-market