Patients with orphan diseases are affected by their diseases every day of their lives, often from a very young age as most orphan diseases are genetic ("Rare Diseases: Facts and Statistics"), and therefore have a unique perspective on the entire orphan drug system. It is natural for them to push for better funding for research as they have become part of an extended community which depends on medication that can be denied to them for financial reasons. For example, the Fabry Disease community builds a sense of togetherness that encourages activism through group therapy, camps for suffering children, and family oriented events. Many patients feel that pharmaceutical companies should be more willing to compromise to develop treatments for orphan diseases despite the financial risks.
Many patients recognize that it is more profitable to produce and sell treatments for common illnesses than it is to treat orphan diseases simply due to the larger consumer base. However, there are a number of companies all producing a treatment for these common diseases whereas there is no available treatment for rare diseases. Many companies producing one drug causes competition, whereas companies who manage to treat rare diseases would be the only ones on the market with that drug for seven years due to the Orphan Drug Act of 1983 ("Orphan Drug Act").
This means that pharmaceutical companies can afford to produce orphan drugs so long as they are the only ones to do so. Therefore, many patients feel that there is the potential for cooperation between pharmaceutical companies to communicate to divide the diseases in order to make it more cost-effective to treat them. If companies were more willing to think of solutions to the cost ineffective nature of orphan drug production, patients would be more able to have faith in the companies they rely on for their medications.
Overall, patients would like to see pharmaceutical companies put more effort into coming up with solutions to make orphan drugs more cost effective to produce. These companies often brush off patient concerns for financial reasons, which leads many people who suffer from orphan diseases to resent them and wish for them to be more reasonable about the production of life-saving medication.
Works Cited
"Orphan Drug Act." Federal Drug Administration. United States Department of Health and Human Services. Web.
“Rare Diseases: Facts and Statistics.” Global Genes, n.d. Web.
Many patients recognize that it is more profitable to produce and sell treatments for common illnesses than it is to treat orphan diseases simply due to the larger consumer base. However, there are a number of companies all producing a treatment for these common diseases whereas there is no available treatment for rare diseases. Many companies producing one drug causes competition, whereas companies who manage to treat rare diseases would be the only ones on the market with that drug for seven years due to the Orphan Drug Act of 1983 ("Orphan Drug Act").
This means that pharmaceutical companies can afford to produce orphan drugs so long as they are the only ones to do so. Therefore, many patients feel that there is the potential for cooperation between pharmaceutical companies to communicate to divide the diseases in order to make it more cost-effective to treat them. If companies were more willing to think of solutions to the cost ineffective nature of orphan drug production, patients would be more able to have faith in the companies they rely on for their medications.
Overall, patients would like to see pharmaceutical companies put more effort into coming up with solutions to make orphan drugs more cost effective to produce. These companies often brush off patient concerns for financial reasons, which leads many people who suffer from orphan diseases to resent them and wish for them to be more reasonable about the production of life-saving medication.
Works Cited
"Orphan Drug Act." Federal Drug Administration. United States Department of Health and Human Services. Web.
“Rare Diseases: Facts and Statistics.” Global Genes, n.d. Web.
Patients with orphan diseases are affected by their diseases every day of their lives, often from a very young age as most orphan diseases are genetic ("Rare Diseases: Facts and Statistics"), and therefore have a unique perspective on the entire orphan drug system. It is natural for them to push for better funding for research as they have become part of an extended community which depends on medication that can be denied to them for financial reasons. For example, the Fabry Disease community builds a sense of togetherness that encourages activism through group therapy, camps for suffering children, and family oriented events. Many patients feel that pharmaceutical companies should be more willing to compromise to develop treatments for orphan diseases despite the financial risks.
Many patients recognize that it is more profitable to produce and sell treatments for common illnesses than it is to treat orphan diseases simply due to the larger consumer base. However, there are a number of companies all producing a treatment for these common diseases whereas there is no available treatment for rare diseases. Many companies producing one drug causes competition, whereas companies who manage to treat rare diseases would be the only ones on the market with that drug for seven years due to the Orphan Drug Act of 1983 ("Orphan Drug Act").
This means that pharmaceutical companies can afford to produce orphan drugs so long as they are the only ones to do so. Therefore, many patients feel that there is the potential for cooperation between pharmaceutical companies to communicate to divide the diseases in order to make it more cost-effective to treat them. If companies were more willing to think of solutions to the cost ineffective nature of orphan drug production, patients would be more able to have faith in the companies they rely on for their medications.
Overall, patients would like to see pharmaceutical companies put more effort into coming up with solutions to make orphan drugs more cost effective to produce. These companies often brush off patient concerns for financial reasons, which leads many people who suffer from orphan diseases to resent them and wish for them to be more reasonable about the production of life-saving medication.
Works Cited
"Orphan Drug Act." Federal Drug Administration. United States Department of Health and Human Services. Web.
“Rare Diseases: Facts and Statistics.” Global Genes, n.d. Web.
Many patients recognize that it is more profitable to produce and sell treatments for common illnesses than it is to treat orphan diseases simply due to the larger consumer base. However, there are a number of companies all producing a treatment for these common diseases whereas there is no available treatment for rare diseases. Many companies producing one drug causes competition, whereas companies who manage to treat rare diseases would be the only ones on the market with that drug for seven years due to the Orphan Drug Act of 1983 ("Orphan Drug Act").
This means that pharmaceutical companies can afford to produce orphan drugs so long as they are the only ones to do so. Therefore, many patients feel that there is the potential for cooperation between pharmaceutical companies to communicate to divide the diseases in order to make it more cost-effective to treat them. If companies were more willing to think of solutions to the cost ineffective nature of orphan drug production, patients would be more able to have faith in the companies they rely on for their medications.
Overall, patients would like to see pharmaceutical companies put more effort into coming up with solutions to make orphan drugs more cost effective to produce. These companies often brush off patient concerns for financial reasons, which leads many people who suffer from orphan diseases to resent them and wish for them to be more reasonable about the production of life-saving medication.
Works Cited
"Orphan Drug Act." Federal Drug Administration. United States Department of Health and Human Services. Web.
“Rare Diseases: Facts and Statistics.” Global Genes, n.d. Web.