FTC Is Investigating Shkreli’s 5000% Price Hike of Daraprim

On January 22, 2016, it was reported that the Federal Trade Commission has opened an investigation into Turing Pharmaceuticals Inc.’s  decision last year to hike the price of the life-saving drug Daraprim by more than 5000 percent.  The New York Attorney General opened an investigation last October after Turing raised the price of Daraprim, a 62-year old drug no longer under patent protection, to $750 a tablet from $13.50.  The drug’s main use is to treat life-threatening parasitic infections but it is also needed by some infants and patients with AIDS.  The U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Oversight and Government Reform had previously issued a subpoena ordering Martin Shkreli, the former CEO of Turing, to testify regarding the price hike.  Mr. Shkreli’s lawyers revealed that the FTC opened an investigation in a letter sent to the Committee.  While the FTC only brings civil cases, Mr. Shkreli’s lawyers state that he will not appear at the hearing and answer questions relating to the price hike because of the pending government investigations as any statements about Daraprim could be used against him to support criminal antitrust charges.