$2.6 to $5 million: 1988 NIH estimate of cost of developing new drug

[James Love <love@cptech.org>]

In looking over some older documents, I came across this interesting
information from an August 23, 1988 petition by Public Citizen Health
Research Group and the American Public Health Association.  The Petition
asked the US Department of Health and Human Services to adopt a policy
of non-exclusive licensing, with price constraints, for all AIDS-related
products developed in US government institutions.

On page 7 of the petition is this quote:

    Based on estimates from the division
    of Cancer Treatment at the National
    Cancer Institute their costs of developing
    a single drug and taking it through Phase II
    trials are approximately $1,040,000.  Total
    costs through Phase III trials would range
    from $1.6 million to $4 million. 
    (See annex #2)

This would put the NIH's costs at about 1 
percent of the numbers typically used by 
PhRMA.  I'm looking around for this Annex #2.  

This petition was full of good ideas, such as
requirements that companies disclose costs to
the public.  Also, that the US government
"take into consideration the international
magnitude of [the AIDS] epidemic in
the development of its patent policies abroad,"
and "assure accessibility at the lowest 
reasonable cost in poor national currently
combating this epidemic."

 Jamie Love <love@cptech.org>

-- 
James Love
Consumer Project on Technology
http://www.cptech.org
love@cptech.org
202.387.8030; fax 202.234.5176