Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

A Martin Shkreli Wannabe Just Raised A Drug's Price 400% With A 'Moral Requirement' Justification

Nirmal Mulye is the president of Nostrum Pharmaceuticals.

Last month, his company raised the price of an antibiotic called nitrofurantoin from approximately $500 per bottle to over $2300 a bottle.


Mulye's defense of the price gouge? It is a "moral requirement".

Nitrofurantoin is used to treat bladder infections and is on the World Health Organization's list of essential medicines. On Tuesday, the Financial Times spoke with Mulye about his company's astronomical price increase of the essential antibiotic.

He responded:

"I think it is a moral requirement to make money when you can... to sell the product for the highest price."

The price increase allegedly occurred in response to Casper Pharma's price inflation of their branded version of the same drug, Furadantin. Furadantin sells for $2800, causing Mulye to further defend his company's price jump which is an entire $500 less than their competition.

He likened Nostrum Pharmaceuticals choice to that of an art dealer. He said that he was in "this business to make money."

Mulye rounded out his impeccable ethics by defending Martin Shkreli—the "pharma bro" who raised the price of an AIDS drug by more than 5,000 percent. Shkreli was sentenced to 7 years in prison for fraud relating to his hedge funds.

Mulye said:

"I agree with Martin Shkreli that when he raised the price of his drug he was within his rights because he had to reward his shareholders."

He also stated:

"This is a capitalist economy and if you can't make money you can't stay in business. We have to make money when we can."
"The price of iPhones goes up, the price of cars goes up, hotel rooms are very expensive."

Dr. Scott Gottlieb—who serves as the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration—tweeted about Nirmal Mulye's outrageous statements.




After seeing Gottlieb's response, Mulye said:

"[Gottlieb] does not have the necessary competence to comment on the morality of drug price increases, which is a complex subject."

People are disgusted by Mulye's twisted principles.












Maybe someday drug companies will develop a drug that will give guys like Shkreli and Mulye an accurate moral compass.

H/T: CNN, Financial Times

More from Trending

crowded city sidewalk
Lawrence Chismorie on Unsplash

People Break Down The Biggest Double Standards In Society

A double standard is a code, policy, or social construct that favors one group or person over another.

Double standards are inherently unfair.

Keep ReadingShow less

TV Shows People Stopped Watching Because Of A Single Episode

Watching TV is a favorite hobby for many, including trying out the many TV shows that are available on various streaming services.

But sometimes the writers of the TV shows get something terribly wrong, and viewers find themselves quitting a show over one episode.

Keep ReadingShow less
Cynthia Erivo
Michael Rowe/Getty Images for IMDb

Cynthia Erivo Slams Accusations That She Was A 'Woke Hire' For 'Wicked' Role

Wicked star Cynthia Erivo fired back at racist accusations she was a "woke hire" to play the role of Elphaba, a.k.a. the Wicked Witch of the West, in the two-part film adaptation of the musical film.

Since its release in November, Wicked so far grossed over $500 million at the global box office.

Keep ReadingShow less
Colin Jost; Scarlett Johansson
SNL

Colin Jost Read Some NSFW Jokes On 'SNL' About Wife Scarlett Johansson—While She Watched

Saturday Night Live's "Weekend Update" with co-anchors Colin Jost and Michael Che continued their annual year-end tradition of reading each other's jokes about them live on air, and it was about as jaw-droppingly hysterical as ever.

Before the segment began, Jost apologized in advance that Che was having him tell "some racist jokes like he always does," to which Che feigned innocence by putting his hand to chest, as if he would do such a thing.

Keep ReadingShow less
Elon Musk
Alex Wong/Getty Images

Elon Musk Schooled After Comparing Obama-Era Democrats To Far-Right German Party

Billionaire Elon Musk was criritized after he attempted to equate the far-right Alternative for Deutschland (AfD) party to Democrats at the beginning of Barack Obama's presidency, and was swiftly fact-checked—even by X's own AI chatbot.

Afd is known for its opposition to the European Union (EU) and immigration to Germany. The party presented itself as an economic liberal, soft Euroskeptic and conservative movement upon its establishment in 2013 but has since moved further to the right, expanding its policies under successive leaderships to include opposition to immigration, Islam, and the EU.

Keep ReadingShow less