ICER chastises J&J for overpricing depression drug esketamine ‘where there is such need for treatment’
Cognizant of the myriad of approved antidepressants that often don’t work, regulators endorsed J&J’s $JNJ pharmaceutical version of the hallucinogenic anesthetic ketamine — esketamine — in March for treatment-resistant depression, well aware that the original cat tranquilizer is frequently used off-label for severe depression. On Thursday, ICER concluded that while the drug, sold as Spravato, does confer a “promising” clinical benefit, its current list price exceeds a common cost-effectiveness threshold by a modest margin.
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