Norplant contraceptive maker accused of profiteering on drug.
Family planning groups and a lawmaker accused a US drug company yesterday of profiteering on Norplant, the implantable, 5-year contraceptive.  The company said its $365 product is cheaper than birth-control pills.   But Rep. Ron Wyden said Norplant was developed with extensive government support and sells for $23 in some Third World countries.  He said its cost to Wyeth-Ayerst laboratories may be as little as $16.  About 875,000 US women have had 6 match-sized hormone-dispensing rubber capsules implanted in their upper arms since 1990.  Dr. Amy Pollack of the Association of Reproductive Health Professionals said 56% of the 6 million pregnancies in the US each year are unwanted. She said 1.7 million pregnancies occur among women using contraceptives. The failure rate is less than 4 per 10,000 with Norplant compared with 3 per 100 women on the pill, she said.  Dr. Marc W. Deitch, Wyeth's medical director, said the company made a risky decision to bring Norplant to market in collaboration with the nonprofit Population Council.  The implant costs women 20 cents a day over its 5-year life, said Dr. Deitch.  The $365 cost is significantly less than the $1481 they would pay over 5 years for birth-control pills, $762 for a diaphragm and $590 for shots of Depo Provera, he said.  Male condoms cost $312 and an IUD $176.  Family planning advocates challenged Dr. Deitch's math.  Judith DeSarno, president of the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association, said federally funded clinics pay only $60 for a 5-year supply of oral contraceptives.  Women also must pay doctor fees--usually from $150 to $200--for inserting Norplant and eventually removing it from their upper arms.
D000569:Americas; D003267:Contraception; D003270:Contraceptive Agents; D003271:Contraceptive Agents, Female; D003365:Costs and Cost Analysis; D019049:Developed Countries; D004467:Economics; D005193:Family Planning Services; D016912:Levonorgestrel; D008389:Marketing of Health Services; D009656:North America; D014481:United States
D003270:Contraceptive Agents; D003271:Contraceptive Agents, Female; D016912:Levonorgestrel
Americas; Contraception; Contraceptive Agents; Contraceptive Agents, Female; Contraceptive Agents, Progestin; Contraceptive Implants--cost; Contraceptive Methods--cost; Developed Countries; Economic Factors; Family Planning; Levonorgestrel; Marketing; North America; Northern America; Pricing; United States