WASHINGTON (AP) — The Food and Drug Administration says it has approved a first-of-a-kind drug that lowers artery-clogging cholesterol more than older drugs that have been prescribed for decades.
The drug from Sanofi and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. offers an important new option for millions of patients at high risk of heart disease. But the drug’s sky-high price tag — $14,000 per year — are certain to escalate debate about the cost of breakthrough drugs and who should take them.
Praluent is the first in a new class of biotech medications that use a novel approach to lower bad, or LDL, cholesterol.