Good morning. It's Friday, Aug. 16, and we're covering reduced Medicare drug prices, arrests surrounding the death of actor Matthew Perry, and much more. First time reading? Join over 3.8 million intellectually curious readers. Sign up here. |
|
|
|
Medicare Slashes Drug Prices |
The US government announced the reduced prices of 10 prescription drugs for Medicare users yesterday. The deal was the result of the first direct negotiations between drug companies and the agency following the passage of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act.
The drugs treat a range of conditions from blood cancer to diabetes and are generally high-expense with no generic competitors. The new prices, reduced by nearly 80% in some instances (see list), will take effect in 2026. Officials project Medicare will save roughly $100B over five years, while individual users can expect a total of $1.5B in out-of-pocket cost savings via a potential $2,000 annual cap. The IRA stipulates a new crop of 15 to 20 drugs will be eligible for price negotiations annually.
Since 1960, US retail drug prices per capita have risen over 1,000%, adjusting for inflation. Costs in the US are nearly three times more than those in other high-income countries. Explore why here. |
Five people have been charged in connection with the ketamine-related death of actor Matthew Perry. The 54-year-old “Friends” star was found unresponsive in his hot tub in October 2023. An autopsy confirmed he died from the effects of ketamine, with coronary artery disease and drowning as contributing factors.
“Ketamine Queen” Jasveen Sangha, who allegedly operated a stash house in North Hollywood, is accused of supplying the drug to individuals involved in Perry's case. Physician Salvador Plasencia is accused of selling thousands of dollars worth of ketamine to Perry’s assistant and administering the drug to Perry outside his professional practice. Three others have pleaded guilty in the case, including friend Erik Fleming, personal assistant Kenneth Iwamasa, and physician Mark Chavez.
Ketamine, developed as an anesthetic in the 1960s, is a Schedule III controlled substance used to treat depression, anxiety, and pain, and can be prone to misuse. Overdose deaths solely from ketamine are rare; most related deaths are attributed to the drug being combined with other substances. |
New Zealand yesterday agreed to extradite 50-year-old Kim Schmitz—also known as Kim Dotcom—to the US. The signed order comes after 12 years of legal disputes; Dotcom has vowed to fight it.
Dotcom is the German-born founder and former CEO of the now-defunct website Megaupload. (He was also once a hacker and the No. 1 Call of Duty player in the world.) Operational from 2005 to 2012, Megaupload allowed users to share pirated movie and music files, at one point becoming the internet's 13th most popular site, responsible for 4% of all traffic. Megaupload allegedly raked in more than $175M in revenue, powered by advertisements and premium subscription fees.
In 2012, the Justice Department indicted Dotcom on copyright infringement, money laundering, and racketeering charges, alleging his actions cost the film and music industry over $500M. Dotcom faces a maximum US prison sentence of 55 years. Watch a profile of Dotcom here. |
|
|
|
|
In partnership with Incogni |
Keep Your SSN Off The Dark Web |
Every day, data brokers profit from your sensitive info—phone number, DOB, SSN—selling it to the highest bidder. And who’s buying it? Best case: companies target you with ads. Worst case: scammers and identity thieves.
It's time you check out Incogni. It scrubs your personal data from the web, confronting the world’s data brokers on your behalf. And unlike other services, Incogni helps remove your sensitive information from all broker types, including those tricky People Search Sites.
Help protect yourself from identity theft, spam calls, and health insurers raising your rates. Plus, just for 1440 readers: Get 55% off Incogni using code 1440DAILY. |
Please support our sponsors! |
|
|
|
Sports, Entertainment, & Culture |
|
|
|
> Mauricio Pochettino, former manager of Chelsea and Tottenham, to be named coach of US men's national soccer team; former coach Gregg Berhalter was fired in June after leading Team USA for nearly six years (More) |
> Gena Rowlands, "The Notebook" star and two-time Oscar nominee, dies at age 94; Rowlands was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 2019 (More) | Police arrest four suspects in fatal shooting of former "General Hospital" actor Johnny Wactor (More) |
> The 2024-25 English Premier League season kicks off today; see predicted finish for all 20 teams (More) | NBA releases schedule for 2024-25 season, which is set to begin Oct. 22 (More) |
|
> Researchers genetically sequence 47 known and potential strains of Lyme-disease-causing bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi; research may help with development of vaccine candidates as well as improved diagnostic tests, treatments (More) |
> Dinosaur-killing asteroid likely originated beyond Jupiter, new study finds; three isotopes of the rare metal ruthenium discovered in the 66-million-year-old crater are associated with high-carbon asteroids in outer solar system (More) |
> New implantable device can detect vital signs and rapidly administer opioid-overdose reversal medication naloxone; device was 96% effective at reversing overdose effects in animal studies (More) |
|
In partnership with Sky Quarry |
|
|
|
> US stock markets close higher (S&P 500 +1.6%, Dow +1.4%, Nasdaq +2.3%) as investors regain confidence in US economy after retail sales unexpectedly grew 1% month-over-month in July (More) |
> Cisco shares rise roughly 6%, marking best day since November 2020 after tech giant beats quarterly revenue and earnings estimates and announces it is cutting 7% of its workforce in second round of layoffs this year (More) |
> Walmart shares rise roughly 6% after nation's largest retailer beats quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, raises full-year forecast (More) |
|
> JD Vance and Tim Walz, the Republican and Democratic vice presidential nominees, respectively, to debate Oct. 1 on CBS in New York City (More) |
> Sweden confirms first case of mpox strain outside of Africa; announcement comes one day after World Health Organization declares mpox a global health emergency (More) | What is mpox? (More) | See previous write-up (More) |
> Ukraine captures Russian town of Sudzha, largest to fall since Ukraine's cross-border incursion (More) | US-Russian ballerina Ksenia Karelina sentenced to 12 years in Russian prison on treason charges over $52 donation to Ukraine (More) |
|
> Sculpting a Cello
ProcessX | Staff. Luthier Takao Iwai studied at the center of stringed instrument creation—Cremona, Italy—before starting his own shop in Japan. Follow along over six months as he transforms the wood into a beautiful piece. (Watch)
> Rush Week at Bama
Culture Study | Anne Helen Petersen. Behind the scenes at the University of Alabama's vaunted Greek Life, this first part in a series breaks down what's involved in rush week, from hourslong makeup routines to scrubbing social media profiles. (Read) |
> What Can Genetic Ancestry Tests Tell Us?
Nature | Ewen Callaway. When you find out you are related to an individual from 600 years ago, it's not always clear what that means. Finding the answer is growing more urgent amid growth in consumer genomics and ancient genome studies. (Read)
> Opioid Contradictions
Atlantic | Ethan Brooks. (Podcast) An investigation into the cultural reasons why Americans did not adopt opioid addiction medicine buprenorphine despite its proven success in reducing overdoses in France by 79%. (Listen) |
|
In partnership with Incogni |
Your Personal Info Is Floating Around the Web |
Please support our sponsors! |
|
|
"I swing big, with everything I've got. I hit big or I miss big. I like to live as big as I can." |
|
Why 1440? The printing press was invented around the year 1440, spreading knowledge to the masses and changing the course of history. More facts: In every day, there are 1,440 minutes. We’re here to make each one count.
Send us your feedback at [email protected] and help us stay as unbiased as humanly possible. We’re ready to listen.
Interested in reaching smart readers like you? To become a 1440 partner, apply here. |
*Disclosure: This is a paid advertisement for Sky Quarry’s Regulation A Offering. Please read the offering circular at investor.skyquarry.com |
1440 Media 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Suite 1212 Chicago, IL 60654
Copyright © 2024, 1440 Media, All rights reserved.
J |
|
|
|
|
|
