Joseph Alpert from the University of Arizona: Balancing Patient Needs for Latest Medications

As newer medications are developed for various conditions there can be a rush to prescribe them for patients. However, various factors including cost can make these prohibitive options for doctors and patients alike.

While attending the American College of Cardiology's annual meeting in Chicago, Joseph Alpert, MD, from the University of Arizona attended a session looking at the benefits of newly approved PCSK9 inhibitors. While data has shown the medications to be effective in helping lower cholesterol levels their cost has also made getting them to patients an issue. Alpert said that in the early stages the drug will likely be best used in only certain patient populations before they are available to a wider reach of the market.