When Patricia Brown-Cook checked into a California clinic for an infusion of Merck’s blockbuster cancer drug Keytruda, one line dominated her bill: a charge just over $162,000 for a single 400-milligram dose. While Brown-Cook owed only about $2,000 out of pocket, the staggering six-figure charge to her insurance company illustrates how quickly cutting-edge medical treatments can balloon in the U.
