It’s hard to believe anyone in real life could be as heartless and money-grabbing as Mr. Potter, the fictional character in the classic movie “It’s A Wonderful Life.” He was the man without compassion or conscience, the person whose inhumanity toward others made him the perfect villain.

Unfortunately, real-life examples of similar heartlessness and inhumanity have come to light in the form of pharmaceutical companies that turn existing medications into high-priced “specialty drugs” at the expense of people who are fighting potentially life-threatening illnesses. 

The most recent example, exposed earlier this week, is a 62-year-old drug called Daraprim, acquired in August by Turing Pharmaceuticals. That company then jacked up the price of the medication overnight from $13.50 per tablet to $750 per tablet.

The drug requires two pills per day for three to six weeks, meaning the total cost could add up to $63,000.

Martin Shkreli, the 32-year-old founder and chief executive officer of Turing Pharmaceuticals, is a former hedge fund manager. He is listed by TheStreet.com among the nominees for “Absolute Worst Biotechnology CEOs of 2014” after being ousted last year from Retrophin, the pharmaceutical company he started in 2011, by the company’s board of directors. He left the company amid accusations of illegal stock trading.

After stating vehemently Monday that he would not reduce the price of the drug, Shkreli backed down a bit Tuesday evening, saying he would not raise the price to $750 per tablet. However, as of press time Wednesday, he had not said what the price will be.

This is the second time in a few years that the drug has been acquired by a new company. Before that, Daraprim sold for $1 per tablet.

According to the New York Times, Daraprim is used to treat parasitic infections, mainly toxoplasmosis, which can cause serious and sometimes life-threatening problems for babies born to women who are infected during pregnancy, and for people with compromised immune systems, such as AIDS patients and some cancer patients. It also is used to treat malaria.

In Monday’s New York Times story, Shkreli justified the massive price hike for Daraprim by saying the new company was just trying to stay in business. The price was now more in line with those of other drugs for rare diseases, he said. 

“This is still one one of the smallest pharmaceutical products in the world,” he said. 

But that makes little difference for patients who need it. Their ability to afford Daraprim, or lack thereof, could be a matter of life or death. 

Shkreli said the company would provide the drug free to patients with qualifying low incomes (as required by the federal government under the 340B program). 

But those who don’t qualify, as well as Medicare and insurance companies, will be billed the full price. 

How much would you pay to stay alive, or to keep a loved one alive? How much will Medicare or your insurance pay? 

That seems to be the motivating question behind this and other similarly alarming price hikes for medications. Essentially, Shkreli and Turing are holding these patients and their families hostage — and the vastly inflated price is the ransom they must pay ... and pay ... and pay.

Unfortunately, this is just one example of what appears to be a trend in pharmaceutical companies’ pricing.

“That is something we do see from time to time,” said Steven Hultgren, pharmacy department director for Powell Valley Healthcare. 

Hultgren said the hospital pharmacy has to stock an expensive medication for two related patients who live in Powell. The patients have a rare genetic condition that occasionally requires immediate treatment. One vial of the medication used to cost $5,000, until a year and a half ago, when another company acquired the rights to it and raised the cost to $45,000, Hultgren said. 

If the local patients need the medication, it could save their lives. If not, it sits on the shelf until it expires after two years and must be thrown away, he said.

Drug companies know the patients who need these specialty drugs have no choice but to pay whatever the price; otherwise, they face ongoing illness, discomfort, pain or even death. 

Some people are fortunate enough to have insurance that will pay the price, or to be covered by Medicare or Medicaid. But that doesn’t negate the exorbitant cost; it just shifts the burden for that cost to taxpayers or to everyone else on the insurance plan. 

We know pharmaceutical companies need to make a profit. They need to pay their employees good wages, and they must be able to pay for the years-long research and medical trials that lead to lifesaving and life enhancing medications. 

But there are federal grants available to help in this process. The burden does not have to be carried solely by those who need the medications.

What we’re seeing in these instances appears to be nothing more than greed — an inhuman lack of compassion for others; a focus only on the almighty dollar, no matter who has to pay or how they might suffer. Companies profiting by exploiting patients with the rarest or most deadly medical conditions. 

Cancer victims, for instance. 

“Chemotherapy drugs ... are so expensive,” Hultgren said. “Large corporations are all about the dollar.”

While we are unsure of what the solution is for this outrageous price gouging, it is obvious that intervention is needed. 

It is a sad reality that, for some people and corporations, human compassion and decency are so lacking that those qualities must be imposed by legislation and regulation. We know of no other cure for this kind of callousness and greed.