Innovative pills against hepatitis C are criticized by some health care providers, as they consider whether it is worth the $1,000-a-pill price set by manufacturer Gilead Sciences Inc, Newsmax Health reports.

A panel of California medical experts voted Monday that Gilead's Sovaldi represents a "low value" treatment, considering its cost compared with older drugs for the blood-borne virus.

Doctors have long sought more effective, palatable treatments for hepatitis C, the liver-destroying virus carried by an estimated 3 million to 4 million Americans. 

Gilead Sciences' drug, approved by U.S. regulators in December, was quickly embraced by physicians based on its once-a-day pill regimen and increased effectiveness, curing between 80 and 90 percent of patients.

But some patient groups and health providers are beginning to question the cost of that benefit.

Gilead Sciences has said that the drug's costs will be recouped over the long term as fewer patients suffer liver failure and transplant complications. 

Gilead Sciences did not send a representative to Monday's meeting, but a company spokeswoman noted that it offers financial assistance to patients who cannot afford the drug.