EpiPen’s Pricetag Quickly Becomes Latest Outrage In Drug-Pricing Debate
Under the weight of the criticism, stock prices for Mylan, the manufacturer of the Epi-Pen, fell 5.4 percent on Wednesday and 4.8 percent the day before. Meanwhile, news outlets examine the steps that led to the dramatic price increase and reaction from policy makers and even local physicians.
The New York Times:
The Complex Math Behind Spiraling Prescription Drug Prices
The soaring cost of prescription drugs has generated outrage among politicians and patients. Some cancer drugs carry price tags of more than $100,000 a year, and health plans are increasingly asking people to shoulder a greater share of the cost. The latest outrage involves the price of EpiPen, a lifesaving injection device for people with severe allergies, which has risen to more than $600 for the list price of a two-pen set, from less than $100 when Mylan acquired the product in 2007. (Thomas, 8/24)
The Wall Street Journal:
Mylan Faces Scrutiny Over EpiPen Price Increases
Mylan pointed to a statement saying it was committed to ensuring patients have affordable access to the drug, and the company has given away more than 700,000 EpiPens to schools while paying all the out-of-pocket costs of 80% of commercially insured patients. The criticism has taken a toll on Mylan, whose stock fell 5.4% on Wednesday after a 4.8% drop the day before. (Rockoff, 8/24)
NPR:
Latest Target In The Drug Price Wars? The Ubiquitous EpiPen
EpiPens are in your friend's purse and your kid's backpack. The school nurse has a few, as does Grandma. The medicine inside — epinephrine — has been around forever, and the handy gadget that injects it into your leg is not particularly new either. So members of Congress, responding to their angry constituents, want to know why the price of the EpiPen, which can reverse a life-threatening allergic reaction, has risen about fivefold in the past decade. (Kodjak, 8/24)
The New York Times:
Mylan Raised EpiPen’s Price Before The Expected Arrival Of A Generic
In 2012, the company behind the EpiPen settled a lawsuit by agreeing to allow a generic competitor into the market in 2015, potentially cutting into a big part of its business. The company, Mylan, had already been steadily increasing the price of EpiPen, an injector containing a drug that can save people from life-threatening allergy attacks. After the settlement, it started to raise the price even faster. (Pollack, 8/24)
Stat:
Mylan Price Hikes On Many Other Drugs Eclipsed EpiPen Increases
EpiPen price hikes may be causing outrage, but those pale in comparison to the huge increases that Mylan Laboratories took on dozens of other medicines earlier this year. For instance, the company raised the price of ursodiol, a generic medicine used to treat gallstones, by 542 percent. There was also a 400 percent boost in the price for dicyclomine, which combats irritable bowel syndrome, and a 312 percent increase for metoclopramide, a generic drug that treats gastroesophageal reflux disease. (Silverman, 8/24)
Orlando Sentinel:
Local Doctors Concerned About EpiPen Price Increase
With some parents panicking over the skyrocketing price of life-saving EpiPens, local doctors are frustrated that they can't offer an alternative prescription to patients. "Usually when someone can't afford one type of antibiotic, we prescribe them another one. But here there's no alternative," said Dr. Steven Rosenberg, a senior physician at Allergy, Asthma & Immunology Associates of Central Florida. (Miller, 8/24)