They at risk for a serious reaction – anaphylactic shock. Mylan hasn’t answered questions about how it justifies its price hikes.
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Like all drugmakers, Mylan periodically hikes its prices. “Manufacturing costs for the product have been stable and Mylan does not need to recover the product’s research and development costs because the product was on the market years before Mylan acquired it in 2007”, Klobuchar wrote in a letter to FTC Chair Edith Ramirez. But Mylan’s stock, which had fallen over 10 percent this week, rose 3.2 percent on Thursday, after announcement of its discount program.Clinton admonished Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc, which raised the price of a heart drug.
The American Medical Association has also released a statement imploring Mylan to reduce the price of the drug. A lack of competition has allowed the rapid increase in price – patients simply don’t have many other options.
High deductible insurance plans are created to get employees to shop smarter and can elicit an outcry over prices that doesn’t happen when insurance covers them, says Annette Guarisco Fildes, CEO of the ERISA Industry Committee, which represents the largest employers.
The statement recommended that people review their coverage.
Mylan also said it will double the eligibility for its patient assistance program which will eliminate out-of-pocket expenses for those who are uninsured and under-insured.
The EpiPen faces little competition – the drug accounted for 87 percent of all epinephrine prescriptions pharmacies filled previous year. A pair of Adrenaclick syringes costs $142 to $380 at pharmacies, according to online comparison sites.
“Yeah sure, that’s great – but I think important medicine should be expensive because they’re valuable”, said Martin Shkreli. Generic maker Teva has permission to launch a version but hasn’t gotten regulatory approval yet. Not only that, but filing documents show that salaries of top execs at Mylan Pharmaceuticals *also* skyrocketed over the last eight years.
Q: Is there another alternative? He cited the cost to parents when children must have them and to schools that keep EpiPens on hand.
“With changes in the healthcare insurance landscape, an increasing number of people and families are enrolled in high deductible health plans, and deductible amounts continue to rise”, company officials said in a statement.
“There’s no reason an EpiPen, which costs Mylan just a few dollars to make, should cost families more than $600”, he tweeted.
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Jackie Davis of Newport News, Va., and her husband, Cory, recently moved from health coverage through the military, which covered all costs for their son Michael’s EpiPens and asthma inhalers, to a commercial plan with a $6,000 deductible.
