She went on further dodge the question by pointing out ways that her company has worked for years to be sure that schools have EpiPens on hand.
Advertisement
The recent EpiPen outrage also prompted Mylan to emphasis that it will continue providing select school systems with free EpiPens and that it will still permit financially eligible families to receive a two-pack of EpiPens for free.
A life-saving drug for people with allergies just got a lot more expensive. Sarah Jessica Parker, whose son has an intense peanut allergy, recently joined the voices calling for a price decrease. “And there is no competitor for EpiPen on the market right now, and it’s off-patent”, explained Peter Pitts, a former official at the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Following the uproar about the price of EpiPens, Mylan has vowed to make them more affordable. “If you could put up a $300 gift certificate, why not do it the simpler way, just lower the price to a reasonable level?” He and a few others say the discounts aren’t enough.
Mylan has worked to help patients with commercial insurance pay as little as $0 for EpiPen Auto-Injector using the My EpiPen Savings Card. Charles Grassley, a Republican from Iowa, has also spoken out on the issue.
Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., says his Oversight and Government Reform Committee would hold hearings.
“As a mother, I can assure you, the last thing that we would ever want is no one to have their EpiPen due to price”, Mylan CEO Heather Bresch said in an interview with CNBC Thursday.
And Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton weighed in on her Facebook page. We recognise the significant burden on patients from continued, rising insurance premiums and being forced increasingly to pay the full list price for medicines at the pharmacy counter.
The wholesale price of a single pen was about $47 in 2007.
Nearly immediately, critics assailed Mylan’s discount announcement, saying the list price isn’t changing and that ultimately consumers will bear most of the costs. The cards are not allowed in federal health care programs because they are considered a kickback.
Advertisement
“I will observe, however, that pharmaceutical companies that often try to portray themselves as the inventors of life-saving medication often do real damage to their reputation by being greedy and jacking up prices in a way that victimizes”, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said at a news briefing.
