Mylan N.V. said it’s doubling eligibility for its patient assistance program, which it said will get rid of out-of-pocket costs for uninsured and underinsured patients and families.
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Though the drug reportedly only carries $1 worth of medicine, and cost less than $60 in 2007, Mylan has raised the price on EpiPens about 10 to 15 percent on a semi-annual basis. “Not the insurance company”. She even made it on Fortune Magazine’s list of the “50 Most Powerful Women In Business” in 2014. The Democratic presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton, said Wednesday that it was “outrageous” to increase so drastically the price of a product that people needed to survive.
The manufacturer, Mylan Pharmaceuticals, has come under fire for alleged price-gouging. “I am concerned that Mylan’s price increase reflects an attempt to take advantage of a lack of competition, due to a recall of its main competitor in the marketplace”.
In some ways, what is playing out with EpiPen is simply a repeat of other drug price hikes that have garnered attention and outrage – and eventually quieted down.
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. She joined a large number of parents, educators, doctors, and general health and safety advocates who have been calling out Mylan for their actions, and it looks as if they may have had something of an impact.
Meanwhile, Heather Bresh, Mylan’s CEO, has seen her compensation skyrocket from $5 million to $19 million.
Also, the pharmacies at Heritage Valley Health System fill roughly 150 two-pack EpiPen prescriptions each year, he said.
She is also speaking out about how the company increased the price of EpiPen, which now sells for more than $600 each.
Although EpiPen, which delivers a life-saving dose of adrenaline, has been around since 1980, demand picked up only after Mylan bought the rights to the medicine in 2007 and initiated its marketing and lobbying campaign.
Mylan is boosting programs to help patients pay for its EpiPen emergency allergy treatment after heated criticism about an average cost that has soared over the past decade.
However, prominent USA politicians, including Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, said that was not enough and demanded Mylan lower the devices’ price.
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“The fight on the $300 billion pharmaceutical market is real, and we need to fix it, because it’s not sustainable”, Bresch said.
