“Mylan’s near monopoly on the epinephrine auto-injector market has allowed you to increase prices well beyond those that are justified by any increase in the costs of manufacturing the EpiPen”.
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Mylan were little changed at $43.26 at 9:52 a.m.in NY.
Robert Weissman, president of the consumer group Public Citizen, said that the new move was not enough and that Mylan should just cut the price across the board.
Mylan has been widely criticized in recent weeks for the high cost of the lifesaving drug, which has risen an estimated 500 percent to about $600 in the United States since 2008.
The CEO of Mylan Pharmaceuticals announced the launch of its own cheaper version of the EpiPen this week on the heels of a price hike uproar.
Mylan hasn’t responded to Associated Press questions about its costs and income from EpiPen, its most profitable product. As a result, the generic version may not hurt Mylan’s sales much, say analysts who track the stock. The drug also has a generic version. He also continues to look for a written response from the FDA on the status of any alternatives to the EpiPen and what might have created delays in introducing them.
Information requested by the lawmakers includes how many customers use Mylan’s savings card to purchase EpiPens, how the company’s patient assistance program works and how the company partners with schools. But pharmacists say co-pay cards can not be used to purchase generic drugs, so essentially patients will still be paying $300.
Long claimed Schumer’s committee had received $238,000 from the pharmaceutical industry’s PACs since 2004, and $195,000 from individual drug-industry donors since 1999. The letter was addressed to Heather Bresch, daughter of Democratic Sen.
Pharmacy benefits managers, which negotiate drug prices for insurers and employers, often get discounts off a drug’s list price, and patient out-of-pocket costs can vary by plan. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va. Manchin did not sign the letter.
The introduction of the generic is in addition to measures the company announced last week for the branded EpiPen, which will remain in place.
The authorised generic will be identical to the branded product, including device functionality and drug formulation.
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Additionally, patients enrolled in Medicare and Medicaid are ineligible for the copay assistance program due to a government’s ban on couponing for the two programs, prompting the senators to ask Mylan how it has worked to ensure access to such patients while ensuring they do not receive Savings Cards.
