The EpiPen’s manufacturer, Mylan, is drawing heavy criticism this week from consumers and lawmakers for raising the price of its auto-injector by more than 400 percent over the last eight years.
The device, which precisely calibrates the dosage of epinephrine to counteract severe allergic reactions, costs some consumers more than $600 for a two-pack.
Turns out, the EpiPen isn’t the only product Mylan has raised the price of, reported NBC News in an article published this morning. Wells Fargo senior analyst David Maris outlined in a June report that in the last year Mylan raised prices more than 20 percent on 24 products, and more than 100 percent on seven products.
According to the NBC News article:
Politicians, from Senator Bernie Sanders to Senator Amy Klobuchar, have questioned Mylan’s price hike on the EpiPen and called for investigations into the situation.
In a statement to Mylan Senator Mark Warner said, “I am deeply concerned by this significant price increase for a product that has been on the market for more than three decades, and by Mylan’s failure to publicly explain the recent cost increase.”
Earlier this week, Mylan said in a statement its prices have “changed over time to better reflect important product features and the value the product provides. We’ve made a significant investment to support the device over the past years.”
An online petition to Congress, called Stop the EpiPen Price Gouging, currently has more than 83,000 signatures.
But prescription drug prices have been rising for some time. Many medications are more expensive in the U.S. than they are elsewhere. In France, EpiPens are sold by a different company, and they cost approximately $85 for a two-pack, noted The Atlantic.
In 2007, when Mylan acquired the EpiPen, the company brought in $200 million in annual revenue. Today, the auto-injector accounts for more than $1 billion in annual sales.
Adding to the controversy are reports of executive compensation hikes. Mylan’s CEO Heather Bresch’s salary increased by nearly 700 percent from 2007 to 2015, NBC News reported. Bresch is the daughter of Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia.
Photo credit: Mark Zaleski / AP
Filed Under: Drug Discovery
